Betta Fish: A Guide

I have officially named my new fish 'Ruby'! In fact, I'm thinking about buying a few more 'baby' bettas to raise! For those of you whole aren't familiar with these guys, they are those 'siamese fighting fish' you often see in cups! Not many people know that they come in various 'tail-types'! I figured I would give you folks a rundown on them (like I did tortoises!). I buy most of my fish at mainstream pet stores but I do occasionally visit 'LFS' stores AKA 'Local Fish Stores'. Also, you can buy them online! It's crazy, I know, but you can actually receive aquatic animals in the mail! Aquabid.com is pretty much the eBay of the fishkeeping world!

Oh! I also wanted to mention that males CANNOT be kept together, however, females can be! They are often kept in what we call 'sororities'. Sororities often contain more than/at least three female fish so as to maintain a sort of hierarchy between the females.

So lets get into the various tail-types! They can be quite flashy! The most interesting and crazy looking fish are mostly bred in Thailand and are shipped here from there, direct from breeders. (I've done this before, myself.)

'Veil Tail': Veil Tails are the most common betta fish. Typically the type you see most people having. they are the ones with the long tails. The photo below is of a male veil tail betta fish. Bellow that, is a female, which is the type I believe Ruby is! Notice the rather plain shape to the female's tail.

Next up is the 'crowntail' betta. You can see where they get there name! I'm rather fond of this color. :) Also pictures below is what a female would look like.

Up next is the 'halfmoon' betta. Again, you can tell where the name comes from! First photo is a male, second is a female. You can see that the female's fins are much more...errr...moon-ey? than the female veiltail.

Next is a traditional plakat betta. Below is a male. These guys are often referred to as 'short tail' bettas and are the common 'fighters'. I do not AT ALL condone fighting, by the way! It is awful! But this type is what was used to fight.

Next is the 'halfmoon' plakat, which is a breeding cross between a halfmoon and a traditional plakat. I love these guys as they can be quite flashy and are much faster and a bit more feisty than other types! Sherbet is my only male in this tail type:

Here is another look at a halfmoon plakat:

These are the only types I'm going to display. Other ones to have a look at are doubletail, super deltas, deltas, and various other versions that are the result of crossbreeding. You can check those guys out here as well as have a better look of how these various tail types look on female fish! oh! And don't forget the wild betta types!

OH! And here are some updates on Ruby since she has been in my care!

Most importantly, remember that betta fish ARE NOT meant to be kept in small environments! They do best in at lease a 2 gallon, filtered, heated fish tank/aquarium! These guys are tropical fish and require warmer temperatures! Also, they get stressed out just like any animal! When stressed, these poor things will even eat their own tails off! Dont be the betta owner keeping his/her fish like this!:

Why keep your betta like that when you can keep him or her like this? (I have a bit larger version of this exact tank, only I can't manage to grow such lovely plants!):

And there you go! K's short guide to betta fish! haha. wow, that was longer than I thought it would be!