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Right, another week. Time is really flying! This week I'm going to do two rare fish, including a big fish with a red tail.

Not a Rare Fish -- Osphronemus goramy -- Giant Gourami
RFotW #18 -- Osphronemus laticlavius -- Red Tailed Giant Gourami, Red Fin Giant Gourami
RFotW #19 -- Osphronemus exodon -- Elephant Ear Gourami




And surprise surprise, I'm not speaking of Phractocephalus hemioliopterus. Once again, I found it extremely difficult to find good pics of these fish...

I thought I'd take the chance to discuss these fish as they're rather quite similar. The Red Tailed Giant Gourami and the Elephant Ear Gourami are like the Giant Gourami Osphronemus goramy in many respects. It's true, they basically look the same except for the presence of some red coloration on the fins (hence Red Tailed or Red Fin) or (supposedly) a black patch on the gill cover (hence Elephant Ear). If you look closely on the image of the Red Tailed Giant Gourami you should see some red edges to the fins; in a healthy fish and with a good photo such coloration would be more obvious. The Elephant Ear Gourami supposedly can develop red patches on its body that look like bruises; I haven't gotten any details whether or not they actually are bruises, though, but that explains the image. Hopefully when you come across a Red Tailed or Elephant Ear you'll be able to tell it is one. Perhaps the fish store actually orders them in as such, or it may actually go unnoticed and be hidden in a tank of Giant Gourami (much like last week's False Neons might be hidden among Cardinals).

Also, they're both massive fish getting around the length of two feet. Though the Red Tailed species is the smaller of the three, that doesn't mean that it's not a big fish! All three will need a large tank of a 180 gallon when not even fully mature, and preferably a larger tank (or pond!) than that as they get even larger.

Furthermore, they're huge pigs when it comes to eating. Giant Gourami species are known for eating just about anything you throw in the tank, regardless if it's fruit or Froot Loop. In places where this fish is kept in to be served as food (apparently they're really tasty), I've been told that restaurant owners will feed them with leftovers from the restaurant! That's not recommended for when you're keeping the fish, but remember that if you purchase one of these fish you're looking at a great big omnivore with an even bigger appetite.

Also, as a warning, these fish are not quite the good community fish they're smaller cousins are. Giant Gourami species are tough as nails and can kick the tail of any fish they please if they're so inclined. These fish shouldn't be kept with anything that can't take care of itself. One should excercise caution when introducing such a fish into a tank, and also, it may be a good idea to not put this fish into a tank first lest it take over the whole tank as its territory before other fish have a chance.

However, these fish are not all that evil. As a Gourami, one can rely on one of their most endearing qualities: personability. Gourami and cichlids can be pretty friendly when it comes to their owners, as many have realized. They will react positively when their owners (or at least, feeders, as sometimes it can seem that our fish own us! ) when they come around to the aquarium, and that can be a nice change to the almost constant swimming back and forth of danios and tetras.

I'd expect such fish to be affordable at prices between $10 and $100, depending mostly on the size of the fish you're purchasing. Admittedly Giant Gourami aren't really in all that high demand, and even the attractive Red Tail Giant Gourami isn't all that great to give it a significant price boost from it's relatives.

BTW, as a final note to Giant Gourami enthusiasts, there is a form called the "Polka Dot Giant Gourami" that is not often seen; it is a white Giant Gourami with numerous hot pink spots on it's body. Well, you guessed it, it's dyed. When I discovered its existence, I was really quite surprised they'd spend that much time dying a single fish, but apparently it's done.

Links:

[link=http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=498&genusname=Osphronemus&speciesname=goramy]http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=498&genusname=Osphronemus&speciesname=goramy" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]

[link=http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=16572&genusname=Osphronemus&speciesname=laticlavius]http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=16572&genusname=Osphronemus&speciesname=laticlavius" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]

[link=http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=26871&genusname=Osphronemus&speciesname=exodon]http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.cfm?ID=26871&genusname=Osphronemus&speciesname=exodon" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]

Past RFOTW:
1. [link=Polynemus paradiseus -- Paradise threadfin]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/46807.html" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
2. [link=Anableps anableps -- Four-Eyed Fish]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/47270.html" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
3. [link=Hypancistrus zebra -- Zebra Plec]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/47753.html?200409261201" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
4. [link=Potamotrygon sp. -- Pearl Ray]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/47753.html?200409261201" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
5. [link=Merodontotus Tigrinus -- Tigrinus Catfish, Zebra Shovelnose]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/48196.html?200410031445" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
6. [link=Rhinopias aphanes -- Merlet's Scorpionfish, Lacy Scorpionfish]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/48511.html?200410101249" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
7. [link=Tetraodon pustulatus]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/48859.html?200410171215" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
8. [link=Astronotus orbicularis -- Bumblebee Oscar]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/49209.html?200410241022" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
9. [link=Parambassis pulcinella -- Rhino Glassfish, Humphead Glassfish]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/49556.html?200410312127" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
10. [link=Lepisosteus platyrhincus -- Golden Florida Gar]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/49807.html?200411070900" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
11. [link=Polyodon spathula -- Missippi Paddlefish]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/50120.html?200411141732" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
12. [link=Pterois radiata -- Radiata Lionfish, Clearfin Turkeyfish]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/50432.html?200411211707" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
13. [link=Panaque suttonorum, Panaque suttoni -- Blue Eyed Plec]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/50738.html?200411281544" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
14. [link=Potamotrygon sp. -- P14, Itaituba Ray]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/51100.html?200412051413" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
15. [link=Brachyplatysoma juruense -- Juruense Catfish, False Tigrinus, Alianza Cat]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/51430.html?200412121807" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
16. [link=Neoceratodus forsteri -- Australian Lungfish, Queensland Lungfish]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/54184.html" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link]
17. [link=Paracheirodon simulans -- False Neon Tetra, Green Neon Tetra]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Recovery%20Room/54737.html?200502131642" style="COLOR: #40FFFF[/link][/font][/font]

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Great fish choice!

I read an article on the polka dot gourami somewhere, but I don't remember where it was now. It's a really horrible process, especially since they have to do multiple injections to get the polka dot effect!

I can vouch for the crazy appetite of these guys, I currently own a standard Giant and she eats anything I put in the tank! She's only 8 inches or so now, but she's growing fast.