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Colisa chuna, Hamilton-Buchanan, 1822

Origin:North-East India; Brahmaputra river system, Ganges river,and west Bangladesh; Dacca region. Here the fish occur in densely planted areas with soft neutral water.

Etymology: chuna= after the native Indian name, Chuna.

Synonyms: Trichopodus chuna, Hamilton-Buchanan, 1822, Trichogaster chuna, Day, 1878, Trichogaster sota, Regan, 1909, Colisa sota, Cuvier & Valenciennes, 1831, Trichopodus sota, Hamilton-Buchanan, 1822.

First European import: 1963 by Air-Fish, The Netherlands. The fish has been (re)discovered as an aquariumfish by Mr. Sane from India.

Description:see pictures.

Care:A densely planted tank, preferably with floating plants, in between which the males will establish their territoria. The tank should be large enough for the females to be able to get some rest from the males. For a pair a 50*30*30 tank will suffice. Temperatures in the higher regions, 24-28 degrees, and not too much current. Normally the fish will inhabit the higher and middle regions of the tank. The tank should be covered, to prevent a difference in water and air temperature, which can cause the fish to become sick.

Feeding:Everything they can master.

Size:Male 4.0 cm, female 4.5

pH: 6.0-7.5

Breeding:Bubblenester, the male will build a small nest in his territory, usually under a leaf, but also at the surface in a corner, if no suitable leaf can be found. If a female comes into sight the male will start to display almost vertically before her. If she's interested, the male will repeatedly swim 5-10 cm towards the nest, and display again until the female follows. After the couple reaches the nest, they will spawn below the nest. and deposit the 1 mm eggs in the nest. As soon as eggs are in the nest the male starts to build a real nest which can get quite big. The up to 300 eggs will hatch in 24-36 hours, and are free-swimming after a day. The male will care for the fry a few days more. If the fry are fed well the fish can be raised to adult size in approximately three months.

Sexual dimorphism:Females are larger than the males, and usually have a brown horizontal stripe. The anal fin is a bit more pointy in males. Subdued males display a similar appearance as the females.

Prices:Netherlands:€ 1.5-2

Additional:Baensch and Riehl describe the fish as being sensitive to oodinium. From personal experience I have never had any problems with oodinium in this species, but I've always kept them at higher temperatures of 25 degrees or more.
Males have been reported to defend their nest by torpeding their head at full speed into the stomach of much bigger fish, thereby sometimes killing the intruder.

Colisa chuna can spit waterdrops. They use the drops to catch insects, which will fall on the watersurface, and are eaten by the fish.

Hamilton-Bachanan have described both chuna and sota. Colisa chuna has been described from the males, while the females were described as Colisa sota.

Picture: Picture 1+2+3: Richard J. Blach. Picture 4&5: E. Naus

References:Baensch, H. A., Riehl, R.(1982): Aquarien Atlas I. Mergus Verlag, Melle, Germany.(click on the link to buy this book)

Richter, H. J. (1979): Das Buch der Labyrinthfische. Verlag Neumann-Neudamm, Melsungen, Germany.

Linke, H.(1980): Labyrinthfische - Farbe im Aquarium. Tetra Verlag, Melle, Germany.

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In the pictures below see the "yellow"variety, red, and on the right the variety "orange"..