Splended Bettas Mark Denaro

Tropical Fish Hobbyist Magazine

he former president of the Interna- to limit the damage incurred during Ttional Betta Congress explains how fights. These fish are known as plakat to keep some of the most popular and or plakad bettas. The initial fish used recognizable group of fish in the hobby may have been Betta splendens, B. happy, healthy, and beautiful. smaragdina, or B. imbellis, but over time all of these species, along with B. Bettas are among the most well- sp.“Mahachai” and possibly B. stiktos, known fish in the hobby, largely were crossbred to enhance the desired because they are available in a wide traits. range of colors and finnage types. They have been selectively bred to Eventually they were bred for color in enhance certain characteristics for addition to or instead of aggression. centuries. Initially they were bred They were then bred to enhance the to enhance their aggression so finnage to make them more beautiful, they could be fought as a form of but they’d been bred for aggression entertainment and gambling. To that through so many generations that end, the most aggressive fish were it was pretty much built in, and it bred, and the ones that weren’t as remained while the beauty increased. aggressive were frequently released This focus has resulted in the fish we back into the wild. have today. The veiltail form is still the In addition to enhancing aggression, most readily available and popular in it became worthwhile to breed for the hobby, though not favored by those heavier and stronger scales and fins who breed them for show purposes.

Wild Betta Splendens

True wild Betta splendens are difficult to obtain because so many poor fighting fish have been released into the wild that many of the fish in nature are hybrids, particularly around populated areas. In true wild B. splendens, the males display some aggression toward each other, but it seldom results in anything more serious than the occasional nipped fin, and those are few and far between. Indeed, wild males can be kept together and wild females can be kept with the males at all times

Domesticated Bettas

The domesticated betta requires different conditions and considerations from its wild counterparts. Care and maintenance is fairly straightforward, and many people who have never kept fish before and certainly would not consider themselves aquarists or fish hobbyists have, can, and will care for them quite successfully. This probably owes more to the adaptability and hardiness of the fish than to any knowledge or diligence on the part of the keepers.

Siamese fighting fish will do well in most water conditions, whether soft and acidic or hard and basic. They can survive across a range of temperatures from the upper 60s into the 80s. They will do fine even on a diet that is less than ideal. They do well in small containers with no filtration, though regular water changes are necessary to prevent ammonia burns. They are particularly disease resistant, especially when they are otherwise in good condition, so let’s take a closer look at what is best for them rather than the minimum that will keep them alive.

Hybrids When discussions of hybrids arise among aquarists, the first fish typically mentioned is either the parrot cichlid or the flow- erhorn. While these relatively recent developments still stir some controversy, there are several hybrids that have been in the hobby for a long time to which no one objects. The three that come to my mind are the swordtail, the platy, and the Siamese fighting fish. The myriad colors of the swordtails and platies were developed in part through crossbreeding the various members of the genus Xiphophorus. The fish we know as Betta splendens is actually a hybrid among the various members of the splendens species complex within the genus Betta.

Tank The first thing to consider is the container. A single male betta (or several females) can be kept in a community aquarium with peaceful fish that will not nip its fins. Care should be taken when choosing tankmates to avoid any that will pick on or otherwise stress the betta. Consid- eration must also be given to the form of its tankmates. As an example, I do not recommend keeping male bettas with fancy guppies, as the betta will frequently interpret the male guppy’s finnage as the fins of another male betta and attack the guppy.

If you just want to keep bettas, there are still many container options available. These fish have been bred for large, heavy fins that weigh them down, so they do not need a lot of space, and high water flow can restrict the growth and development of the fins.

As a consequence, many people keep them in goldfish bowls, vases, or other similarly sized containers. Many breeders use clear plastic doll display boxes for their fish, and they are also used at most shows to display the show fish. They are readily available, fairly inexpensive, and of sufficient size for general maintenance. They are also easily drilled if the hobbyist decides to plumb them together onto a central filtration system or to put in an automated water change system.

Various manufacturers offer a number of small aquariums designed for bettas that come with dividers to keep the males apart. Some of these include filtration and some do not, but all will work. If you are keeping multiple males, it is best to block their view of each other most of the time. This keeps them calm and relaxed. If they can constantly see other males, they will want to flare all the time and will expend a lot of energy unnecessarily. However, over time they become used to the other males and don’t flare as often.

Water Chemistry In my experience, the best water conditions for domesticated bettas are slightly basic and moderately hard. They seem to develop fewer diseases in this water chemistry than they do in soft, acidic water. If your tap water is not suitable or you don’t want to have to deal with the chlo- ramines typically used by most water providers, consider using bottled spring water. In most cases, spring water is very well suited for bettas and can be used without adding any additional water treatment chemicals. This is a particularly viable option if you are keeping one or a few bettas in small containers.

The trick is to be sure that the water you are using for water changes is the same temperature as the water the fish are living in. Water changes are absolutely critical to the long-term health of bettas. The smaller the container, the more frequent the water changes should be. Some hobbyists change the water on a daily basis. In general, water changes should be carried out at least once a week, with two to three times a week being preferred. In filtered tanks, 25 to 50 percent of the water should be changed each time. In unfiltered tanks, all the water should be changed. Once a water change regimen is established, the hobbyist should be very careful to stick to the schedule. When deviations are made from that schedule, the fish will be exposed to decreasing water quality parameters, which will weaken its resistance to diseases.

