New mate for ugliest fish at Bristol Zoo Gardens

Bristol Zoo’s biggest and ugliest fish has found companionship with the arrival of a new mate.

Although the Zoo’s solitary giant gourami (Osphronemus goramy) lives in a huge tank with dozens of other tropical fish, she has not had a mate of her own for four years.

Nicknamed Gladys by Zoo keepers, the enormous fish is one of the ugliest yet most popular fish in the Zoo. But now a male giant gourami, called Gerry, has arrived as a match for Gladys.

The pair are now getting to know each other in their 20,000 litre Asian-themed tank in the Zoo’s aquarium.

Jonny Rudd, assistant curator of the aquarium at Bristol Zoo, said: “It’s great to have a new male giant gourami as a mate for Gladys. They are such charismatic fish - although some people think they are ugly – yet Gladys has always been one of the most popular fish in the aquarium.”

Giant gouramis can grow up to 70cm in length and can live for up to 25 years. The pair can be distinguished as Gladys is a pale yellow colour, while Gerry is grey and white. Both are fully grown adults.

Jonny added: “Gladys seems to be responding well to the arrival of Gerry. It is still very early days but they are swimming around happily together. Gouramis are fantastic fish and they seem to respond to the public and follow them as they walk past their tank.”

Bristol Zoo’s aquarium is home to more than 70 species of fish, from a wide variety of tropical and temperate, freshwater and marine habitats. This includes species such as porcupine pufferfish, red-bellied piranha, clownfish, fly river turtles, endangered dragon fish and the critically endangered Potosi pupfish – which is extinct in the wild.

The aquarium has also recently seen the re-introduction of long snouted seahorses (Hippocampus reidi) on display in a specially created tropical marine tank. Seahorses are notoriously difficult to breed and it has taken years for the Zoo’s expert aquarists to create just the right rearing and breeding conditions behind the scenes, for the seahorses to thrive.

Bristol Zoo’s aquarium recently underwent a make-over aimed to alert visitors to the link between sustainable seafood choices and marine conservation, and to promote greater awareness of the sustainability challenges facing the world’s oceans.

The revamp includes a huge replica shark’s jaw, replica giant clams, a scale model of a fishing trawler, an interactive children’s play area with marine related puzzles and aquatic puppets, meet-the-keeper videos, an underwater themed mural, and displays about fish sustainability.

For more information about Bristol Zoo Gardens, visit the website at www.bristolzoo.org.uk or phone 0117 974 7300.