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CrAcKeRbEtTaSBasic BiologyFamily : Anabantidae (Labyrinth Fish)
Sub Family : Macropadine
Scientific Name: Betta Splendens
Common Name: Siamese Fighting Fish
-Usually they live near the surface among the (floating) plants in search for food (Mosquito Larvae, small insects) but also decend to teh buttom zone to chase small fishes.
-Has a special organ called Labyrinth, enabling them to take gulp of atmospheric oxygen & extra oxygen from it, such they can survive even in a very polluted water or limited space.
-Bubble nest builders, builds nest made of bubbles where they lay their eggs.
-Males takes care of the eggs and of the nest after mating.
-Males are overly aggressive and will fight each other when put together.
-Breeds throughout the year and can be bred every 2- 3 weeks.
Bettas as seen by the HobbyistFighting Fish (Betta) Having bettas, whether they have long fins or short fins, is a popular hobby world wide.
First are those who keep the fish for fun and appreciation for its beauty. Most of them are interested in keeping fancy long/short fin Bettas. The group is open to the outside audience. They setup the club and have activities such as conducting fish shows and fish competition.
Another group of hobbyists are the group of people keeping the Betta Fighters for fighting as a game and entertainment.
Conditioning BettasPlace the Betta in a dark place (be sure they will not see each other I usually put corrugated plastics). A traditional Betta jar with aged water and with dry Ketapang and Banana leaves will do. Don’t change the water for 3 days. Feed them with live Bloodworms and Mosquito Larvae. You may also add vitamins.
After 3 days, remove 50% of the water by siphoning it using a small hose. Pour clean aged water using Krabuey (Betta Scoop). You will notice your Betta will be more aggressive this time.
On the 7th day remove 50% of the water and pour clean tap water using the Krabuey (Betta Scoop) and gently remove the dry Ketapang and Banana leaves. In this regard they will adopt the new water parameters which will be used during the Breeding.
On the 11th day place them in a 100% clean tap water and bring them out from the dark place to let them see the sun and their mate.
If you see your Betta creates a lot of bubble nest, it means that he’s already conditioned and ready for mating.
Breeding TankI Place the male in a 5 gal tank with approximately no more than 4-5 inches of conditioned water with a piece of Styrofoam cup cut for the bubblenest; and live plants so the female can hide when needed. Do not have any rocks or substrate in this tank. Put the male in first. Let him get used to his surroundings for about an hour or so. Then introduce the female by putting her in a transparent plastic cup or a smaller tank (chimni) so the male can't attack her right away. They should show some interest in one another, and he should flare at her and start working on the bubble nest.
Breeding ProperWhen the bubblenest is already thick, and the female displays vertical stripes and stands "on her head" in the small tank, then you can release her. There can and will probably be some nipping and chasing during this time. As long as they are not sparring too badly, leave them alone. If one or the other is being torn up very much, then they are not yet ready. Some sparring will occur as this is the ritual of their mating but should not be permitted to last for great length of time. The process of the pair "being ready" can take from l hour to a week. When they are ready, he will entice her to the nest, and she will eventually follow. The mating process can take anywhere from 1 hour to 6 hours. He will "embrace" her, squeeze the eggs out, and the eggs will fall to the floor of the tank. The male will catch or pick up the eggs from the floor of the tank and "blow" into the bubble nest. When the spawning is complete, she will swim away from the male and hide. He usually won't bother her as he is busy picking up eggs that fall from the nest. When spawning is done, remove the female immediately because she might eat the eggs. After few days or so the Fry will be free swimming and get ready to feed them after 2 -3 days.
Another WayConsidering the pairs are already conditioned and ready for breeding. I will put them in a separate tank and let them see each other for 3 days. Then I will place a cover in between them for about 30 minutes or so and remove it so they can see each other for another 3 days or so. The male will create a huge thick bubblenest even with out putting any floating caps or styro foam.
I feed them of course with live feeds for 2-3 times a day (I prefer Tubifex) then when I see the female started to stand still in slanting position that means she’s now ready for spawning.
