Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 (edited) Hello, I have a 25 gallon tank that is seasoned. It has been running for almost 10 years. My anubias plants in the front are as old as the tank has been running. I am reaching out inquiring what everyone's thoughts are on moving forward with my tank. I currently have in the tank: 1 Female bristlenose pleco (about 9.5 years old) 1 Marble Hatchetfish 3 Glow Light Tetras 3 Cardinal Tetras 1 Pristella Tetra Approx 2-3 Amano Shrimp Misc. Amount of Assassin Snails I love Marble Hatchetfish and I know they are supposed to be kept in a school. My lone ranger is the last of his school. I want to get some more Marble Hatchetfish but currently my local fish store is out of stock. Has anyone had any luck with a single Pearl Gourami? I have never had Black Neon Tetras. Do they nip fins at all? Would they chase Marble Hatchetfish? Curious to hear from you all, thank you! I posted a picture of my 25 gallon below. Edited June 18 by Sandrock14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony s Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 Single pearl gourami should be just fine. But if you’re concerned, you could put in a trio or more of honey gourami Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 Are single pearl gourami's aggressive? and do you know if they are ok to be kept by themselves? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony s Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 I’ve seen them kept by themselves. And are one of the three most peaceful ones. Depending on the individual though. The honeys are the least aggressive. Dwarfs, for all their color, can be little snots. But pearls are considered peaceful. With the disclaimer, I’ve only kept honey and dwarfs so far. Pearls are on the waiting list. 😁 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennie Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 Pearl gouramis, gold/three spots, etc are big. Too big for a 25g tank. These guys at least need a 40g+, ideally more. Your tank looks very pretty, but it would be very limiting for a pearl gourami. If you want gouramis, better lean towards smaller species. Like sparklings, honeys, thicklips(or domestic red version called red robin). Dwarves are also a possibility but commonly deformed and prone to diseases. So I would not keep one myself. Also they are character based, and can be quite aggressive. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sumplkrum Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 On 6/18/2024 at 1:07 AM, Sandrock14 said: Are single pearl gourami's aggressive? and do you know if they are ok to be kept by themselves? I've only ever seen them get an attitude with other 'gourami shaped' fish. They're mostly peaceful. They do get to be about 5 inches. Black neons I haven't seen get nippy with anything except maybe each other. They tend to stay in the middle of the tank and won't be up top with the hatchet fish except to feed. That being said, with only 3 each of the glow lights, cardinals, and one pristella – I'd probably go for a larger school of those fish. They will be more comfortable in a school of 6 or more and add more to the tank than a hodge-podge of random tetras. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 (edited) I appreciate the advise everyone! I am definitely leaning towards supplementing my current stock of Tetras along with the Marble Hatchetfish. Have any of you ever kept a single Honey Gourami? I have read they are extremely peaceful and can be a nice centerpiece fish. Thank you Lennie! And I agree Lennie, a 25 gallon is probably too small for a Pearl. They sure are gorgeous though! Edited June 18 by Sandrock14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daggaz Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 I've got a 50 gallon with CPDs, neo shrimp, and some rasbora. I was strongly considering a single pearl but ouch, five inches? That's practically a discus 😞 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennie Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 On 6/18/2024 at 5:53 PM, Sandrock14 said: I appreciate the advise everyone! I am definitely leaning towards supplementing my current stock of Tetras along with the Marble Hatchetfish. Have any of you ever kept a single Honey Gourami? I have read they are extremely peaceful and can be a nice centerpiece fish. Thank you Lennie! And I agree Lennie, a 25 gallon is probably too small for a Pearl. They sure are gorgeous though! Hello there, Yes I did keep my honey gourami alone as a centerpiece fish. He was the nicest fish ever. I lost him couple months ago sadly, old age I believe. I surely miss him. If I had a chance tho, I would surely get a trio now. Not that I believe they need a group, but because they are so cute that one does not feel enough. Cuteness overload is needed 😄 If you want to spare your stocking option just for one, then you can surely keep one. Be careful, they are just way too nice. So they can be bullied by any slightly aggressive fish. