All fish / Osphronemidae

Alfred's Licorice Gourami

Parosphromenus alfredi

Also known as alfredi licorice gourami, alfred's liquorice gourami, licorice gourami, liquorice gourami, parosphromenus sp. kuantan, パロスフロメヌス・アルフレディ, 阿尔弗雷德锯盖足鲈, 火焰丽丽

A tiny, slender gourami with dark horizontal bands on a pale brown body, and males show red-brown and black unpaired fins edged with shining blue bands when displaying. It comes from blackwater peat swamps in eastern Peninsular Malaysia and is kept by enthusiasts in dim, leaf-litter biotope tanks with very soft, acidic water.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

3.5 cm

Temperature

23 to 28 °C

pH

4 to 6

Smallest tank

40 litres

Keep as

A pair or small group, ideally kept on their own

Diet

Carnivore: small live foods such as daphnia, cyclops, grindal worms and newly hatched brine shrimp; frozen foods once accepted

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

3 to 5 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Peninsular Malaysia (Pahang and Terengganu peat swamps)

Breeding

Males build small bubble nests beneath caves or overhangs and guard the eggs after an upside-down embrace with the female. Breeding is fairly achievable in very soft, acidic water with few disturbances, but the fry are tiny and need infusoria at first.

Good to know

Very sensitive to hard or alkaline water and to boisterous tankmates, so keep it alone or with tiny calm fish. Its peat swamp habitat is threatened, and it is easily confused with other licorice gouramis, so avoid mixing species to prevent hybrids.