"Basic information on successfully spawning bettas from someone who breeds thousands of these fish every year"
Having been involved in breeding bettas for many years, I can honestly say that it is one of the most fulfilling challenges in the aquarium hobby. Not only is the spawning process immensely interesting, but the results can produce some of the most brilliantly colorful freshwater fish you have ever seen. Once bitten by the betta bug, your interest in these fish will continue to grow. No matter what your level of experience, from beginner learning the basics of animal biology to advanced competition-oriented breeder, spawning bettas is both easy and fun.
The bettas that are bred by most hobbyists are bubblenest breeders. In preparation for spawning, the male betta will construct a floating bubblenest, often of immense size. When completed, the male will entice the female to swim underneath the bubblenest. Embraced by the male, the female will release her eggs, which are fertilized by the male. As the eggs fall to the bottom of the tank, the male scoops them up and places them inside the bubblenest. A few days later, small betta fry will be observed swimming near the surface of the water.
To successfully breed bettas, care and attention must be focused on this spawning behavior. Understanding the spawning process and following a few simple steps will ensure a successful effort on your first attempt.
The first step in a breeding program is to select a suitable breeding site. This can be a standard small aquarium (10 gallons or less), a plastic box that is watertight or even a clay pot. You should look for a container that will hold at least 2 to 3 gallons of water. If you don't have an extra aquarium available, try one of the clear plastic boxes sole for clothing storage. About the only consistent requirement for a spawning tank is that it allow a water depth of 4 to 6 inches. In my breeding setups, I always keep a dozen 2 1/2-gallon plastic tanks prepared for spawning fish.
The next step is to prepare the spawning tank. Due to the aggressive spawning tendencies of some bettas, suitable hiding areas need to be provided in the tank so that the less aggressive fish can find shelter. I prefer to use a number of plastic plants and several pieces of Java fern (Microsorium pterropus) in a spawning tank. I also find that live plants aid greatly in the success of the breeding program. The plants encourage the development of infusoria colonies, which can provide a supplemental source of food for the fry. I have had success with what are commonly known as spawning mops, which are made from yarn. Although the bettas do not use the mops for spawning, these mops do provide cover for hiding. Because I use smaller tanks to spawn bettas, I make sure there are more places for the fish to hide than would be necessary in a larger tank.
An opaque plastic lid from a styrofoam coffee cup or even a piece of styrofoam cut from the cup itself should be floated on the surface of the water. This provides the location where the male will build its bubblenest. I do not provide any filtration in this setup. The lack of surface agitation assists the male in maintaining the integrity of the bubblenest. I also try to place the spawning tank at or near eye level so I can easily monitor the progress of breeding. It is much easier to tell if the pair has spawned by looking up at the bubblenest, or even viewing it at eye level, than it is when looking down. This also makes it much easier to observe the developing fry.
Selection of the bettas to breed is the next step. Once selected, the potential mates should be housed separately, unable to even see each other, for several days prior to placing them in the spawning tank. Although most bettas are sexually mare in as few as four or five months, it is best to select breeders that are approximately the same physical size and proportion, as well as age. Sexually mature female bettas can be distinguished by the rounded belly area and the presence of a whitish breeding tube. Mature males are usually seen building bubblenests in their bowls or aquariums.
The breeders you select should have already been physically conditioned for weeks on a varied, well-balanced diet. I normally select my breeders one week before formally introducing them into the spawning tank. During this week, the fish are fed generously and the bowls or tanks are carefully maintained.
Once the pair is placed in the spawning tank, they should be checked periodically. Usually, the male will begin construction of his bubblenest - most often directly underneath the floating plastic lid - in less than 24 hours. Courtship involves the male betta chasing the female in short spurts. Often, the male will nip the female's fins, attempting to entice her to spawn. During this period, the male's attention will alternately focus on building the bubblenest and courting the female. My experience indicates that the breeders should not be fed during courtship.
If the male (or sometimes the female) is too aggressive, I suggest stopping the breeding process at this point. Due to the inherent aggressiveness of the fish, either of the breeders is capable of inflicting significant physical damage to the other. If a badly damaged male or female is noted in the first several hours of being together, this should be a warning that perhaps these are not suitable breeders. This is not to say that a "normal" spawn will progress without any fin damage. It is a rare breeding pair that will spawn without at least some fin damage.
