Paradise fish
- #1
Paradise fish
I decided to make a whole new post about them to honor these beautiful, timeless, and very unique creatures.
Paradise fish (Macropodus Opercularis), aka Paradise Gourami, Chinese Fighting Fish, is the first ever fish of the tropical fish keeping hobby. They rank among the well known goldfish as they were the second ever fish to be kept as pets. They grow up to be about 4 inches with females staying smaller around three. Aggression is what most worries people from keeping them. They are one of the more aggressive gouramis, sure, but no more aggressive than the well known betta fish (slightly less, actually).
They'll take all kind of food, but they do have a preference so you should try many different types. Not feeding for the first few days of housing will allow them to more readily accept wider ranges of food. (Hint. Don't start with really good ones like bloodworms and live food. If you do it may not accept anything else)
Heavily planted tanks decorated with driftwood will be appreciated. These fish also do not enjoy water flow, therefore they should be provided with very gentle filtration. A hang on back filter set on low flow with sponge over the intake are usually the best.
Care level : Easy
Size : Males about 4 in. (~10 cm) Females being smaller
Water Parameters : pH 6 - 8, wider ranges tolerated. Water hardness doesn't matter, but softer water seems to intice breeding. Temperature 50 F to 82 F (10 C - 28 C) with wider ranges tolerated, most comfortable in unheated indoor aquariums (64F-73F, 18C-22C)
Lifespan : About 5 years, longer being possible
Origin / Habitat : Wide ranges among Southeast Asia. Slow moving to stagnant waters with very low oxygen, also found along side betta fish
Temperament / Behavior : Compares to that of bettas, but can be trained to be less aggressive
Breeding : Bubble nest builders. The females seem to be "willing" to breed. Also the female can be left inside the tank if given plenty of hiding places
Tank Size : Debatable. One full grown adult male have a bio load of about 7.5 US gallons of water volumn, but they are highly active and territorial therefore will appreciate more space. 15 gallon (57 L) heavily planted tank or 10 gallon (39 L) Walstad method tank BARE MINIMUM for one adult male, 20 gallon (75 L) high being recommend. If keeping both genders, at least a 29 gallon (100 L) tank will be needed with a harem of 1:3+ ratio of male to females. Bigger tank recommended, and will be more successful if raised from juveniles. A footprint length of at least 47 inches (~120 cm) would be needed to house two males so each can have enough territory of their own. Recommend introducing the fishes at the same time, and starting from a young age will see better success. Highly recommended to keep these fish by themselves as you'll see the most amount of personality and interaction with the owner.
Tank Mates : Picking tank mates can be tricky, but a single fish can be trained to be housed with many other fish if raised a certain way. Details can be found in the link below this post called Keeping young paradise fish. Pretty good explanation of what it essentially does is given by FishNinja in the following post. If given enough space, the Paradise fish will usually leave bigger fish like adult goldfish alone. They also seem to have no interest in bottom dwellers like dojo loaches and plecos, especially if they were already housed and added before. If kept in numbers of more than one the Paradise fish will act more aggressively to their tank mates. Therefore, it is not recommended to house other fish when kept in harems. Treat the Paradise fish like the centerpiece fish. No other gouramis or fancy fish around the same size.
Fish Disease : Freshwater fish diseases. Always quarantine new fish. This fish is usually very hardy and the type that's too stubborn to die from their owner's inexperience and mistakes. Many times, clean daily water changes is all they need to recover from the most common illnesses and injuries, although proper medication and treatment works fine as well.
Diet : An omnivore, but has preference for meat. Recommended to give wide range of food. Flakes are usually accepted, as well as many frozen foods. Wingless fruit flies and mosquito larvae will imitate their natural diet, but use as treats. Fluval Bug Bites pellets are a favorite as they are made from gut loaded insects. Gut loaded ramshorn and pond snails fed with carrots will help your fish be more red and show brighter colors. Young dwarf shrimp, large daphnia, and blackworms fed with spirulina would be the highest quality food for them. Guppy fry and other fish fry fed with high quality fish flakes also make great treats, at the same time will help your fish be more healthy by exercise and honing their skills to live healthier longer. If fed with live foods it is recommended to have a fast day once every 7 to 10 days to help clean out their digestive system.
Tank Region : Everywhere. Will go to the top for air and will many times just rest on the bottom. A shelf-like structure like a betta leaf bed will provide them a place where they can rest off the gravel.
Gender : At breeding age it's pretty easy to tell apart a male from a female, but in juvenile years it is pretty difficult. But the chances are, the biggest of the younglings will be a male and the smallest will be a female.
The biggest differences between this post and the info given by FishLore that I wanted to emphasize are the tank size, temperature, tank mates, and aggression.
I really don't expect anyone to reply to this thread, as I'll just be using it as a bookmark. I would also like to edit the Fishlore's page about these fish so people can be better informed. If any of you guys know how I can please let me know.
