Breeding Bettas

[Chris Yew]

Breeding bettas:

For those of you who are interested in breeding these beauties, this is the section for you.

In nature, bettas are bubblenest breeders, who mate and spawn under a nest of bubbles produced by the courting male, among weeds, under some form of cover, or right in the open. In our case, our domesticated bettas spawn not much differently than in the wild, with the single exception that the pair are within the confines of a tank.

First off, bettas in the wild spawn when they are ready and mature enough, and can choose to swim away from the courtship of the opposite sex when they are not ready to mate. In most cases, males are ever ready to spawn when they are about two and a half months to about a year of age. However, with females, they must first produce eggs before they will attempt to spawn. Within the confines of a tank, an unwilling mate will result in severe fin nipping and may even lead to death of one or even both fish. Thus, it is imperative that we, as the breeders must know when both the male and female are ready for spawning before proceeding to put them together.

Most males will show signs of readiness, when they start producing a sizeable bubblenest. (Note: not all males will produce a bubblenest when ready, however, as bettas vary one from the other.) Females on the other hand show readiness to spawn through several telltale signs; one of which is the appearance of vertical (NOT horizontal!) bars on her body. Another sign is when the female starts to show a nicely rounded stomach, a sign that her egg sac is developing and ready. For some of the lighter colored bettas (like whites, yellows, cambodians, etc.), vertical barring does not develop but the egg sac can be seen clearly when fully developed.

Once the pair is perceived as ready to spawn, the breeder can then proceed to give a try at spawning them.

:D - compliments from Alvin Ho

[Myron Tay]

Warning for Potential Breeders

It is important to note that a typical betta spawn is made up of at least one hundred fry, occasionally going up to 200. It is vital that the potential breeder takes into account the requirements of raising the bettas to maturity and providing accommodation for adult bettas thereafter. It would involve much time and commitment, to go along with the satisfaction of raising the brood.

Hence, it is imperative that anyone contemplating to spawn and raise bettas should consider if he has the necessary resources to care for the brood that would result. There should be someone devoted to provide the necessary care and attention for the life of the bettas.

Spawning Tank Set-Up

I typically fill a standard two-feet glass tank with water up to a height of five inches. The water I use should ideally have been filtered through peat moss for at least 24 hours prior. Next, I add two handfuls of java moss from an established aquarium and a sponge filter (not connected to an aquarium pump) into the spawning tank. This set-up should be left for at least 24 hours before introduction of the spawning pair. Such a set-up would encourage the growth of infusoria (which should be present amongst the java moss, especially if the moss was taken from an established aquarium) which would be a wonderful first food for baby bettas.

After leaving the set-up for 24 hours, I would place a separate transparent container (filled with the same water found in the tank) into the centre of the spawning tank. Next, I would float half a styrofoam cup that has been cut lengthwise and affix it to the side of the tank that is away from the sponge filter. The transparent container is used to contain the female prior to her release into the spawning tank and the styrofoam cup is for the purposes of providing support to the bubble nest that would be used to house the eggs.

I wish to state what I described below is typical spawning behaviour. However, variations from the described behaviour had been observed and should be expected.

Introducing the Pair

The breeding pair are conditioned with nutritious food (amounts more than their daily intake) at least a week before introduction to each other. This conditioning is essential for the pair to build up their reserves required for the strenuous spawning and egg-tending process, during which the parties might not eat.

I place the male into the spawning tank and the female into the transparent container that was placed in the middle of the spawning tank. The purpose of this elaborate set-up is to introduce the female into the spawning tank only when she and the male are ready to spawn, thereby reducing any spawning injuries.

On seeing each other, both male and females bettas would go into display mode, with gills and fins fully extended, in a visual indication of their readiness and ability to spawn. Interspersed with displays to the female, the male would commence the building of a bubble nest under the styrofoam cup. The male takes in a gulp of air and expels a bubble before repeating the process. The bubble nest is never fully complete and changes its shape frequently as the male continuously maintains it. He keeps continuously adds bubbles to replace the lost bubbles in the nest and this process ends only when the fries start free-swimming.

The female continues to be fed to help her build up her eggs, though I do not feed the male as he is usually too pre-occupied with building the nest and courting the female to care about feeding.

Spawning Behaviour

Once I note that the bubble nest is established and the females appears to be full with eggs (usually about 24 hours after I have introduced the pair), I gently release the female into the spawning tank, taking care not to disturb the bubble nest.

The typical courtship behaviour sees the male chasing the female all over the tank in his efforts to persuade her to spawn, while re-doubling his efforts to add to and build the bubble nest.

When the female is ready to spawn (usually about 24 to 48 hours after being placed in the spawning tank), she would approach the male. At this stage, the responsive male would welcome her under the bubble nest and would generally be less aggressive than he was earlier in their courtship. The female would then turn to her side and allow the male to wrap his body around hers. Both eggs and milt would be simultaneously expelled and for a few moments, both partners would be caught in a trance-like state. After recovering, one or both partners would pick up any eggs that have fallen to the ground and place them into the bubble nest.

The entire spawning process might be repeated several times. After the spawning process is complete, the male will regard the female as a threat to his brood and may be extremely aggressive in his attempts to keep her away from the bubble nest. It would be wise to remove the female from the spawning tank at this stage.

Brood Care

Care for the developing eggs and fries after they hatch is the responsibility of the male betta. The male makes a better defender of the nest since he tends to be larger than the female. He picks up any eggs and fries that fall from the bubble nest and places them gently into the bubble nest. He also rotates the eggs in the nest and eats up any unfertilised eggs so that the eggs, which are highly susceptible to fungus attack, remain free from fungus. The male is typically so engrossed in his brooding responsibilities that he often forgets about feeding himself. Generally, he reveals a tender and nuturing side of the male betta which makes for fascinating viewing!

Newly hatched betta fries carry yolk sacs that are typically fully absorbed in the first 24 hours after hatching. In the same time, they also turn from turn from relatively inactive fries hanging vertically from the bubble nest to horizontally free-swimming fries. This is the time which one should consider removing father as he might soon prey on the young fry.