The male with a suitable bubblenest will entice the female to swim under the nest, at which time the two will embrace, with the male wrapping his body around the female. Both fish will be temporarily motionless as the female releases eggs and the male fertilizes them.
Within a few seconds, the two will escape from their embrace and the male (and sometimes the female) will gather up the eggs that have slowly drifted toward the bottom of the tank. The eggs are gathered in their mouths and blown into the bubblenest. The eggs remain in the bubblenest as they begin development. I usually try to monitor a spawn at least two or three times per day during this time.
The entire spawning sequence can last from a few amorous minutes to several hours. I usually look for a female that is no longer near the bubblenest as an indicator that the spawning ritual is over. The female is placed in a container of fresh water that has been conditioned to remove any chlorine or chloramine and is monitored for signs of bacterial infection. I always remove the female from the tank as soon as I am certain that the pair has mated.
Even at this early point, I can usually observe the presence of the eggs in the bubblenest. They appear as opaque spots against the clear adhesive air sacs of the bubblenest. The number of eggs produced in the spawning process can be quite varied. I would estimate that an average number is around 30 to 40 eggs. It is not rare, however, to have fewer than a dozen eggs or as many as several hundred. The largest spawn I have seen was close to 500 eggs.
Twelve hours after first noticing the eggs, I will add five or six drops of Interpet's Liquidfry mixture for egglayers. There are other products available with similar names, but this is the brand I prefer. For the next several days I neither add any other food for the developing fry nor any food for the male tending the fry. Other betta breeders use microworms and infusoria cultures. In terms of money and convenience, I find the Interpet food formula most practical.
As the young fry emerge from the egg casings during the next 36 hours, they will exhaust the available air inside the bubbles, causing them to collapse. All during this time the male betta will remain vigilant to catch the falling young fry and blow them back into the bubblenest. The fry become visible at this point as vertical wigglers. For the next 24 hours I usually only monitor the tank, along with making sure my written records about the spawn are brought up to date. Given the diverse genetic challenges with bettas, adequate record keeping is a must. For each of the spawns I track information concerning lineage and genetic results of spawning (both phenotype and genotype), as well as special notes about the offspring.
Figure 1 illustrates a sample spawn record sheet. I usually keep a thin three-ring binder with information on the last 50 spawns handy in the fish room and archive older sheets in a larger binder. When I have a chance, I try to summarize the result of spawns in a tabular reference sheet. The spawn records not only track information about the parents for two generations but also allow me to immediately identify the source of the fish. There is a lot of trading of bettas among breeders and hobbyists, and being able to identify the source of the spawn is quite useful. It also allows me to track which color lines are uniquely from my fish room.
I also have found the form useful for identifying young fish from the spawn. Using the identification scheme that males have odd numbers (i.e., 86-3) and female seven numbers (i.e., 86-8), I can easily assign numbers to the fish when bowled - tracking the information from this sheet. Perhaps the best use of the sheet, however, is in the "objectives" box. This permits me to jot down any special reasons why I spawned a particular pair of fish, so that many months later I'll have something to remind me of the fact.
Continuing to observe the developing fry, I next look for the fry to begin moving in a horizontal motion. This usually happens three to four days after the mating. This is an important stage. The male parent needs to be removed at this point. The fry will be able to continue to develop without any parental care. A brine shrimp hatchery should also be set up at this stage (see sidebar). For the next several weeks, twice-per-day feedings of newly hatched brine shrimp will provide the main diet for the young bettas.
Either a sponge filter or a slowly bubbling air stone should be added at this time. Although this setup will not provide adequate biological filtration, I am more concerned with surface agitation, because the young bettas have not yet developed their labyrinth organs, which allow the fish to take in air directly from the atmosphere. Weekly water changes can be accomplished by using a piece of rigid plastic tubing connected to standard air line tubing to siphon out water. At about three to four weeks, I normally begin adding supplemental water to increase the total volume. Eventually, the fish and the sponge filter will be moved to a 10-gallon rearing tank. From the rearing tank I will begin bowling males and selected females when they are about 8 to 10 weeks of age. At this point, I also begin to supplement their diet with a quality pelletized staple food and begin feeding adult brine shrimp.
