''Macropodus'' is a genus of small to medium-sized labyrinth fish native to freshwater habitats in eastern Asia. Most species are restricted to southern China (including

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

) and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

, but ''M. opercularis'' occurs as far north as the

Yangtze The Yangtze or Yangzi ( or ) is the longest river in Eurasia and the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows including Dam Qu River the longest source of the Yangtze, i ...

basin, and ''M. ocellatus'' occurs north to the

Amur River The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ''proper'' is ...

, as well as in Japan and

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

. In China, they are often used for fights, so they are named Chinese bettas because of their similarity to the genus ''

Betta ''Betta'' is a large genus of small, active, often colorful, freshwater ray-finned fishes, in the gourami family (biology), family (Osphronemidae). The best known ''Betta'' species is ''B. splendens,'' commonly known as the Siamese fighting f ...

''. A few species in the genus are regularly seen in the aquarium trade, and ''M. opercularis'' has been introduced to regions far outside its native range.SeriouslyFish:
Macropodus opercularis.
' Retrieved 16 July 2014.

Species

As of 2014, the recognized species in this genus are: * ''

Macropodus baviensis ''Macropodus'' is a genus of small to medium-sized labyrinth fish native to freshwater habitats in eastern Asia. Most species are restricted to southern China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Vietnam, but ''M. opercularis'' occurs as far nort ...

'' H. D. Nguyễn & V. H. Nguyễn, 2005 * ''

Macropodus erythropterus The red-backed paradise fish (''Macropodus erythropterus'') is a species of gourami endemism, endemic to streams in Vietnam. This species grows to a standard length of , and it is sometimes seen in the aquarium trade. Range and habitat The red ...

'' Freyhof &

Herder A herder is a pastoralism, pastoral worker responsible for the care and management of a herd or flock of domestic animals, usually on extensive management, open pasture. It is particularly associated with nomadic pastoralism, nomadic or transhuma ...

, 2002 (Red-backed paradisefish) * ''

Macropodus hongkongensis ''Macropodus hongkongensis'' is a species of paradise fish (''Macropodus'') endemic to southern China Northern China () and Southern China () are two approximate regions that display certain differences in terms of their geography, demographic ...

'' Freyhof & Herder, 2002 * ''

Macropodus lineatus ''Macropodus'' is a genus of small to medium-sized labyrinth fish native to freshwater habitats in eastern Asia. Most species are restricted to southern China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Vietnam, but ''M. opercularis'' occurs as far nort ...

'' V. H. Nguyễn, S. V. Ngô & H. D. Nguyễn, 2005 * ''

Macropodus ocellatus The round-tailed paradise fish (''Macropodus ocellatus'') is a species of gourami native to eastern Asia, where it is found in Korea and China. It is also found in Japan but it is believed that they were introduced from Korea in the 1910s. It is ...

Cantor A cantor or chanter is a person who leads people in singing or sometimes in prayer. Cantor as a profession generally refers to those leading a Jewish congregation, although it also applies to the lead singer or choir director in Christian contexts. ...

, 1842 (Round-tailed paradisefish) * ''

Macropodus oligolepis ''Macropodus'' is a genus of small to medium-sized labyrinth fish native to freshwater habitats in eastern Asia. Most species are restricted to southern China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Vietnam, but ''M. opercularis'' occurs as far nort ...

'' V. H. Nguyễn, S. V. Ngô & H. D. Nguyễn, 2005 * ''

Macropodus opercularis The fork tailed paradisefish (often just called paradise fish, paradise-fish, paradisefish), or paradise gourami (''Macropodus opercularis'') is a species of gourami found in most types of fresh water in East Asia, ranging from the China to nort ...

'' (

Linnaeus Carl Linnaeus (23 May 1707 – 10 January 1778), also known after ennoblement in 1761 as Carl von Linné,#Blunt, Blunt (2004), p. 171. was a Swedish biologist and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming o ...

1758 Events January–March * January 1 – Swedish biologist Carl Linnaeus (Carl von Linné) publishes in Stockholm the first volume (''Animalia'') of the 10th edition of ''Systema Naturae'', the starting point of modern zoologic ...

) (Paradise fish) * ''

Macropodus phongnhaensis ''Macropodus'' is a genus of small to medium-sized labyrinth fish native to freshwater habitats in eastern Asia. Most species are restricted to southern China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan) and Vietnam, but ''M. opercularis'' occurs as far nort ...

'' S. V. Ngô, V. H. Nguyễn & H. D. Nguyễn, 2005 * ''

Macropodus spechti The black paradisefish (''Macropodus spechti'') is a species of gourami endemic to Vietnam. It is an inhabitant of hill streams, lowland streams, and irrigation ditches in farmland. This species grows to a standard length Fish measurement is t ...

'' Schreitmüller, 1936 (Black paradisefish)

References

Macropodusinae Freshwater fish genera Taxa named by Bernard Germain de Lacépède {{Anabantiformes-stub