breeding marine bettas

[hobogato]

well, that is the plan anyway....

already have a very well established betta and have been doing some research. have decided to give it a go, and have a good candidate fish in mind to add to the tank - more on that later.

here is the first part of the plan:

since it is not possible to sex them, i will introduce the new fish in this isolation chamber and observe the interaction of the two fish for a while. it will be touch and go for a bit:nailbiting:

http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04448.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04449.jpg

[BigKGlen]

Man, the things you do with Acrylic!
Keep us up to date on it.

Looks great!

[Texreefer]

HHHHmmmm

[Bill S]

OK, so if it's 2 males, do you open the chute and a rodeo starts??

Pretty cool - aren't they members of the grouper family?

By the way - one of my pet peeves - it's pronounced "BET-a" not "BAY-ta".

[Rychek]

Cool project! Definitely need to keep an eye on this thread.

[Third Coast Tropical]

that contraption is very intriguing.....

[reddrum]

It looks as though the gladiator on the outside of the cage could very easily slide his sword through the slot!

[hobogato]

well, the betta i was planning on adding to the tank is no longer available. hopefully i can find a suitable one soon.

[LoneStar]

How do you plan on feeding the caged one?

[hobogato]

the slots are 1/4" wide, so the food i put in the tank should travel into the box. i dont know that a new fish will eat for the first couple of days anyway - hence i am looking for a very fat and healthy (and frozen food eating) fish.

after some more thought, i will probably add some black acrylic on the top and one side of the box to make the new fish feel a little more comfortable since they like to hide in caves.

[seamonkey2]

hey, I didnt know Betas like to play with toy cars :)

Jose

[hobogato]

yeah, alex is gonna be mad when i take his car garage away....

[hobogato]

no, i will keep the new fish in the acrylic chamber for at least a day to observe their behavior. there is still a chance that after i let the new one out the fight will be on - i will be ready with nets. they are related to groupers and some webpages claim they are mouth brooders, but others that have bred them successfully do not report that. some people believe that they are anamorphic like clowns and can change or become a certain sex when necessary. i am going to try to get one that is smaller than mine to follow on this thinking.

apparently they can have 300 to 500 eggs in one clutch.

i will be building two acrylic chambers to add onto my sump to raise the fry and provide lots of live copepods for them - more on that when the time comes.


OK, so if it's 2 males, do you open the chute and a rodeo starts??

Pretty cool - aren't they members of the grouper family?

By the way - one of my pet peeves - it's pronounced "BET-a" not "BAY-ta".

[apedroza]

OK, so if it's 2 males, do you open the chute and a rodeo starts??

Pretty cool - aren't they members of the grouper family?

By the way - one of my pet peeves - it's pronounced "BET-a" not "BAY-ta".


And Guadalupe is Guad-a-loo pay, not Guad-a-loop!!! LOL, must be a Texas Thang!! Can't wait to see your progress on this, Good Luck!!

[JimD]

Its Texas 'thayng' not 'thang', has to be emphasis on the ayng... lol... Cool project!

[Jeff]

can't wait to see how his turns out.

[sharkboy]

with Ace...it's never a dull moment...always something new! Buena suerte!

[OrionN]

I got a pair in my tank in the past. I just added a big one and a smaller one a few month later. The LFS here in Corpus (Aquarium Masters) had a small Marine Beta, only about 2.5 to 3 inches. You may want to contact Erik and ask him to save this little guy for you.

[hobogato]

thanks minh, i think i will do that.

yours ever spawn?

[OrionN]

I think they did but I was never sure because my tank was so large and they nest in the back of the tank.

[Bill S]

Ace, I can pick it up for you on Sunday and bring it back...

[hobogato]

thanks bill, i will let you know.

[Mr Cob]

Very cool, Ace. So you squared away on getting another one?

[hobogato]

hopefully, i just talked with erik and it sounds promising....

[OrionN]

You will be happy with this guy Ace. He is a cute and very healthy and beautiful little Marine Beta

[hobogato]

thanks for the heads up minh, i cant wait to get it today :)

[hobogato]

ok, potential marine betta pairing going on now. got this little beauty from erik at aquarium masters -thanks for bringing it up bill- and have introduced it to the tank. upon noticing, our existing betta made a b-line across the tank to investigate. so far, not blatant aggression. ours is just swimming around the acrylic box flaring and relaxing its fins. one peculiar thing they did already - they were side by side facing opposite directions. each had fins flared and extended the pelvic fin closest to the other straight down. the resident betta (i guess i will have to name them to avoid confusion) was noticeable shaking or quivering.

some pics
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04542.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04543.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04546.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04549.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04550.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04551.jpg

i plan on leaving the newbie in the box until tomorrow evening when i get home from work. that way, if there is aggression i will be able to separate them if necessary.

[Third Coast Tropical]

i like the box....i really like the box.....fish are ok, box is awesome....good luck

[Rychek]

Sweet! I hope it goes well tomorrow.

[hobogato]

thanks, we will see how it goes this evening.