The steps I've described above have proven both practical and rewarding in rearing show-quality fish. for me, this obsessive interest in bettas started over a decade ago with a simple spawning. This is one f the easiest fish to breed for the beginning aquarist. For the more advanced fish breeder there is the challenge of competitive exhibition of bettas through the show circuit sponsored by the International betta Congress. To raise outstanding show-quality fish, additional consideration needs to be given to coloration and finnage.
Color in bettas is quite diverse both in shading and pattern. Currently, solid-colored bettas are available in red, black, royal blue, green, blue, white, yellow and various shades of pastel morphs. The results of selective breeding are seen in fish that are pure in color, with outstanding finnage to match their glorious colors. In addition to the solid colors, there are also a number of interesting patterns. One of the more common is referred to as "bi-color". In these fish, the body of the betta is one color, with the fins being an entirely separate color. One of the more common bi-colors is the popular traditional cambodian in which the body is a light color with the fins a solid red.
Another striking pattern is referred to as "butterfly". The anal, caudal and dorsal fins are displayed in two different colors. Ideally, this pattern is equal throughout the finnage. The current show circuit boasts butterfly patterns of blue/white, red/clear and black/clear. The color combinations are nearly endless.
A somewhat related pattern is marbling. This is a most mysterious trait and is often observed in fish showing butterfly patterns. The marble pattern causes the color pattern on both the body and fins to appear in a pinto-like motif. Sometimes the marble pattern shows up with a half-and-half body pattern, while in others it may be a nearly perfect spotting of colors. These fish are currently available as black marbles, green marbles and red marbles, with varying color mixes to match. This genetic trait is quite unpredictable. In marble bettas I've bred, the fish can change coloration patterns from one extreme to the other in the span of just a few days.
Equally important to color is finnage. Aquarists will seldom see truly outstanding finnage in fish at the local pet store. The key is to select the best females for breeding. Figure 2a shows a traditional pet store variety of female betta. Note that the fin rays are singular branching in the caudal tail. This is not a desirable female for breeding. In Figure 2b, there is a marked difference in the ray branching, as well as the overall dimension of the caudal fin. This fish would make a good mate for spawning. The full caudal tail, combined with the strong fin rays, will produce good finnage of the offspring. While Figure 2b would likely be coveted by many aquarists, even better females can be produced by selective spawning. Figure 2c shows a female that is frequently found among the breeding stock of the accomplished betta hobbyists. This is the fish that will produce spectacular finnage in the male offspring.
I have not said much about the finnage of males because, in my experience, the quality of the male finnage seems to have little relationship with similar finnage in the offspring. I have seldom observed outstanding finnage in the first generation (F1) offspring if the male parent exhibited it. However, in situations in which the female exhibits outstanding finnage, most of the F1 offspring will show it too.
I hope that in some measure I have encouraged you to try your hand at breeding bettas. In many ways, they are a simple fish to spawn. Yet they also hold the challenge of producing exceptional colors and finnage that make the fish worthy of its scientific name, Betta splendens. I urge you to become involved in breeding bettas. Perhaps you will be the hobbyist to develop a new color variety.
HATCHING BRINE SHRIMP
A sufficient supply of newly hatched brine shrimp is essential to successfully rearing betta fry. The typical feeding regimen is to offer baby brine shrimp to betta fry twice per day until the young bettas reach the size at which they can eat normal prepared foods, adult brine shrimp or other forms of live food.
The accompanying diagram (Figure 3) shows a hatchery design that is easy to build and very effective for harvesting baby brine shrimp. You will need the following items:
- two 2-liter beverage containers
- air line tubing
- rigid air line tubing
- silicone cement
- one 3-liter beverage container
To construct the hatchery, first take one of the 2-liter containers, which should be thoroughly cleaned, and cut off the top (see Figure 3). Drill a hole large enough for a piece of flexible air line tubing to fit through the bottom of the container.
