Pearl gourami

The pearl gourami is a species of gourami native to Southeast Asia.

Description

It reaches about TL. Its body is a brownish-silver colour, covered in a pearl-like pattern with a distinct black line running from the fish's head, and gradually thinning towards the caudal fin. The pearl gourami's appearance has given rise to other popular names, such as the lace gourami and the mosaic gourami.
Its male specimens, typical of many gouramis, are generally larger and more colourful than their female counterparts. They exhibit bright orange colouring around the throat region, which at breeding time becomes much brighter and is used to court the female. Males also exhibit somewhat of an orange tinge in their fins, with the exception of the caudal fin. The male also has longer fins, with a more pointed dorsal fin and extended anal fin rays.

Distribution and habitat

The pearl gourami is native to Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. It occurs in lowland swamps with acidic water.

Species description and name

Trichopodus leerii was originally described as Trichopus leerii by the Dutch medical doctor and ichthyologist Pieter Bleeker in 1852. The type was collected at Palembang in Sumatra, by Lieutenant-Colonel J. M. van Leer, who was a medical colleague of Bleeker's and whom Bleeker honoured in the fish's specific name.