Betta splendens
Betta originated from the shallow stagnate water of rice patties in Thailand.
Bettas do not need aeration. They have a Labyrinth organ which allows them to breath air from the surface.
Bettas do well in small containers a 5 gallon is recommended.
Bettas should have a heater in the tank and the tank should be around 78°.
Bettas should also have a filter on the tank. The added advantage of this is that you can decrease the frequency of you water changes anywhere from once a week to once a month. Ideally you should do a 10% change once a week and a 50% change and clean half the gravel once a month.
Its important to remember when doing you water changes not to clean the water, gravel, and filter all at the same time as this will cause the tank to re-cycle. When cleaning the water and 50% of the gravel wait 3 to 4 days before cleaning the filter. This will give the beneficial bacteria a chance to build back up in the water and gravel.
You should only change 50% of the water at a time unless otherwise instructed by your pet care professional.
Bettas should be fed 3 pellets of the betta food every other day (feeding more frequently will increase the need for water changes). We recommend Hikari Betta Bio-Gold.
They also need conditioned water. You can use Spring water or tap water if you have chlorinated tap water you will need to use a dechlorinatior such as Seachem’s Betta Basics.
You can keep bettas in a community tank as long as there are no other male bettas present in the aquarium.
You may also keep male and female bettas together however the female must be removed once the eggs have been laid in the bubble nest.
Male Bettas will care for the young. You will need to remove the male once the hatchlings start to swim horizontally as the male may injure them when placing them back in the bubble nest.