I will put conditioned water into a small translucent plastic basin (mine is 6” x 6” x 6” Lunch box Tupperware) and add a Ketapang leaf. I will place the male first and after 5- 10 minutes I will place the female and put a cover and place them in a very quiet and dark place. I will just check them after 2-3 days and the next thing I know is that they already have eggs (sometimes fry) and I can already remove the female.
Rearing of FryFree swimming fry are always hungry. You may feed them with Infusoria, Microworms, hard boiled egg, crushed pellets, zoo/pytoplanktons for atleast 2 x a day (I prefer infusoria, microworms and planktons) and BBS (Baby Brine Shrimp) after a week.
After 15 days I do 50% water change and put a small aerator and a sponge filter to make the water clearer and feed them with BBS only.
When big enough to take larger food, I feed them with Tubifex and BBS.
After 1-1/2 months I separate the males individually in small jars and feed them 2 - 3 x a day with Tubifex, Blood Worms and Mosquito Larvae.
Types of FightersSnake HeadThis is the most popular in all of the Fighters. They move very fast, are quite aggressive and their bite is rather sharp. Given these characteristics, they are considered as good fighters. These fish have a long body. The shape is slender when viewed from the front angle. The colors are vary from reds to greens to blues, all of which being of dark shades, although their crystal scales are usually green. This has always been my favourite variety.
Short BodiedThese fighters have broad body and have short snouts Although they are slow fighters, they are really the hard hitters and they can fight longer in the arena.
Sharp Curved MouthThese fighters are known to be multi-shufflers. They look thin, They also have long pelvic and anal fins. These types are very beautiful when flaring. When it comes to fighting, their advantages are their speed and their sharp bite. Most people prefer these fighters.
Conditioning FightersPlace the Fighter in a dark place (be sure they will not see each other I usually put corrugated plastics). A traditional Betta jar with aged water and with dry Ketapang and Banana leaves will do. Don’t change the water for 3 days. Feed them with live Bloodworms and Mosquito Larvae. You may also add vitamins.
After 3 days, remove 50% of the water by siphoning it using a small hose. Pour clean aged water using Krabuey (Betta Scoop). You will notice your fight will be more aggressive this time.
On the 7th day remove 50% of the water and pour clean tap water using the Krabuey (Betta Scoop) and gently remove the dry Ketapang and Banana leaves. In this regard they will adopt the new water parameters which will be used during the fight.
On the 11th day place them in a 100% clean tap water and bring them out from the dark place to let them see the sun and the other fighters. You may notice that your fighter will show a very dark shinny scales.
If you see your fighter creates a lot of bubble nest, it means that he’s already conditioned and ready for mating/training.
Training FightersEvery morning put the Fighter in a 10 gal tank and put 5 female Bettas with him. Let the fighter chase the female Bettas for not more than 10 minutes. You can see your fighter will be more aggressive and more alert. Do this for 5 consecutive days and your fighter will develop his speed.
Get a small basin (12 inches diameter) pour clean water into it at around 6 inches high. Put the fighter and gently swirl the water. Let your fighter swim against the current. This will develop the stamina of your fighter and will increase the endurance of your fighter. Do not do this for more than 5 minutes or your fighter might get too tired.
On the 6th day of the training put the fighter back in the 10 gal tank and use a small pump that will create water disturbance. Put 5 female bettas and let him chase/bite them. This will make your fighter think that he is superior and nobody can beat him in a fight. Do this for not more than 20 minutes a day for another 3 consecutive days.
After the training get a stick with a white paint on the tip and try to show it to your fighter. If the fighter flares up and try to bite the stick all you have to do is to put your fighter in a Betta jar with clean aged water, put few drops of fish vitamins, place the jar in a dark and quiet place let him rest for 30 hours.
Early in the morning the next day feed your fighter with just 3 pieces of Mosquito Larvae. After 3 hours or so you can bring the fighter to the arena look for an opponent.
Remember the trainings are only applicable in the morning. Let your fighter rest in the afternoon and feed them only in the evening.
Important: Please use your judgement before you bring your fighter in the arena
Sat Jan 30, 2010 11:36 pm
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