Frail Gouramis "Ctenops nobilis"

[greytdobe]

I've always been a gourami fan and the guy at Fish Gallery (have no idea who it is but i think he's an owner/manager??) finally talked me into giving these difficult boogers a try. They are mouth brooders and require very soft , very acidic water. Something my planted tanks seem to have ...so i thought what the heck, give me 2 pair. They are not the most attractive fish... but they are eating well and really are not shy like I expected. I'll try to get a clear photo of their odd little mouth!
ENJOY

[masroberts9]

very cool. the hardest part about good planted tanks is finding fish that i want and can go in there.

[biggin]

I saw these guys at the Fish Gallery, they were very cool.

Good luck with them.

[jabbott]

I saw these guys at the Fish Gallery, they were very cool.

Me too - I really liked them but was told my three-spot gouramis are more aggressive and may not be good tank mates.

[tsunderl]

Here's some info on them...

http://aquaworld.netfirms.com/Labyrinthfish/Ctenops/Ctenops_nobilis.htm

[mrsadler]

nice find

[greytdobe]

I figured this would be the case with my 3 spots so i took them out. I tried to keep the choc male betta in there but he was being a turd, so he's back in his own tank...next to his girlfriend.

We tried to pick 2 males and 2 females, but i really think i have 3 males and 1 female.

[lellison]

nice fish!

[kSpieler]

Cool looking fish, strange looking face! Good luck with them ... we will all be expecting babies! :hehe:

[biggin]

3 spots can be very mean. I have had them kill a few fish.

[greytdobe]

see if you can zoom into their faces...and excuse the algae. I'm afraid to scrape it with them being so 'new' in their environment. MASROBERTS...i know what you mean about picking fish with plants...that's why i don't have cichlids. I've always wanted them (and o's) but i can't sacrifice my 'greens'.
If you can't zoom, let me know and i'll crop and zoom on my end....ugly lil buggers but i guess they are someone's little one and the mom thinks they are gorgeous:D

[fishyjoe24]

nice fish, 3 spot gouramis are not to aggressive. I have gold,blue,flame,and pearl gouramis in my tank and they all get along with each other.

[cichlidfan]

Neat fish! Is an exciting challenge to go with an "unknown" species, especially one tagged as potentially difficult up front. Your well-planted aquarium should do wonders for them!

I've had two seperate hyperdominant 3-spot gourami's over the years...one got "punished" and put in the Julidochromis tank where he completely took over. Next step was the Firemouth/Dempsey tank, where he chased and killed a larger Firemouth (not supposed to happen!). He ended up sharing a 20gal high with a 7" redtail shark who was also in solitary confinement. They got along (go figure!)

[kSpieler]

Ya know, fish are people, too! :D

I can't count how many times someone has commented about "personality" in a dog, cat, horse, etc. that doesn't fit the "Breed Reputation" Well, fish have definite individual personalities, too!

I was told several times that if I mixed Polits in with Salousi & Afras, it would be WWIII till the Polits cleared the tank. My dom male Polit is the biggest fish in my tank ... and the biggest pus- er, pushover :rolleyes: The 1" Afra juvies make him move out of almost every hole he tries to chill in. He's just too laid back to really care ... and he's WC to boot. And I had a female Platy @work that is just Satan! She chased everyone, nipping chunks from their fins and would spend hours trying to get to my Crowntail Betta - in a separate bowl - while the other Platies huddled in the far corner behind a plant ... she got banished to a 2 gallon tank all by herself on the other side of the building.

Anyhow, all I was trying to say is that each fish has it's own individual personality ... some "mean-type" fish are nice ... and some "community-type" fish are just plain evil biatches!!!! :hehe:

[greytdobe]

and speaking of differing opinions on fish and their personalities... I can not find 2 articles that agree on these fellas. Book i have here at the house says: Aggressive, Neutral pH, hard h20., Practical Fishkeeping says: Soft, low low pH, 5-6.0. The article i read recently says: Soft h20, 6.5-7.5. The only thing i find similar is that they are difficult to raise and one of the most difficult to breed. WELL, with info like this...of course they are...poor fish. I sure hope i read the correct article for their sake. Since they are asian labyrinths, I'm going with softer water, tannin, driftwood, planted, not much current and ph of 6.2-6.4 . Or shall I say, that's what they are in NOW.:confused:

[kSpieler]

Yeah, I know what you mean ... I went through that when I ws trying to find out about the Acaras. It really sucks that there isn't ONE definitive place to find the answers...and know they are right!

I guess the best you can do is what you are doing! A long as they are happy and healthy, you have to be doing SOMETHING right! Good luck!

[masroberts9]

and speaking of differing opinions on fish and their personalities... I can not find 2 articles that agree on these fellas. Book i have here at the house says: Aggressive, Neutral pH, hard h20., Practical Fishkeeping says: Soft, low low pH, 5-6.0. The article i read recently says: Soft h20, 6.5-7.5. The only thing i find similar is that they are difficult to raise and one of the most difficult to breed. WELL, with info like this...of course they are...poor fish. I sure hope i read the correct article for their sake. Since they are asian labyrinths, I'm going with softer water, tannin, driftwood, planted, not much current and ph of 6.2-6.4 . Or shall I say, that's what they are in NOW.:confused:

I guess they are flexible....

3 spots can be very mean. I have had them kill a few fish.

so you fed them to the puffer????

[pam916]

Very interesting fish. Keep us updated on how they do. Your plants look very nice.