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 (edited) What type of Honey Gourami did you have Lennie? And was he/she interactive? React to you when you went up to the tank? Or are they shy? The Wild Honey Gouramis look nice along with Chocolate Gouramis. I like how the female is more silver with a black stripe. Do you think one male and one female Honey Gourami would pair nicely? And my tank would consist most likely of the few tetras, Marble Hatchetfish, bristlenose and a Honey Gourami or two. I think they would all get along! Edited June 18 by Sandrock14 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony s Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 On 6/18/2024 at 10:53 AM, Sandrock14 said: I have read they are extremely peaceful and can be a nice centerpiece fish. I have one in a small community tank. He does okay. But I should have gone to a trio. he's a bit shy by himself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 You have your Pearl Gourami by himself? Is he the biggest in your community tank? I wonder if its a female. I read females are more docile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennie Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 (edited) On 6/18/2024 at 8:17 PM, Sandrock14 said: What type of Honey Gourami did you have Lennie? And was he/she interactive? React to you when you went up to the tank? Or are they shy? The Wild Honey Gouramis look nice along with Chocolate Gouramis. I like how the female is more silver with a black stripe. Do you think one male and one female Honey Gourami would pair nicely? And my tank would consist most likely of the few tetras, Marble Hatchetfish, bristlenose and a Honey Gourami or two. I think they would all get along! Agave, my honey gourami, was never shy. He was a yellow colored male, not the wild color. Some call them sunset I guess? The hobby names are all over the place so I cant be sure. He was interactive. Usually taking a nap somewhere and starts coming front when Im around. This behavior lessened when he got old tho He used to be in bigger tanks in the past years but when he got old and got bullied by my other gouramis I moved him to a shallow nano tank Sparkling gouramis are also very beautiful and interesting fish. They also croak which is very interesting and nice to observe. M to m aggression is there but you can keep a small group in your tank as it is big enough and is fairly planted. You can observe their croaking and territorial behaviors. Such unique fish with beautiful wild colors here is one of my males I would not keep a pair myself. Usually is it a good idea to avoid the number two for potential agression. Although it is unlikely for honey gouramis, I would still get either one, or 1m:3f For sparklings 2m:4-5f sounds good to me P.S: when responding it is a better idea to quote or tag the person you are responding to. Otherwise we don’t get a notification and easily miss your question/response Edited June 18 by Lennie 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 Wow gorgeous tank for Agave! I'm sure he felt like a king in there and appreciated how you treated him. One of my buddies had sparkling gouramis, the croaking is pretty epic! I would probably definitely get only one then, thank you for the recommendation reference the number to get. Right now I'm in between one Honey "Sunset" Gourami and a Chocolate Gourami. Have you ever had Chocolate Gouramis? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony s Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 On 6/18/2024 at 1:26 PM, Sandrock14 said: You have your Pearl Gourami by himself? sorry, i have 1 honey gourami Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lennie Posted June 18 Share Posted June 18 On 6/18/2024 at 9:08 PM, Sandrock14 said: Chocolate Gouramis? No. Because they are needy. Usually wildcaught, need specific acidic soft water parameters, and requires live food and frozen food if accepted. I know a few people tried and failed in the long term. I know Dans carried captive bred ones once but I believe they dont have them any longer. I dont like problematic fish. Needy for food and specific parameters and also being wildcaught is a no for me. My sparklings, honey and gold gouramis were never picky when it comes to food and water parameters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 Hmmm, I will take this into consideration. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandrock14 Posted June 18 Author Share Posted June 18 (edited) On 6/18/2024 at 9:20 AM, sumplkrum said: I've only ever seen them get an attitude with other 'gourami shaped' fish. They're mostly peaceful. They do get to be about 5 inches. Black neons I haven't seen get nippy with anything except maybe each other. They tend to stay in the middle of the tank and won't be up top with the hatchet fish except to feed. That being said, with only 3 each of the glow lights, cardinals, and one pristella – I'd probably go for a larger school of those fish. They will be more comfortable in a school of 6 or more and add more to the tank than a hodge-podge of random tetras. I went and got 4 more Glo Light Tetras and Cardinal Tetras today. They are doing very nicely and everyone seems to be coming out a little bit more now. Thank you! Edited June 18 by Sandrock14 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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