Order Perciformes ( Perciformes )
Suborder Anabantoidei ( Anabantoidei )
Family Anabantidae ( Anabantidae )
Genus Microctenopoma
— Pearl Ctenopoma — Microctenopoma damasi [Poll & Damas, 1939]. Synonym: Anabas, Ctenopoma damasi. Congo, Uganda, surroundings of Lake Edward. Males 7 cm, females 6 cm. Dark grey, almost black with blue-green glittering spots. Males have a darker coloration. Adult males, especially during the breeding season, develop iridescent blue spots on a dark background, as well as on the dorsal, caudal, and anal fins. Females are paler. Ready-to-spawn females are brownish with a white stripe.
It is preferable to keep them in a species aquarium (1 male to 2-3 females), but they can also be kept in a community tank. Timid fish. Floating plants should be present on the water surface. Plants can be planted in dense groups in the background. They mostly stay in the lower water layer, so providing hiding places here is advisable. They mature at 8-12 months. Temperature 20-25°C.
— Banded Climbing Perch — Microctenopoma fasciolatum [Boulenger, 1899]. Synonyms: Anabas fasciolatus, Ctenopoma fasciolatum. Cameroon, Congo: upper reaches of the Monsembé River and lower Boma. It inhabits shallow, plant-overgrown areas, preferring clear-water bodies. Males up to 8.5 cm, females up to 7 cm. Body moderately elongated, high, egg-shaped with a pointed snout, somewhat compressed laterally. Depending on the origin, the body is colored blue or dark brown, with rows of light scales forming 8-12 transverse stripes on the flank. Gill covers with a blue spot.
Unpaired fins have numerous blue, yellowish-green to brown spots. In the male, the ends of the dorsal and anal fins are thread-like and elongated. The female is lighter, and her dorsal and anal fins are shorter than those of the male. During spawning, she becomes brownish with a white stripe running from the gill cover to the base of the tail. Aquarium with floating plants and hiding places for the female, as some males constantly chase her. Males build a small nest of large bubbles among floating vegetation or under a wide leaf. Lifespan up to 6 years. T 25-28°C; dH 2-14°; pH 6.5-7.8.
— Dwarf Ctenopoma — Microctenopoma nanum [Gunther, 1896]. Synonym: Anabas brunneus, nanus, Ctenopoma nanum. Cameroon, Zaire. Inhabits shallow rainforest rivers, in areas with fast currents, under driftwood and shoreline vegetation hanging over the water. The smallest of this group, up to 7 cm. Body elongated, moderately high, with almost straight dorsal and ventral profiles. Huge eyes are located on the head. Caudal fin fan-shaped. Light brown body with dark transverse stripes extending onto the unpaired fins. The male has elongated and pointed ends of the dorsal and anal fins. When excited and during spawning, it turns almost black. Females are smaller; before spawning, a light longitudinal stripe running from the gill cover to the base of the tail becomes visible.
The fish stay in the middle water layer and are quite aggressive toward each other, so the aquarium must have a sufficient number of hiding places. Many hiding places among vegetation are required. The spawning aquarium for a pair should have floating plants—under whose leaves the male builds a bubble nest—and hiding places for the female, who is pursued by the male between spawning intervals. The male cares for the eggs. Temperature 23-25°C; pH 6.0-6.5; dH 4-20°.
Identification: Genus Microctenopoma — Microctenopoma damasi, fasciolatum, nanum.
Helostoma temminkii, Kissing Gourami.
Microctenopoma ansorgii, Microctenopoma congicum. 
