|
|
Trichogaster
trichopterus: Blue Gourami
Lynda
Dibble
GPASI
Journal , Fall
1987
|
|
I
was lucky enough on one of my excursions to the local pet shop to
purchase two young blue gouramis about an inch long and to have them
mature into a pair. I say lucky, because usually when I buy fish this
way I get two males or two females. But at the time, it didn't matter;
I just wanted to add some blue to my community tank. So conditioning
wasn't anything special--they got flakes daily and tubifex worms twice
a week like all the other fish.
As time went by, I noticed a difference between the two gouramis.
The female was a dull blue gray, three inches long, and had a much
smaller dorsal fin as compared to the male's. His dorsal was longer
and more pointed. His colors were deeper and more prominent, and he
was about three and a half inches long. I also noticed that the female
had begun to fill with eggs and looked as though she had swallowed
a guppy or two.
It became apparent that I would have to get the two together, as the
female had become listless and was not moving around much. This did
not seem to be very likely in the 40-gallon tank, where they seldom
came across each other; when they did, he chased her. I filled a 5.5-gallon
tank with aged water, no air, no gravel, but with a few plants for
the female to hide in, in case things didn't go well. I added the
pair simultaneously. They investigated the surroundings, chose their
corners, and stayed there. That was it, I thought.
But on the third day the male began to build his nest that looked
like foam on the water. Then he tore it down and built it again. The
female even managed to put in a little work before he chased her away.
After about a week the actual spawning took place. It was interesting
to watch, something like a ballet. The male, dressed in a very dark
blue pattern, danced side by side with the female half way across
the tank, then retreated to his nest to add a few more bubbles. This
was repeated until his nest took up a quarter of the tank's surface.
This dancing went on for about 35 minutes. Then the male slowly encircled
the female with his body while she just seemed to relax and drift
on her side. Then about 10-15 eggs appeared and drifted toward the
bottom. The embrace was released, and the male rapidly gathered the
fallen eggs in his mouth and literally spit them up into his nest,
while the female retreated to her corner. The process was repeated
over a period of about an hour and a half.
When it was all over, I removed the female, but not before she'd been
severely assaulted by the male, who apparently now considered her
a threat to "his" brood. He took over as "mother"
of the spawn and assumed full responsibility, retrieving fallen eggs
and then fry, and repairing the nest. He did so well he didn't even
eat. I recommend that you don't feed the male during this period,
as the food will only foul the tank.
Everything was fine until the fry were free swimming, when the conflict,
or generation gap, began. The male tried continuously to put the fry
back into the nest, which was disintegrating because he hadn't the
time to fix it. But the fry were intent on finding food and adventuring
out of the nest. At this point, the male, at the end of his rope and
hungry, too, may decide to kill two birds with one stone--quench his
appetite and get rid of these hardheaded kids at the same time. So,
take the male out at this time. His work is done. Give him a good
quantity of food and a well earned rest.
The fry are very small, sliverlike, but grow fast when given lots
of space and food. I use Liquifry three times a day, 10 drops, mixed
with a tablespoon of lukewarm water. I find that by doing this the
particles stay suspended longer for consumption. At this stage an
airstone or sponge filter may be added.
It is also important to keep a tight lid or covering on the tank,
because sometime between the second and fourth weeks the fry take
a gulp of air to open their labyrinth breathing system. The cover
keeps the temperature of the air above the water the same as the water,
to reduce the shock to the fry, which could kill them. |
Up
5
|
| Back
to Top
Questions
or Problems? Contact |
|
|
