How to Breed Betta Fish in an Aquarium

So you want to breed betta fish. Maybe you're doing it for a hobby. Maybe you're doing it for the money. Maybe you're even breeding them to enter the prize fry in betta shows. Whatever the case, you're at the right place. Here is an in-depth guide on how to breed your betta pair in your standard aquarium.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Pair of breeding bettas
• 10 gallon tank
• Sponge filter
• Gravel vacuum
• Plants, live or fake
• Submersible heater (25W or 50W)
• Tank divider or glass chimney
• Water conditioner
• Indian Almond Leaf (optional, but recommended)
• Live/frozen bloodworms or other protein-rich food for conditioning
• Microworm, vinegar eel, baby brine shrimp, or other live culture for fry
• 50+ one gallon jars for the males to be jarred in when they begin showing aggression

1. Condition your breeding pair for at least two weeks. My preferred method is to keep the male and female in separate jars but positioned right beside each other so that they can see each other clearly. This, combined with a protein-rich food such as live/frozen bloodworms or black worms, stimulates spawning and encourages the female to produce eggs.

2. 
   The ideal spawning tank.

   A day or two before introducing your pair, prepare your breeding tank. Fill your 10 gallon tank with about five inches of water and insert your submersible heater, which should be set to 82 degrees. If you are using a tank divider, insert it in the middle now. Next, add the live or plastic plants to the tank to provide the female with hiding places when the pair is finally put together completely (If using live plants, I recommend plants such as Java Moss, Java Fern, or Water Sprite). Finally, add the water conditioner to eliminate chlorine/heavy metals. The sponge filter can be added now, but do not turn it on; The current will disturb and destroy the male's bubble nest and suck in your valuable fry. It is best to only turn this on when the fry can withstand the current, which I have always determined to be around two weeks of age. (Until then, clean the tank by siphoning out and replacing a quart of water from the tank with your vacuum daily after the fry have hatched).

3. 
   Female showing vertical bars.

   Place your bettas in the same tank once the temperature of the water has stabilized. If using the divider, you will obviously want to put the male on one side and the female on the other. If using the glass chimney, put the female inside (keeping the top open, of course) and insert it into the tank. Either way, the male will see the female after he is done exploring his new environment, and begin his display. His color will deepen and he will begin to flare excitedly at the female. After he believes he has shown off enough, he will begin to alternate between building his bubble nest and flaring at the female. If your female is receptive to his behavior, she should begin showing vertical stripes on her mid-section, and possible even flirting back to the male.

4. 
   Another example of the wrap.

   When the male appears to be finished or close to being finished with his bubble nest, release the female by either removing the divider or removing her from the glass chimney. Don't be surprised if the male chases and nips at the female's fins, causing them to tear - This is very common. This will probably continue for some time. Then, the female will finally venture towards the male's bubble nest and inspect it. If she likes it, she will clamp her fins and swim towards the male with her head down in a submissive position. If the male is satisfied with the female, he will wrap his body around hers and squeeze, forcing her to release her eggs. The male will then proceed to gather the falling eggs in his mouth and place them in the bubble nest. He will then continue wrapping with the female until she has no more eggs, which he will then promptly lose all interest in mating and begin chasing the female away from the nest. If she is not removed immediately, the female may become seriously injured or even killed by the protective father.

5. 
   3-day-old betta fry that have yet to become free swimming.

   The eggs will begin to hatch anywhere from 24 to 48 hours later. For the first two days after hatching, the fry do not need to be fed as they are still feeding off of their egg sac. However, once any amount of them become freeswimming, they need to be immediately fed either some sort of live culture (microworm, vinegar eel, and infusoria are great starters) or even boiled egg yolk three times a day for the first two weeks. Once the fry are two weeks old, they should be fed on newly-hatched baby brine shrimp two times a day for the next two weeks. Once they are 6 weeks old, you can gradually begin to introduce them to dried, freeze-dried, or pellet foods, or even live/frozen bloodworms, daphnia, or adult brine shrimp. Shortly after, be prepared to begin jarring your males once fin nipping and aggression between them sets in. For more information on how to raise and feed your fry, read my other "how to"s that will be posted shortly.

Tips & Warnings

• Once your fry have hatched and are beginning to eat live foods, it is important that you siphon the bottom of the tank every day to remove uneaten foods and poop. The sponge filter should only be turned on when the fry are around 2 weeks of age.
• Indian Almond Leaves are used by many reputable betta breeders because of their many benefits. They enhance fertility, reduce water pH, have anti-fungal and anti-bacterial properties, promote vibrant colorations, and simulate black water conditions, a betta's natural environment.
• Once the female is removed after spawning, it is best to place her in water medicated with mild anti-bacterial and anti-fungal medicine (I have always used Bettamax with excellent results) to prevent infections caused by her torn fins and missing scales.
• If the female is taking excessive abuse from the male and shows is showing horizontal bars, or 'stress bars', she is not ready to spawn. Remove both bettas from the spawning tank immediately and re-condition them for another week before trying again.
• Try to avoid conditioning your bettas with freeze-dried foods. The freeze-drying process removes some of the nutritional value that live/frozen foods retain. Freeze-dried foods can also bloat your fish and cause constipation and/or Swim Bladder Disorder.

Resources

• Betta Splendens

[mojoworkin]

on 11/8/2008 Nice article. I love Tropical fish. I have a couple of Tanks. My big tank has two Red Eared Sliders 14 years old. Can't put any fish in with them unless its feeding time.5*

[iamageniuster]

on 11/8/2008 Neat article. I appreciate it.