Most people only know giant gouramis (Osphronemus goramy) from the zoo. There, these somewhat overgrown-looking animals (but that’s the way it should be) – the largest labyrinth fish of all – usually swim peacefully in the company of other large fish from Southeast Asia.
However, the juvenile fish not only look completely different, but also behave completely differently: they are extremely aggressive towards each other! Foreign fish, on the other hand, are usually ignored. It is not known why these gouramis, which are mainly herbivores, are so nasty to each other as juveniles.
The actual giant or edible gourami has been domesticated for a long time. The size record for giant gouramis is 70 cm and over 20 kg. However, normal sizes are 40-50 cm. There are albinos and a golden-yellow breeding form with black eyes (see https://www.aquariumglaser.de/en/25-perchlike-fishes/osphronemus-goramy-gold-and-albino/). The natural distribution and intraspecific differences are the subject of intense debate, but little is known with certainty. Presumably this species originally occurred on the Greater Sunda Islands (Java, Sumatra and Borneo), on the Malay Peninsula and in southern Thailand, but it is almost impossible to distinguish feral pond fish from true, native populations. The juveniles that we have recently been able to import differ significantly in color from the animals we have seen in the past. The yellow-orange throat region is striking. These are offspring from Thailand.
The giant gourami is a typical labyrinth fish foam nest builder. In large parts of the tropics, it is commercially bred as a food fish. In our country, breeding is hardly ever practised due to lack of space.
For our customers: the animals have code 440802 (5-7 cm) on our stock list. Please note that we only supply the wholesale trade.
Text & photos: Frank Schäfer