Cut off the bottom of the second 2-liter container, as shown. Retain the bottom portion as a cover for the hatchery. The aluminum cap should be fastened securely. Drill a hole in the center of the cap just large enough to fit a 2-inch piece of rigid air line tubing through it. Insert the tubing so that it extends an inch on either side of the cap. Applying silicone cement (the same adhesive used to construct all-glass aquariums) around the tube will provide a water-tight seal. The cement must cure for 48 hours to reach full strength. Next, connect the flexible tubing that extends through the bottom of the first container to the rigid tubing in the cap of the second container, which is then inverted and inserted into the first.
Although this setup is reliable, it is probably wise to use a back-flow safety valve in the flexible tubing at the lowest point inside the first container. These valves, which are readily available in any aquarium store, prevent water from flowing into the air pump should the pump suddenly cease operating, such as during a power outage. Occasionally, the diaphragm in the pump will stop in a position that actually pulls the water into the pump. I prefer the valves without a check ball because that design permits easy siphoning of the shrimp through the tubing rather than using a kitchen baster to extract the hatch, as described below.
To use the hatcher, place approximately 1 teaspoon of brine shrimp eggs in the bottom of the inverted container. The quantity of eggs can be varied according to your needs. One teaspoon of eggs provides enough live baby brine for an entire feeding in my fish room. There are several brands of eggs available depending on where you live and the stores you shop at. I prefer the Ocean Star International (O.S.I.) brand, which is available through a number of fish specialty groups and aquarium societies. These eggs are sold with a money back guarantee.
Next, fill the container to within 2 inches of the top and then add about 1 tablespoon of salt. Table salt is a common choice, but I use Morton meat salt and some hobbyists use one of the artificial saltwater mixes formulated for marine aquariums. After connecting the air line to an air pump, the inverted container is covered with the black plastic bottom that was initially cut off.
After 24 to 36 hours, disconnect the air line from the air pump. Use a clothes pin or other suitable device to attach the tubing to something that will hold the tubing above the water line in the hatcher. To make it easier to harvest the shrimp, the entire hatcher, except for the neck of the inverted bottle, is covered with a 3-liter container. The top of this container is cut off so that the container can be placed over the hatcher. The black bottom and label of the 3-liter container prevent light from reaching the hatcher except at the neck.
Because live baby brine shrimp are attracted to light, a strong source of illumination is placed next to the hatcher. After 5 to 15 minutes, the live brine shrimp will have accumulated at the neck of the inverted bottle. These can be harvested through the air line tubing by lowering the end of the tubing below the water line in the hatcher, or from above by removing the 3-liter container and the black plastic cover and using a kitchen baster to remove the shrimp.
By constructing two of these hatching units, there will be a large, constant supply of live baby brine shrimp. Remember, you will want to provide enough shrimp for two feedings each day.
BETTAS FOR SHOW
Did you know that there is an organization that sponsors shows for bettas? The organization, the International Betta Congress (IBC), is one of the oldest fish specialty groups in the United States, with members throughout the world.
One of the strengths of the IBC is its vast show circuit. Beginning with small "certified" shows, which are sanctioned for six color classes, to full-scale "international" shows for 44 color classes, the IBC sponsors shows around the country. A typical fish show will feature fish mailed to the show site from exhibitors in all parts of the country. The exhibitors vie for awards in the established color classes, with the competition being judged by a specially trained and recognized IBC judge.
Membership in the IBC is open to all aquarists. The current membership rate is $18 for a single year, which entitles the member to six issues of the IBC journal Flare!, periodic issues of the IBC Trading Post and, best of all, a member ship handbook featuring more than 100 pages of information on bettas.
During 1990, the IBC will be sanctioning betta shows in New York, Los Angeles, and Huntsville. The show year will culminate with the annual IBC convention, hosted this year in Nashville, Tennessee, with upwards of 1500 show entries.
For more information on membership in the IBC, contact Steve Van Camp, IBC Membership Chair, 923 Wadsworth St., Syracuse, NY 13208; (315)454-4792
John Benn has been a hobbyist for more than 10 years, and is past president of the Federation of American Aquarium Societies and the International Betta Congress. He has lectured on bettas and discus throughout the United States and Canada, and is system manager for the Fishnet forum on CompuServe.
