Licorice Gourami

About

A small labyrinth fish from the peat swamps and acidic streams of Johor, Malaysia, Parosphromenus tweediei is one of roughly twenty species collectively known among hobbyists as licorice gouramis or 'paros'. For most of the twentieth century it was misidentified in aquarium literature as the related P. deissneri, a species that is actually endemic to Bangka and Belitung islands and rarely seen in the hobby. Males can be distinguished by their distinctive coloration and fin-ray counts, and during breeding they perform an almost vertical, head-down courtship display with fins fully spread. One of the more theatrical behaviors you'll see from a fish barely over an inch long. Like all anabantoids, this species possesses a labyrinth organ for breathing atmospheric air, though paros use it less conspicuously than many of their relatives. Despite appearing on a care level that may suggest otherwise, this fish has very specific requirements: the water must be soft and quite acidic, replicating the dark, tannin-stained conditions of its native blackwater habitat. It should be kept alone or with very small, gentle cyprinids such as Boraras, and never mixed with other Parosphromenus species due to hybridization risks. Breeding pairs spawn in caves or leaf-litter structures, with the male handling brood care solo after the female departs.