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BREEDING THE STRIPED GOURAMI 



D. A. SIMPSON 



The striped gourami, a shy member of 

 the Labyrinthici from India, is a particu- 

 larly beautiful fish. Larger than its 

 brother, the dwarf gourami, it is equally 

 interesting and pretty, though not so in- 

 tensely colored. A nature aquarium- 

 grown specimen is about three inches 

 long, though in the wild state it reaches 

 a length of five inches. 



The male is more brilliant in color than 

 the female, and has the characteristic 

 pointed dorsal fin. His "feelers," the 

 very much elongated ventral fins, show a 

 more decided orange than his mate, while 

 the pale, vertical fins are bordered by 

 dark reddish orange. The body exhibits 

 vertical bluish stripes on a grayish silver 

 background. 



To breed this fish successfully you 

 must have a fairly large aquarium, one 

 30 by 15 by 10 inches being a nice size. 

 The tank should be allowed to stand for 

 a long time without fishes, over winter if 

 possible, to promote a good growth of 

 algae and abundant infusoria for the pros- 

 pective young. Provide a goodly number 

 of plants, not forgetting the small floating 

 species, which are used in the construc- 

 tion of the nest. The water should be 

 clear and old, and about five inches deep. 



After the familiar bubble nest has been 

 built, the male coaxes the female beneath 

 it, and there fertilization takes place with 

 the characteristic entwining of bodies. 

 After the eggs have been extruded from 

 the female in this manner, fertilized and 

 placed in the nest by the male, he drives 

 her from the vicinity, sometimes killing 

 her in his frenzied zeal to guard the 

 spawn from harm. It is best to remove 



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the female immediately after the spawn- 

 ing process, though if the tank is large 

 enough she may not be harmed, provided, 

 of course, she does not interfere. 



Incubation generally takes from 36 to 

 72 hours, depending on the temperature 

 of the water. During the time preceding, 



Striped Gourami Trichogaster fasciatus 



and for about three days after hatching, 

 at which time the youngsters begin to 

 leave it, the industrious male guards the 

 nest, replacing the eggs should they fall, 

 adding more bubbles when needed, and 

 returning the fry to the nest in his mouth 

 should they attempt to depart prema- 

 turely. 



When the fry begin to leave the nest 

 in numbers, the male should be removed. 

 His usefulness is then at an end and, with 

 the usual cannibalistic tendencies, he will 

 proceed to devour the young. In no case 

 should the young be removed from the 

 tank in which they were hatched until 

 they are plainly recognizable as young 

 of the species, at which time they are gen- 

 erally about one-fourth of an inch long 



