Download FACT SHEET Trichogaster trichopterus_basic

Potential Invaders of Cape York and Torres Strait Islands
Centre for Tropical Water & Ecosystem Research (TropWATER): www.jcu.edu.au/TropWATER
Species
Trichogaster trichopterus (Pallas, 1770)
Common name
Three-spot gourami, blue gourami
Order : Family
Perciformes : Osphronemidae
Impact
summary
Appearance
&
Size
Native Range
Ecology
Human Use
Introduction
History
Very hardy, highly invasive species that can breathe air directly and can thus
survive long periods out of water if kept moist. There is virtually no information on
impacts from the species’ introduced range but it has been reported to have caused the
decline of an endangered fish species in SE Asia. Very tolerant of poor water quality.
Also see fact sheet on the related snakeskin gourami Trichogaster pectoralis.
This species is well-established and spreading in the Townsville-Burdekin area.
There is a high risk of its introduction and establishment on the northern Australian
mainland and Torres Strait Islands. If found report to QDPI Fisheries on 132523
Elongate, compressed body; Ventral pelvic fins form a pair of long thin sensory filaments.
Mouth is small and turned upward. Long anal fin extends from ventral fin to the tail.
Uniform blue colour with a pale olive tinge; two dark spots may be present – one on the
body at the base of the tail and one centrally on the midline of the body (the third “spot”
from the species common name is the eye); dark irregular mottling may be present almost
obscuring base body colour. Whitish spots on fins form a series of parallel bands. Can
grow to 15-20cm, but usually to 10cm long.
Tropical-subtropical; South East Asia Mekong Basin – Laos, Yunnan China, Thailand,
Cambodia and Vietnam; also Myanmar, Indonesia (incl Java, Sumatra, Bali and Borneo)
Heavily vegetated, shallow sluggish or standing water (e.g., marshes, swamps, canals,
rivers and lakes) and seasonally flooded forest. Migrates cross floodplains. Feeds on
zooplankton and aquatic insects, plant material and detritus.
Commercial fishery; aquaculture; aquarium
Introduced to 11 countries (established in 8 - Namibia (Africa), Colombia, Sri Lanka,
Philippines, Dominican Republic, Florida (USA) and Australia (spreading through the
Townsville and lower Burdekin region, North Qld) and PNG