Author:  Celeste

Artist:  Stefan Psarakos (Splendidbetta)

by Lisa Norris (”Lilli”) added Wednesday 12, July 2006

About Betta splendens

Bettas (pronounced bet-tahs) originated in Thailand. They are tropical fish and require a water temperature of around 28 C to thrive.

Their native habitats are large still bodies of water, like rice paddies. As there is not a lot of dissolved oxygen in these waterways, bettas have a “labyrinth organ” which allows them to breathe atmospheric air, rather than being solely reliant on dissolved oxygen like most other fish.

Bettas are insectivores and are incredibly territorial – hence their common name “Siamese fighting fish”. Please note that fighting bettas in Australia is illegal. Read the rest of this entry »

by Lisa Norris added Wednesday 12, July 2006

While this has always been tricky, this is a task which is becoming more and more difficult as females available in Australia are becoming more vibrant in colour and better-endowed with fins, and more plakat (short-finned males) are available for purchase at a LFS.

The common identifiers between male and female bettas are listed below, but unless a betta actually lays eggs, or its eggs are actually visible inside its body, none of these is a foolproof test of whether your betta is male or female.

Experts frequently fall into error in sexing bettas, especially juveniles, so if you cannot quite work it out or you make mistakes, you are not alone. Read the rest of this entry »