Apistogramma and gourami?

[Mode]

Hey,

I currently have a 29G tank that has neon tetra, a BN pleco and a apistogramma cacatuoides orange, I was wondering if I could keep gourami or dwarf gourami with the apistogramma and they would live peacefully

Thanks

 

[MacZ]

Depends strongly on the species of gourami and the height of the tank. Trichogaster fasciatus (former T. lalius) have become similar to domestic bettas in terms of aggression through line-breeding and hybridisation with T. bejeus, I would not keep them with anything remotely resembling the body shape of a gourami or cichlid. There are even many reports of them attacking tetras of the genus Paracheirodon (neons), because they have the same red/blue colour scheme.

T. chuna on the other hand could work probably, if the tank is high enough so the bottomdwelling dwarf cichlid and the surface oriented gourami can evade each other. I'd say no less than 40, rather 50 cm height. If you have thickets (and I mean really thick patches) of plants floating like Ceratophyllum or Hydrocotyle you can probably give it a shot.

Generally the combination tends to not work out though, so this is not a recommendation but rather to give you an idea what to be aware of.

 

[Mode]

Depends strongly on the species of gourami and the height of the tank. Trichogaster fasciatus (former T. lalius) have become similar to domestic bettas in terms of aggression through line-breeding and hybridisation with T. bejeus, I would not keep them with anything remotely resembling the body shape of a gourami or cichlid. There are even many reports of them attacking tetras of the genus Paracheirodon (neons), because they have the same red/blue colour scheme.

T. chuna on the other hand could work probably, if the tank is high enough so the bottomdwelling dwarf cichlid and the surface oriented gourami can evade each other. I'd say no less than 40, rather 50 cm height. If you have thickets (and I mean really thick patches) of plants floating like Ceratophyllum or Hydrocotyle you can probably give it a shot.

Generally the combination tends to not work out though, so this is not a recommendation but rather to give you an idea what to be aware of.

Thanks!