# Pearl gourami and plants



## Fred13 (24 Oct 2018)

Hello,

I v seen George Farmer having those wonderful pearl gouramies at one of his aquascapes.

So , do they eat plants or not ? 
I really cannot understand , opinions are totally split .
I really want to try them at my new tank but I need to find out if I am getting into trouble .

Thank you very much,
Fred


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## Carpman (24 Oct 2018)

I had 2 pearl  (just lost 1) and just added 2 red dwarf and never had any problems.


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## sparkyweasel (24 Oct 2018)

I've never known them to eat plants. Some males will break off a few leaves to incorporate into their nests (and some won't), but they only cause a small amount of damage each time they build..


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## Fred13 (25 Oct 2018)

So pearl gouramies and gouramies do not eat plants in general...


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## sparkyweasel (25 Oct 2018)

As far as I know, only the _huge Osphronemus _species eat plants. They also grow to about two feet long, so only suitable for monster tanks.
Some people have started calling them Giant Gouramis, but that name has been used for many years for _Trichogaster fasciata _also known as Banded or Indian Gouramis.
Apart from _Osphronemus _the ones that could cause problems are the Three-spot Gourami and its varieties, the blue, gold and opaline. They can get very aggressive, although individuals vary in temperament.


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## Oldguy (29 Oct 2018)

Fred13 said:


> So pearl gouramies


Never had any problems with any of the 'aquarium gouramis' and plants.  Pearls are very beautiful and generally peaceful. Male Dwarfs in breeding mode can be a pain in a small tank. I have used female yellow Three Spots as target fish with Discus.


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## Fred13 (30 Oct 2018)

Hello thank you for your answers !

I understand the "fact" that gouramies dont eat plants but my dwarf Colisa Laila keeps taking small bites of plants for his nest ..
So , gouramies dont eat but may destroy ?


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## Iskánder Vigoa (2 Dec 2018)

I don't know if mine were the same kind of the ones that do-not eat plants as a "fact" but what a nasty fishes... they ate my plants, killed most of my danios, the female jumped multiples times out of the water, they chomped my betta’s tail and reproduced not once, but two times, killed one of my corys 

I was in between multiple stuffs back then and couldn't take the corresponding action on time

Spoiler alert xxx gourami explicit content ahead :



I ended up returning them to a seller


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## PARAGUAY (2 Dec 2018)

Looks like Blue Gouram/Opaline ,see sparkyweasel  post above can be thugs best kept with fish of similar temperament and size. Pearl Gourami different character altogether


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## Conort2 (2 Dec 2018)

Opaline gouramis shouldn't be sold as community fish, they can be right moody buggers. And they especially shouldn't be kept with other anabantoids as they'll kill them. They're better off with medium sized vans and danios who can get out the way easily.

Pearls are fine, aswell as Indian/giant gouramis if you want something abit larger than a dwarf. Moonlights and snakeskins are good too however they get quite large.

Cheers


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## Fred13 (2 Jan 2019)

I bump this thread for one more question!

Because of my bad experience with dwarf gourami (constantly taking bites on plants) i am thinking of introducing 2 pearl gouramies in the new tank but both being females. I think that the male is the one who builds the nest .
Would this be ok for the fish and their behavior?

Thank you!


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## Fred13 (11 Jan 2019)

I gently bump this


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## Parablennius (11 Jan 2019)

I've had a pair since June 2016, never had a problem with them, plants, fish or otherwise.
Male builds nests occasionally but it comes to naught. 
HTH


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## Siege (11 Jan 2019)

Likewise. Used to have 6 in a really heavily planted tank. Never touched plants at all.

They love overhanging plants, or floating of course to build nests under. Quite entertaining!

Maybe with no cover they pull bits off other plants to build a floating nest. Maybe that is where people are getting confused?

Ps. I think George’s are all males so he doesn’t have that issue.
Not an issue really with some nice floating riccia, frogbit etc.


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## Siege (11 Jan 2019)

Forgot to say, you’ll get the best colours with a male and a few females together, assuming you have room.


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## akwarium (12 Jan 2019)

Siege said:


> Likewise. Used to have 6 in a really heavily planted tank. Never touched plants at all.
> 
> They love overhanging plants, or floating of course to build nests under. Quite entertaining!
> 
> ...



true, gourami's don't eat plants, but will use them to enforce their bubble nests. With the decent water movement (and surface skimming) we have in our planted tanks, it is quite hard for these fish to build their nest. If you provide them whit some floating plants or stem on the surface to create a quiet corner, your other plants should be safe.


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## Hanuman (12 Jan 2019)

I have 3 pearl gourami currently. Had 4 but one died for some unidentified reason. None ever eat any plants.
Males are the most colorful ones with an orange underbelly and pointy fins.
In terms of males/female proportions I was told it's always best to have a larger proportion of females/males. So for example 3 females for 1 male.


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