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FAQs on Betta
splendens/Siamese Fighting Fish Identification/Varieties
Related Articles: Betta
splendens/Siamese Fighting Fish, Betta
Systems, Betta
Diseases,
Improved (Better?) Products
for Bettas!,
Anabantoids/Gouramis &
Relatives, Betta
splendens/Siamese Fighting Fish, Betta
Diseases,
Related FAQs: Betta System,
Betta Behavior,
Betta Compatibility,
Betta Selection,
Betta Feeding, Betta Reproduction,
Betta Disease,
Sabrina Fullhart's fab pic/fish... Betta macrostoma. |
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Male Crowntails or Girls with Attitude? 11/05/09
Hi there! I'm having some Crowntail confusion. I recently came across a
batch of Crowntails that look like females but act like males.
<There are fairly aggressive, territorial animals.>
They are very aggressive (as both male and female Crowntails are) and
they are displaying their opercula (I've seen females do this as well).
<Indeed.>
They are not brightly colored (not pastels), but dark rich, red, blues,
purples, etc. Very striking colors.
<Sound charming.>
Anyway, I'm very confused because they are very energetic with their
displays, yet they have the shorter Crowntail caudal fin.<I see.>
Even the ones who seem rounder like females are also vigourously
displaying. They are full adults, so they are done maturing.
<Since males are sent out to pet shops individually bagged, it seems to
be rather unlikely they'd mix up males and females. I will make the
observation here that mature females tend to show their white genital
papillae, even when not actively spawning, so a batch of female fish
would have at least some fish with this obvious feature visible.>
Is there a male short fin Crowntail type that is out now?
<I'd expect so. I'm not an expert on these fancy Bettas, but my
understanding is that some breeders do produce shorter-finned versions.
Cheers, Neale.>
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Betta long side fins common?
– 4/12/08
Hello! im writing this is hopes you can answer a question for me, today i
was looking to buy a few new Bettas and i saw one that to me seemed a little odd
this Betta had extremely long (not large) side fins, they reminded me of the
dorsal fins almost they were long and narrow bit short and wide like all the
other Bettas i have seen, my question is, is this a common trait or s mutation 9
in a good way) it was a beautiful fish and i will adopt him but any info you
could give me would be great thanks in advance
Tommy
<Have not seen this myself in Betta splendens, but such long-finned-ness has
occurred spontaneously (and been capitalized on commercially) in other species
(my fave example is Brachydanio rerio, the Zebra Danio...) and so, am not
surprised. If such a genetic "anomaly" doesn't become too disadvantageous, this
trait may well lead to new lines of breeding... If these fish are apparently
doing well... I would keep them. Bob Fenner>
Re: long side fins common? Betta
4/13/08
thank you for the response!, that's awesome!.. am going to attempt
to breed him not for any profit but to experiment to see if he will
produce off spring of the same (condition?) i have included a rather
boring picture ( only one i could get of him he wouldn't sit still lol)
you can really see the extremely long pectoral fins i wrote to you
about.. ill let you know how the breeding went thanks again..
Tommy
<Real good. Cheers, BobF> |
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Sabrina's
Betta macrostoma 2/3/08
Sab, howzit?
<Going very well, actually. Busy, but very well. A piece of good fishy
news: a close friend of mine works at a fish shop and called to let me
know they had a *very* nice pair of Betta macrostoma.... the first fish
I ever wanted (heh, when I was six and saw a picture, and didn't know
they were unobtainable....!) and the only fish I had given up altogether
on ever even seeing. So, three weeks and $300 later,
<!!!>
<<More than I would have initially wanted to spend.... But the pair is
every bit of four, five inches, each. They really are *spectacular*. And
since, in all my years of interest in fish, I have never even had the
opportunity to *see* a macrostoma, I went ahead and took the risk. I'll
attach a photo.... Not the best pic I've got, but it's of the male
displaying while he was still in the shop. It's probably the best pic
I've got of him displaying, as the tank I've got them in is currently
very dimly lit.... as I slowly increase the lighting, I'll be able to
get better pics, I hope. They look much better in a nice, big tank with
live plants, rather than in an icky store tank full of plastic plants!>>
>Very nice<
I went in to see them, and home they came. It's only been two weeks
today that I've had them, but they appear to be doing well thus far.
They have spawned once already, but the pH was still too high and the
boy swallowed the eggs. I am hopeful that they will remain in good
health and be happy enough to spawn again, now that the pH is nice and
low. I have taken hundreds of photos, and a few have turned out very,
very nice - I would gladly send them to you if they will be of any use
in WWM.>
<My usual goosing here re your writing all up...>
<<Consider me goosed, then! I've been keeping a lot of records since
bringing them home, and will surely write something up, even if it's
nothing more than a "here's what I did" sort of thin. But - FIRST - I
have to keep them alive, eh? They look good tonight.... The female is in
full breeding dress, and the male displaying very nicely. Hopefully my
macros will be getting' lucky!>>
>Good<
> > Am out in HI... yes, still working on the KAEC... > >
<Good, good!! The KAEC is always in the back of my mind.... and I am
still and always ready to be there at the drop of a hat!>
<This may indeed happen...>
<<Oh? Yes? Any new news? Things progressing well or at all? I'll be
there in a heartbeat when you need me.... Oh! And it is legal for me to
bring macrostomas into Hawai'i! I have been having dreams of spawning
them in huge outdoor vats in Hawai'i.... Sigh! Perhaps some day....>>
>Still working on the land and money aspects, but some progress... So,
don't lose faith. B< |
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The Noble, Abused, Underrated FW Betta
7/21/07
What is the difference between a Fancy Betta Fish, and a Fighter Betta Fish?
