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gourami

  (gʊ-rä'mē, gʊr'ə-) pronunciation
n., pl. -mis.

Any of various freshwater fishes of the family Anabantidae of southeast Asia, capable of breathing air and popular in home aquariums.

[Malay gurami, carp, of Javanese origin.]


 
 

Dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia).
(click to enlarge)
Dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia). (credit: Jane Burton/Bruce Coleman Ltd.)
Any of several of the freshwater, tropical labyrinth fishes (order Perciformes), especially Osphronemus goramy, an East Indian fish caught or raised for food. A compact, oval fish with a long, filamentous ray extending from each pelvic fin, it weighs up to 20 lbs (9 kg). Adults are brown or gray with a paler belly. Other gouramis, several of them popular in home aquariums, are Asian members of different genera and families. Generally deep-bodied and small-mouthed, they include the giant gourami (Colisa fasciata), a blue-green and reddish brown fish 5 in. (12 cm) long; the dwarf gourami (C. lalia), 2.5 in. (6 cm) long, brightly striped in red and blue; and the kissing gourami (Helostoma temmincki), a greenish or pinkish white fish noted for its "kissing" activities.

For more information on gourami, visit Britannica.com.

 
(gūrä') , tropical freshwater fish of the labyrinth fish family. Like other members of their family, gouramis have a labyrinthine breathing apparatus connected to each gill chamber that enables them to utilize atmospheric oxygen. They can therefore live in oxygen-poor water. Gouramis are native to SE Asia and Africa. The true gourami, Osphronemus goramy, reaches a length of 2 ft (60 cm). It originated in Indonesia, but has been introduced in China and S Asia, where it is cultivated as an important food fish. Certain smaller members of the family, popular as aquarium fishes, are also called gouramis. Best known is the white, 10-in. long (25-cm) kissing gourami (Helostoma temmincki). Other popular gouramis are the moonlight gourami (Trichogaster microlepis) of Thailand, a 6-in. (15-cm) long, silvery-blue fish with long, threadlike ventral fins, and other Trichogaster species. The talking, or croaking, gourami (Trichopsis vittatus), a 2-in. (5-cm) long fish, is noted for the curious sounds produced by the males when they surface for air at night. The labyrinth fishes also include the betta, or fighting fish, and the so-called climbing perch, or walking fish, of SE Asia. They are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Osteichthyes, order Perciformes, family Anabantidae.


 
Wikipedia: gourami
Gouramies
Dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia)
Dwarf gourami (Colisa lalia)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Anabantoidei
Family: Osphronemidae
Bleeker, 1859
Subfamilies

Belontiinae
Macropodinae
Osphroneminae
Luciocephalinae
See text for genera and species.

The gouramis or gouramies are a family, Osphronemidae, of freshwater perciform fishes. The fish are native to Asia, from Pakistan and India to the Malay Archipelago and north-easterly towards Korea.

Many gouramies have an elongated ray at the front of their pelvic fins. Many species show parental care: some are mouthbrooders, and others, like the Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens), build bubble nests. Currently, about 90 species are recognised, placed in 4 subfamilies and about 15 genera.

The name Polyacanthidae has also been used for this family. Some fish now classified as gouramies were previously placed in family Anabantidae. The subfamily Belontiinae was recently demoted from the family Belontiidae. As labyrinth fishes, gouramis have a lung-like labyrinth organ that allows them to gulp air and use atmospheric oxygen. This organ is a vital innovation for fishes that often inhabit warm, shallow, oxygen-poor water.

Species

There are about 96 species in 15 genera.