[hobogato]

no change as of this morning. after doing a little more reading, i am hopeful that the existing betta is a male and the new one is a female. it seems two males will fight - no matter if there is size discrepancy and two females will basically ignore each other. a male will display for a female by flaring all fins including that weird behavior with its pelvic fin.

also, the new fish is eating, some food made its way into the openings of the acrylic box and she snatched it up.

[Rychek]

Excellent!

[hobogato]

well, they made it thru the night together without incident. i am starting to think they may both be female, or the small one is just not sexually mature yet. i am hoping the big one is female and the small one is (becomes) male.

the newbie like to hang out under the shelf at the left end of the tank or under the center island
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04570.jpg

the big one used to hang out under the rocks on the right end of the tank when it wasnt out swimming around. now, it seems has been staying in the center rocks, even took over the trigger's house for now
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04573.jpg

they seem to stay in line of sight of one another for the most part
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04577.jpg

they have been passively following each other around the tank, with a few nips from the big one - resulting in no apparent damage.

now lets play find the betta(s)
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04579.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04581.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04590.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04600.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04603.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04607.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04609.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04610.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04611.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04612.jpg
http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c329/hobogato/240/DSC04614.jpg

[OrionN]

They look like a pair to me with them near each other in all the pictures.

[brewercm]

Looking like it has posibilities.

[OrionN]

up date?

[hobogato]

no, they seem to have adopted different caves (which should be expected no matter what). they do interact a little, but apparently they wont spawn very often even if they are male and female.....

looks like the waiting game :)

[Mr Cob]

Still, very cool! Thanks for sharing.

[Scutterborn]

Rehashing an old thread. Ace, you've got me thinking...

It's almost as if you have a knack for doing that!


- Ben -

[hobogato]

why did you have bump this thread ben, looks like i might be looking for another one to try this again...

[Mr Cob]

I saw a pair on Alpha Aquaculture's site recently.

Sent from my HTC VIVID using Tapatalk

[Scutterborn]

why did you have bump this thread ben, looks like i might be looking for another one to try this again...

I'm in the same boat. :). In fact, do you still have the Betta box? I was gonna try and judge reactions. I don't have anything suitable.

[hobogato]

yep, i still have it. the problem is, your betta can go thru the groves i think (unless it has grown quite a bit)

[Scutterborn]

It hasn't had any noticeable growth. If my research is accurate, the larger one should be observed free roaming, correct? The smaller one in the confined area? I have a Betta being offered to me tomorrow. I'm trying to figure out whether it'll work or not.

[hobogato]

you can just catch the small one in the fish trap and keep it in there to see if they might get along. if they dont, it might work out for me since the one i have and the one you have did not get along.

[Scutterborn]

It might play out to both our benefits. The new one is roughly 2.5-3" from what I'm told. Mine is still about 2"

[hobogato]

i have a fish trap that might work better than yours, or you can try the isolation box too. you are welcome to swing by and pick them up.

[Scutterborn]

I will tomorrow. I'm down in the oil patch right now. I'll likely talk your ear off until you ask me to leave!

:)


- Ben -

[OrionN]

you can just catch the small one in the fish trap and keep it in there to see if they might get along. if they dont, it might work out for me since the one i have and the one you have did not get along.
I think your logic have a hole in it Ace.
If your's did not get along with his, your's is likely the same sex as his. So another fish does not get along with his fish will likely not get along with your's either.

I got one and want to pair him/her up also. If any does not get along with either of your's, I will take him/her off your hand. I also have multiple systems. If he/she does not get along with mine, he/she can go into a different system.

When I search in the past, it seem to me that Marine Beta change sex as needed.

[hobogato]

you are right minh, i wasnt thinking straight.

[Scutterborn]

That fact had escaped me as well. Good catch.

[OrionN]

Keep me in mind when you see a Marine Betta that does not get along with your's. I will do the same.

[hobogato]

sounds like a plan to me.

[Bill S]

Hmm. I have this fish -or 2 - on my short list for the redo...

[Scutterborn]

Hmm. I have this fish -or 2 - on my short list for the redo...

But you've gotta DO the redo first, Bill! Lol!

[Bill S]

But you've gotta DO the redo first, Bill! Lol!

It's at least in the planning stages. It's a "fall project". The master bath is now done. I've got a planning document that I'm going to drop on here at some point. Wanna make sure I get it all right the first time.

[Scutterborn]

It's at least in the planning stages. It's a "fall project". The master bath is now done. I've got a planning document that I'm going to drop on here at some point. Wanna make sure I get it all right the first time.

Haha! I'm just giving you a hard time Bill. Maybe a little nudge of encouragement...

[Scutterborn]

Ace, I'm still out of town. I'm hoping to be back late tonight. I'll try and stop by tomorrow if your free.

[hobogato]

i should be here

[OrionN]

I finally got a Marine Betta pair in my tank. One adult, 4+ inches, and one juvenile, only about 2.5 inches. I keep feeding them and see what happen.

[OrionN]

There is another nice small Marine Betta at GC reef. If I did not already have a pair, I would get him/her.