Honey Gourami

About

The honey gourami (Colisa lalia) is a compact, personable fish native to the slow-moving streams, weedy shallows, and lakes of Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. Like its cousins the bettas, it possesses a labyrinth organ that lets it gulp air directly from the surface. An adaptation to the low-oxygen, heavily vegetated waters it calls home in the wild. This also means it genuinely needs surface access; cut that off and the fish will suffocate regardless of how well-oxygenated the water is. For most of the time, males are soft-colored and unassuming, but introduce a female and things change fast. The male develops a deep purplish flush across his chest, fans out his dorsal fin, and begins posturing near floating plants in an impressive little courtship display. Outside of breeding behavior, this species is as easygoing as freshwater fish get. A genuine community fish that coexists peacefully with most similarly sized, non-aggressive tankmates. Planted tanks with some floating cover suit them well and bring out their best colors. Given the forgiving water parameter range and calm disposition, this is a solid choice for anyone moving beyond their first fish, and it rewards attentive keepers with plenty of personality in a small package.