Suggestions for Gourami dominating the whole tank?

[Teddy's Mom]

Hi all,
I have a 40g breeder, very understocked, partially planted (plus some fake plants), minimal driftwood. Two medium sponge filters in back on each end of the tank. The fish are,

• 1 dwarf powder blue Gourami
• 1 mature black neon tetra (his friends died previously)
• quite a few assassin snails
• And 4 or 5 weeks ago I added 7 juvenile neon tetras (they grew out from teensy things while in quarantine but they're not full size yet).

Before the neons came, the Gourami was eating exclusively at the surface of the water, and occasionally chasing the black neon. For a few weeks after the neons came, the Gourami was still eating exclusively at the top and no longer chasing anyone. I was making sure some flake food sank a little way down and the black neon and neons would eat near the bottom/middle of the water column.

But about a week ago, everyone but the Gourami started hiding pretty much all the time, and the Gourami started semi-ignoring the flake on the surface and going after the food in the middle and bottom, even squeezing himself in small spaces to get at it. I feel bad that everyone but the Gourami is miserably hiding and probably hungry.

Any suggestions? Maybe I should rearrange the tank to mix up the territory?

 

[NoodleCats]

has the temperature rose in his tank lately? Possibly could be nesty and defending a nest hes made... or wants to make anyways. Do you have floating plants?

 

[Magnus919]

Maybe consider swapping out your male gourami for a female? The female gouramis often make better community tankmates (but they are also not usually as colorful).

 

[Teddy's Mom]

The heater setting has not been changed but I haven't been checking the thermometer regularly. Floating plants--I just have a small bunch of Wisteria. There's a lot of bubbles happening at the surface from the sponge filters so maybe there's a bubble nest that's blending in.

 

[Teddy's Mom]

Maybe consider swapping out your male gourami for a female? The female gouramis often make better community tankmates (but they are also not usually as colorful).

Previously I have thought of getting several females and maybe adding one more male (but keeping the original male also). I don't want to get rid of the guy I have now, I took him from a teenage girl who I promised I would give him a good life. Well, everything was fine before and this hasn't been going on too long, so maybe it can resolve itself. I guess I will rearrange the tank, too, in case that helps him feel less territorial.