Juelin's licorice gourami
Parosphromenus juelinae
Also known as Juelinae licorice gourami, Julie's licorice gourami
Care at a glance
- Temperature
- 72–81°F (22–27°C)
- pH
- 4.5–6.0
- Adult size
- 1.2 in (3 cm)
- Minimum tank
- 5 gal (20 L)
- Temperament
- Peaceful
- Social behavior
- Social
- Tankmates
- Tankmates with caution
- Swim level
- Middle
- Difficulty
- Difficult
- Breeding
- Hard
- Rarity
- Rare
- Origin
- West Kalimantan peat swamps, Indonesia
- Family
- Osphronemidae
Overview
Juelin's licorice gourami is one of the most recently described members of the genus, but it needs the same old-fashioned care as its relatives: a single pair in a small, shaded species tank of around 20 liters. It stays low among caves and leaf litter and does best undisturbed. Keep it alone or with only a handful of tiny, peaceful fish, and treat every tankmate choice with caution. Feed small live and frozen foods such as baby brine shrimp, microworm, and cyclops. Keep the tank covered, since even fish this small will slip through a gap, and hold the water soft and acidic.
In the wild
Parosphromenus juelinae comes from peat swamp blackwater in West Kalimantan, Borneo, water that is soft, acidic, and stained brown by tannins. Give it a dim tank with driftwood, scattered leaves, small caves, and slow flow. Hold the pH from 4.5 to 6.0 and the temperature from 22 to 27 degrees Celsius, and use reverse osmosis water where the tap is too hard to reach that softness.
Good to know
Parosphromenus juelinae is a labyrinth fish in the family Osphronemidae, described in 2021 by an international team and reaching about 3 centimeters. Breeding is hard and follows the genus template: cave spawning, paternal care, and fry that need very soft, acidic water. It arrived during a burst of recent taxonomic work that has pushed the number of recognized licorice gouramis past twenty.
Did you know
It was named only in 2021, part of a wave of new descriptions that has carried the licorice gourami genus to more than twenty species, several of them added in just the last few years.
Common questions
What size tank does a Juelin's licorice gourami need?
A Juelin's licorice gourami needs at least 5 gal (20 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What temperature and pH do Juelin's licorice gourami need?
Juelin's licorice gourami are comfortable at 72–81°F (22–27°C) with a pH of 4.5–6.0.
How big do Juelin's licorice gourami get?
An adult Juelin's licorice gourami reaches about 1.2 in (3 cm).
Where to buy
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Appears in
Freshwater fish · Bettas & gouramis · Gouramis · Advanced fish · Nano fish · Community fish
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Related species
Bukit Merah licorice gourami
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Parosphromenus sumatranusFreshwater1.2 in (3 cm)5 gal (20 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)Tweedie's licorice gourami
Parosphromenus tweedieiFreshwater1.2 in (3 cm)5 gal (20 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)
Harvey's licorice gourami
Parosphromenus harveyiFreshwater1.2 in (3.1 cm)5 gal (20 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)