Temperature Temperatures should be in the upper 70s, ideally about 78° to 80° for general maintenance and a bit warmer for spawning. One of the issues many betta keepers face is their lack of activity when kept in the typical bowl or vase at room temperature. Because fish are cold-blood- ed animals, they are less active in cooler water. A betta maintained at 78° to 80° will be much more active than one maintained at 70°.

There are many options for heating the water above room temperature. A number of manufacturers offer small heaters designed for bowls or nano tanks. If you are keeping a lot of bettas in small containers, it may be advisable to heat the room they are in (the approach followed by most serious breeders) or a row of containers can be heated by placing them on heating mats designed for use with seedling plants (a method followed by many small-scale breeders). The fish’s metabolism will also be higher in warmer water, so feeding a proper diet becomes even more important.

Diet

There are a number of pellet and flake foods marketed specifically for bettas, and many of these can serve as the basic diet for your fish. I prefer to alternate several types rather than rely on a single brand. Bloodworms in both the freeze-dried and frozen forms are also marketed as a diet for bettas, but these should be regarded as a supplemental or treat food and should not form the bulk of the diet.

For general maintenance, bettas should be fed once or twice a day. All the food should be eaten within one minute. If there is food remaining after this time, it should be removed. A little practice will enable the keeper to determine the right amount of food to feed.

The idea that bettas will feed on a plant’s roots was a myth that was sold to unsuspecting keepers along with the vases while they were in vogue. Let’s put that idea to rest right now: Bettas are carnivorous! If kept in a vase with a plant and not fed, they will starve to death. Just as with any other fish, feeding the proper diet is essential to their health and well being. Live foods are also beneficial and offer a great way to supplement the diet. One of the best live foods can easily be obtained by most hobbyists in the summer and fall. Mosquito larvae are a wonderful fish food and are particularly relished by bettas. Usually all that is required is to put a container of water outside. The mosquitoes will find it and lay their rafts of eggs in the container. When you see the larvae moving about, they can be easily netted out and fed to the betta.

Other live foods that are particularly good are brine shrimp and daphnia, both of which can be quite useful in improving the red to yellow colors in bettas, and various worms, of which the best is the easily cultured tropical redworm. The only downside to feeding red- worms is that the larger ones will need to be cut into smaller pieces before feeding. The rolling cutters used by chefs to mince herbs work quite well. Pizza cutters are another useful tool for chopping the worms.

Disease

A well-fed, well-cared-for betta is exceedingly resistant to diseases, but occasionally things go wrong and disease can rear its ugly head. Bettas are susceptible to any disease that affects freshwater fish, but there are three diseases to which they seem to be at least somewhat prone.

The most common disease in bettas is velvet, an infestation of the parasitic dinoflagellate Oodinium pillularis. It is similar to ich in its progression but can be much more difficult to identify on the fish. It appears as a velvety coating and can be hard to see unless the light is just right. Any fish that is lethargic and/or has clamped fins should be checked carefully for this disease. It can be treated with a variety of medications but the most effec- tive seem to be those containing acriflavine. High doses may be necessary to eliminate some strains of velvet. In general, velvet is more common in soft, acidic water. Adding up to 1 teaspoon of aquarium salt per gallon can also help in controlling velvet, but it will not eliminate it. Velvet is very commonly encountered in betta fry, and many spawns are lost to it.

When water temperatures fluctuate, stressing the fish, ich or white spot disease tends to appear. Ich is an infestation of the protozoan Ichthyophthirius multifiliis and is visible as white spots approximately the size of a grain of salt on infected fish. There are many medications available for the treatment of this disease, and all of them should work successfully. The trick is to catch it early and medicate right away.

Ensuring a constant water temperature will go a long way toward helping the fish fight it off and avoid its return. Many sources recommend increasing the water temperature during treatment, but I don’t agree with this approach. While the higher temperature will increase the speed of the parasite’s life cycle, possibly making it susceptible to the medication sooner, the problem is that at the end of treatment the water temperature must be lowered back to its normal range, which can stress the fish and make it more likely to come down with another case of ich.

Fin rot is another disease that commonly afflicts bettas. Fin rot can be caused by either a bacterial or fungal agent. In both cases, it is typically a secondary infection that gets a foothold where the fin has been torn or otherwise damaged. Fungal fin rot typically displays cotton-like growths, while bacterial fin rot can be seen as either a white or clear edge to the damaged fins. Determining the type of infection is important prior to choosing a medication. I have had very good results with a natural anti-fungal medication against both fungal and bacterial fin rot, so that type of medication would be the medication of choice if you are not sure what type of infestation you are dealing with. As with velvet, the addition of salt to the water can be beneficial. Being careful to avoid any decorations on which your betta can tear its fins, as well as any tankmates that may nip its fins, also goes a long way toward preventing fin rot