All fish / Osphronemidae

Fifteen-spined Licorice Gourami

Parosphromenus quindecim

Also known as quindecim licorice gourami, parosphromenus quindecim, licorice gourami, liquorice gourami, fifteen spine licorice gourami, パロスフロメヌス・クインデキム, リコリスグラミー, ikan api-api, 十五棘巧克力娃娃, 巧克力娃娃

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A tiny, slender gourami with brown horizontal banding; males in display show dark fins edged with red and blue-white bands. Specialist keepers value it for its subtle colour and calm behaviour, and as a way to help conserve threatened peat swamp species.

Care at a glance

Care level

Hard

Temperament

Peaceful

Adult size

3 cm

Temperature

23 to 28 °C

pH

4 to 6

Smallest tank

20 litres

Keep as

A pair or small group in a species-only tank

Diet

Carnivore: live foods such as Artemia nauplii, micro worms, daphnia and small insect larvae

Swims

Bottom of the tank

Lifespan

3 to 5 years

Water

Freshwater

Wild range

Central Kalimantan, Indonesian Borneo (Kahayan and nearby blackwater basins)

Breeding

Males build a small bubble nest under a leaf or inside a cave, and both parents guard the eggs and fry, with the male doing most of the work. Breeding is possible in soft, very acidic water with few disturbances, but it needs care.

Good to know

Needs very soft, acidic blackwater and live food, and should not share a tank with larger or boisterous fish. Wild habitat is being lost to peat swamp clearance, so buy captive-bred stock where possible and keep lines separate from similar Parosphromenus species to avoid hybrids.