  • Subfamily Belontiinae (combtail gouramis)
  • Subfamily Macropodinae (paradise fish)(pink and blue)
    • Genus Betta
      • Akar betta, Betta akarensis Regan, 1910.
      • Betta albimarginata Kottelat & Ng, 1994.
      • Giant betta, Betta anabatoides Bleeker, 1851.
      • Betta antoni Tan & Ng, 2006.
      • Betta balunga Herre, 1940.
      • Slim betta, Betta bellica Sauvage, 1884.
      • Betta breviobesus Tan & Kottelat, 1998.
      • Betta brownorum Witte & Schmidt, 1992.
      • Betta burdigala Kottelat & Ng, 1994.
      • Betta channoides Kottelat & Ng, 1994.
      • Betta chini Ng, 1993.
      • Betta chloropharynx Kottelat & Ng, 1994.
      • Betta coccina Vierke, 1979.
      • Betta compuncta Tan & Ng, 2006.
      • Betta dimidiata Roberts, 1989.
      • Betta edithae Vierke, 1984.
      • Betta enisae Kottelat, 1995.
      • Betta falx Tan & Kottelat, 1998.
      • Betta foerschi Vierke, 1979.
      • Dusky betta, Betta fusca Regan, 1910.
      • Betta hipposideros Ng & Kottelat, 1994.
      • Betta ibanorum Tan & Ng, 2004.
      • Betta ideii Tan & Ng, 2006.
      • Crescent betta, Betta imbellis Ladiges, 1975.
      • Betta krataios Tan & Ng, 2006.
      • Betta livida Ng & Kottelat, 1992.
      • Spotfin betta, Betta macrostoma Regan, 1910.
      • Betta mandor Tan & Ng, 2006.
      • Betta miniopinna Tan & Tan, 1994.
      • Betta patoti Weber & de Beaufort, 1922.
      • Betta persephone Schaller, 1986.
      • Betta pi Tan, 1998.
      • Spotted betta, Betta picta (Valenciennes, 1846).
      • Betta pinguis Tan & Kottelat, 1998.
      • Betta prima Kottelat, 1994.
      • Forest betta, Betta pugnax (Cantor, 1849).
      • Betta pulchra Tan & Tan, 1996.
      • Betta renata Tan, 1998.
      • Toba betta, Betta rubra Perugia, 1893.
      • Betta rutilans Witte & Kottelat, 1991.
      • Betta schalleri Kottelat & Ng, 1994.
      • Betta simplex Kottelat, 1994.
      • Blue betta, Betta smaragdina Ladiges, 1972.
      • Betta spilotogena Ng & Kottelat, 1994.
      • Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens Regan, 1910.
      • Betta strohi Schaller & Kottelat, 1989.
      • Borneo betta, Betta taeniata Regan, 1910.
      • Betta tomi Ng & Kottelat, 1994.
      • Betta tussyae Schaller, 1985.
      • Betta uberis Tan & Ng, 2006.
      • Howong betta, Betta unimaculata (Popta, 1905).
      • Betta waseri Krummenacher, 1986.
    • Genus Macropodus
      • Macropodus erythropterus Freyhof & Herder, 2002.
      • Macropodus hongkongensis Freyhof & Herder, 2002.
      • Roundtail paradisefish, Macropodus ocellatus (de Beaufort, 1933).
      • Paradise fish, Macropodus opercularis (Linnaeus, 1758).
      • Macropodus spechti Schreitmüller, 1936.
    • Genus Malpulutta
    • Genus Parosphromenus
      • Parosphromenus allani Brown, 1987.
      • Parosphromenus anjunganensis Kottelat, 1991.
      • Parosphromenus bintan Kottelat & Ng, 1998.
      • Licorice gourami, Parosphromenus deissneri (Bleeker, 1859).
      • Spiketail gourami, Parosphromenus filamentosus (Oshima, 1919).
      • Parosphromenus linkei Kottelat, 1991.
      • Parosphromenus nagyi Schaller, 1985.
      • Parosphromenus ornaticauda Kottelat, 1991.
      • Parosphromenus paludicola Tweedie, 1952.
      • Parosphromenus parvulus Vierke, 1979.
    • Genus Pseudosphromenus
      • Spiketail paradisefish, Pseudosphromenus cupanus (Cuvier, 1831).
      • Pseudosphromenus dayi (Engmann, 1909).
    • Genus Trichopsis
  • Subfamily Luciocephalinae (Trichogastrinae)
  • Subfamily Osphroneminae (giant gouramis)

In the Aquarium

Gouramis, particulary blue, gold, opaline and dwarf, are often kept in the home aquarium. Though often considered peaceful, they can kill most other smaller or long finned fish. They shred other fishes' fins to the point that the victim can't swim and dies.

See also

The name "gourami" is used of several other related fish that are now placed in different families:

References

Gallery


 
 

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 2006 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved.  Read more
Columbia Encyclopedia. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2003, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Gourami" Read more

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