<Evening Renee, Andrea with you tonight. I hope you don't mind my using your
query for a slight diatribe on one of my favorite fish.
First off, allow me to point you to a fine source of information of the
freshwater Betta splendens, our very own WetWebMedia.Com:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/bettafaqs.htm. Please feel free to read
that, as well as the linked articles above. If you are considering a Betta,
please, choose carefully and wisely, and provide it a proper home. Bettas are
among the most misunderstood and mistreated animals in this hobby. I hope
someday to write an article about the proper husbandry of these personable,
beautiful and fascinating animals.
In short, there is no difference. "Fancy" Bettas may be used to denote a more
structured, bred Betta with a tail that is "Crowned", "Half-Moon", or "Plakat"
among other types, or specifically bred for a color variant, such and the white
lined "Butterfly" or the popular "Mustard Gas" color strain. The "Siamese
Fighting Fish" is just another name for the Betta, and frequently what the
"Betta in a cup" is sold as. Betta breeding is very popular in many countries
overseas and is taking a foothold in the USA. These Bettas often sell for 10 to
20 times what you would pay at your local chain pet store, some upwards of
hundreds of dollars, and quite worth the money if you ask me.
If you are considering one of these fine animals for a pet, I encourage you to
do plenty of research on providing them a proper life, and home, and please,
come back and ask any questions you may have on doing so. I'll be happy to help
you. >
Kind Regards,
Renee Kohncke
<Thanks>
<Andrea>
Betta (crowntail or tail rot) 3/4/07
Hey guys!
<<Hello, Karley. Tom here.>>
A friend who works at an aquaria store nearby told me to ask you guys since he
wasn't too sure how to help me.
<<Okay.>>
I have a male betta that I bought 3 months ago. I'm not too sure what type it
was but looked like one of your run of the mill bettas (not a crowntail). I
bought a 2 gallon tank for him, a couple silk plants, a small tank under gravel
heater, and a filter. The filter was rarely used since the tank was small and
he doesn't like too much current. I fed him a small amount of flakes twice a
day. (Let me just say that I am a complete fish virgin.) I did weekly water
changes but was too stupid to notice all the poo stuck to the bottom of the
plants and gravel.
<<Part of the problem with “smallish” tanks is that they don’t easily lend
themselves to cleaning the substrate, etc.>>
(Since then I've bought a saltwater reef tank with all the trimmings and
actually learned a great deal about being a responsible fish owner.)
<<Glad to hear this, Karley.>>
Because of the reef tank I have learned about ammonia and nitrites and all that
jazz. I bought a Hagen test kit with all the droppers etc... Anyway, Betta's
ammonia levels were off the charts.
<<Oops…>>
I did a 100% water change and he seemed to be doing great except for his tail
was looking rather ragged. And it seemed to be on all his fins. From all the
pictures and research I assumed he had tail rot.
<<A reasonable assumption given the circumstances.>>
I tried the BettaFix (tea tree oil) and nothing happened. So I bought a 10
gallon tank and "hospitalized" him. I medicated him for 5 days with Maracyn 2
(and the usual amount of freshwater salt).
<<The salt is the safest way to go for this situation.>>
After 7 days I did a 100% water change. I have a small filter on at all times
and a proper Jaeger heater set at 79 1/2. He's still a happy guy, swimming and
eating, but his tail looks the same. It's been a month since I put him in the
new 10 gal. tank. Water quality is top notch. (I have a tap water filter that I
got for the reef tank.) No ammonia, nitrate, or nitrite, perfect pH.
<<I like the sounds of that!>>
Well, I was very confused, so I invited my aquarium friend over to look at him
and maybe attempt some surgery if needed (cutting off the offending pieces).
<<Eeek! There are rare occasions when a surgical procedure is the only way to
save the animal’s life but “cosmetic” surgery is a good way to end its life.>>
He looked at betta and said that he looks exactly like a crowntail betta and
didn't want to do anything until I got some advice from you.
<<Whew.>>
Looking at pics of other crowntail bettas he looks like them, but he definitely
didn't when I bought him and it was kind of strange that this all started around
the time of the ammonia incident.
<<Coincidental.>>
So my very long winded question for you is, can a crowntail betta look like a
normal one and a month later have those "special" looking fins?
<<Possibly. Bear in mind that same finnage traits that make Crowntail
distinctive can be present in any Betta. The gene responsible is partially
dominant which makes it a good bet that as long as one parent shares the gene,
the offspring will share it as well. In other words, you’d have to be sure of
the breeder to know that you’re getting a 100% Crowntail Betta.>>
Any response would be oh so helpful. BTW, I love your site, it actually helped
me out a lot with my clownfish. Very comprehensive.
<<Thanks, Karley. We appreciate it and we’re happy to have been of help.>>
Thank you ever so much in advance,
Karley
P.S. I've never had any other fish with him so he LOVES his 10 gallon tank to
himself.
<<A ten-gallon tank is about the optimum size for Bettas so I don’t doubt for a
moment that he’s in “fishy Heaven”. Best regards. Tom>>
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