Taxonomy had been muddled from the beginning. Finally, metrics other than appearance and fin rays/scale counts showed major differences in the grouamis showing to separate evolutionary lines: Trichopodus and Trichogaster. The names were also a mess with many duplicate names and overlooked evidence but this was sorted out early in the 21st century.
2014: Trichopodus poptae, a new anabantoid fish from Borneo
Trichopodus poptae, new species, is distinguished from all other species in the genus by an almost non-discernible colour pattern, except for a single black blotch at the base of the caudal fin; fewer lateral scales (34-38, vs. 40-65); fewer total dorsal-fin rays than T. pectoralis (14-16, vs. 17-18); more total dorsal-fin spines than T. microlepis (6-7, vs. 3-4); fewer total anal-fin rays than T. microlepis and T. pectoralis (38-41, vs. 44-50). An artificial key to the genus is provided. Ref: (PDF)
This fish is a bit of a milestone in the aquarium hobby. One of the first grouamis discovered it's the type species for the genus and was one of the first tropical fish in captivity and perhaps the easiest egg-layer of all to breed. Innes, writing in the first part of the 20th Century wrote that the three spot form ("three spot Gourami") was well known but a later form from Sumatra ("Opaline Gourami") was introduced later. Hybrids are a more blurry version of the Opaline form. At the beginning of the 1970s a "gold" form was introduced and a few years later a lighter "Platinum" form became available.
