The chocolate gourami (''Sphaerichthys osphromenoides'') is a species of gourami native to the

Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula (Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The area ...

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

, and Borneo. Chocolate gouramis reach a length of . These fish have a chocolate colour with golden bands running down their bodies.

Taxonomy

'' Sphaerichthys selatanensis'' has sometimes been treated as a subspecies of ''S. osphromenoides''.

Ecology

They are restricted to peat habitats. Unlike many other

labyrinth fish The Anabantoidei are a suborder of anabantiform ray-finned freshwater fish distinguished by their possession of a lung-like labyrinth organ, which enables them to breathe air. The fish in the Anabantoidei suborder are known as anabantoids or ...

, which breed by incubating their eggs in a bubble nest, this species is a mouthbrooder. Even more unusually, this species is a maternal mouthbrooder, with the female incubating the eggs in her mouth; all other anabantoid mouthbrooders (with the exception of its close relative ''Sphaerichthys selatanensis'') are paternal mouthbrooders, with the male carrying the eggs and young larvae. They are omnivorous, but feed primarily on insects.

In the aquarium

They are popular

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

fish, but are challenging to keep. Without optimum water conditions, they are susceptible to bacterial infections and skin parasites. Chocolate gouramis are best kept on their own in well-planted aquaria with gentle filtration. They require soft, acidic water; most of all, they prefer a higher temperature than most fish. Tank temperature should be maintained at 25–27 °C (77–81 °F). They are generally fussy eaters, preferring to eat live foods or freeze-dried, frozen equivalents over

flake food Aquarium fish feed is plant or animal material intended for consumption by pet fish kept in aquariums or ponds. Fish foods normally contain macronutrients, trace elements and vitamins necessary to keep captive fish in good health. Approximately ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:gourami, chocolate Luciocephalinae Fish of Malaysia Fish of Indonesia Fish of Southeast Asia chocolate gourami chocolate gourami