SPAWNING AND CULTURE OF LICORICE GOURAMI, Parosphromenus alfredi (KOTTELAT & NG, 2005) UNDER LABORATORY CONDITION  

Licorice gourami, Parosphromenus alfredi (Figure 1) is a rare native fish from Peninsular Malaysia, Borneo and Sumatra. It is sold at MYR30 per piece as ornamental fish. Thus the high market value has prompted this study to spawn this fish under laboratory condition. Adult fishes (2.2-2.5cm) were caught from the wild along roadside canals between Mawai to Desaru, Johor, Malaysia. Fishes were conditioned for 3 weeks prior to spawning trials. Pairs of 1 male : 1 female were placed in glass aquaria. Spawning ritual was between 1-2hr.

Newly spawn eggs were demersal, adhesive, whitish to yellow in color, slightly translucent and spherical in shape. Egg average diameter was approximately 1.33 ± 0.22mm. Embryonic development was observed with hatching occurred between 48-49 hours after spawning, at water temperature of 27±1˚C. A female P. alfredi was able to produce 22 larvae per spawning. Spawning occurs once in 10-20 days.

Figure 2 showed the total length increment of  P. alfredi observed until 56 day after hatching (DAH). Newly hatched larvae were about 2.75mm in total length (TL) with mouth opened at 2 DAH. Yolk-sac absorption takes between 4-5 DAH. All fins were well developed by 28 DAH with small fin bud on anal and dorsal fin, with almost complete ray formation on caudal fin. Total length of the larvae at 56 DAH was 9.18mm. Live feed consisted of green water, Panagrellus redivivus, Artemia nauplii, Grindal worm (Enchytraeus buchholzi) and Daphnia neonates were given during the culture period. Water temperature, pH and dissolved oxygen measured in the culture tank were between 27-29˚C, 4.8-6.3, and 6.9-7.6 mg/L, respectively.