I decided to make a whole new post about them to honor these beautiful, timeless, and very unique creatures.
Paradise fish (Macropodus Opercularis), aka Paradise Gourami, Chinese Fighting Fish, is the first ever fish of the tropical fish keeping hobby. They rank among the well known goldfish as they were the second ever fish to be kept as pets. They grow up to be about 4 inches with females staying smaller around three. Aggression is what most worries people from keeping them. They are one of the more aggressive gouramis, sure, but no more aggressive than the well known betta fish (slightly less, actually).
They'll take all kind of food, but they do have a preference so you should try many different types. Not feeding for the first few days of housing will allow them to more readily accept wider ranges of food. (Hint. Don't start with really good ones like bloodworms and live food. If you do it may not accept anything else)
Heavily planted tanks decorated with driftwood will be appreciated. These fish also do not enjoy water flow, therefore they should be provided with very gentle filtration. A hang on back filter set on low flow with sponge over the intake are usually the best.
Care level : Easy
Size : Males about 4 in. (~10 cm) Females being smaller
Water Parameters : pH 6 - 8, wider ranges tolerated. Water hardness doesn't matter, but softer water seems to intice breeding. Temperature 50 F to 82 F (10 C - 28 C) with wider ranges tolerated, most comfortable in unheated indoor aquariums (64F-73F, 18C-22C)
Lifespan : About 5 years, longer being possible
Origin / Habitat : Wide ranges among Southeast Asia. Slow moving to stagnant waters with very low oxygen, also found along side betta fish
Temperament / Behavior : Compares to that of bettas, but can be trained to be less aggressive
Breeding : Bubble nest builders. The females seem to be "willing" to breed. Also the female can be left inside the tank if given plenty of hiding places
Tank Size : Debatable. One full grown adult male have a bio load of about 7.5 US gallons of water volumn, but they are highly active and territorial therefore will appreciate more space. 15 gallon (57 L) heavily planted tank or 10 gallon (39 L) Walstad method tank BARE MINIMUM for one adult male, 20 gallon (75 L) high being recommend. If keeping both genders, at least a 29 gallon (100 L) tank will be needed with a harem of 1:3+ ratio of male to females. Bigger tank recommended, and will be more successful if raised from juveniles. A footprint length of at least 47 inches (~120 cm) would be needed to house two males so each can have enough territory of their own. Recommend introducing the fishes at the same time, and starting from a young age will see better success. Highly recommended to keep these fish by themselves as you'll see the most amount of personality and interaction with the owner.
Tank Mates : Picking tank mates can be tricky, but a single fish can be trained to be housed with many other fish if raised a certain way. Details can be found in the link below this post called Keeping young paradise fish. Pretty good explanation of what it essentially does is given by FishNinja in the following post. If given enough space, the Paradise fish will usually leave bigger fish like adult goldfish alone. They also seem to have no interest in bottom dwellers like dojo loaches and plecos, especially if they were already housed and added before. If kept in numbers of more than one the Paradise fish will act more aggressively to their tank mates. Therefore, it is not recommended to house other fish when kept in harems. Treat the Paradise fish like the centerpiece fish. No other gouramis or fancy fish around the same size.
Fish Disease : Freshwater fish diseases. Always quarantine new fish. This fish is usually very hardy and the type that's too stubborn to die from their owner's inexperience and mistakes. Many times, clean daily water changes is all they need to recover from the most common illnesses and injuries, although proper medication and treatment works fine as well.
Diet : An omnivore, but has preference for meat. Recommended to give wide range of food. Flakes are usually accepted, as well as many frozen foods. Wingless fruit flies and mosquito larvae will imitate their natural diet, but use as treats. Fluval Bug Bites pellets are a favorite as they are made from gut loaded insects. Gut loaded ramshorn and pond snails fed with carrots will help your fish be more red and show brighter colors. Young dwarf shrimp, large daphnia, and blackworms fed with spirulina would be the highest quality food for them. Guppy fry and other fish fry fed with high quality fish flakes also make great treats, at the same time will help your fish be more healthy by exercise and honing their skills to live healthier longer. If fed with live foods it is recommended to have a fast day once every 7 to 10 days to help clean out their digestive system.
Tank Region : Everywhere. Will go to the top for air and will many times just rest on the bottom. A shelf-like structure like a betta leaf bed will provide them a place where they can rest off the gravel.
Gender : At breeding age it's pretty easy to tell apart a male from a female, but in juvenile years it is pretty difficult. But the chances are, the biggest of the younglings will be a male and the smallest will be a female.
The biggest differences between this post and the info given by FishLore that I wanted to emphasize are the tank size, temperature, tank mates, and aggression.
I really don't expect anyone to reply to this thread, as I'll just be using it as a bookmark. I would also like to edit the Fishlore's page about these fish so people can be better informed. If any of you guys know how I can please let me know.
