1. Betta fish have superbly developed eyesight and therefore swim to the top of the tank whenever they see a human hand on it to place food.
2. Another name for the betta fish is the Siamese fighting fish and its name is pronounced in the same way as when we say the Greek letter beta, it is for this reason that some misspell the name and that is why it is often spelled beta fish, which is the American way. Some think that the name has something to do with the Greek letter, but it is actually derived from the Thai word ‘ikan bettah’. Betta fish are known as pla-kad in Thailand and live in shallow fresh water.
3. Due to the fantastic colors of the male betta fish and other advantages, they are the most popular aquarium fish. Of course, this does not mean that you can just put them in the tank and not take care of them, they need a lot of care.
4. Betta fish are actually native to Southeast Asia, Thailand, Malaysia, and China.
5. They grow to about 3 inches and have a relatively short lifespan of about 2 years, but some live up to 4 years, in well-kept aquariums some have been known to live for more than 6 years.
6. When the male betta fish is in its aggressive stage, it will puff up. During this inflation, it raises the gills and fins to look bigger than it is and therefore looks more impressive. This swelling is done both through aggression and during the courtship stage when you are trying to impress a potential mating partner.
7. Some Asian countries breed them to fight similar to roosters in cockfighting. Betta fish used in this way have shorter fins than what we normally see in our aquariums in the Western Hemisphere. In fact, wild bettas have very short fins, it is breeders who have developed bettas with longer, brightly colored fins.
8. Betta fish seem to continually blow funny bubbles at the top of the aquarium; this is just their way of making a nest. The male betta fish when in the wild makes bubble nests so that when the female passes by her, she does her tribal dance with the fins flashing to impress her properly, when she is so impressed properly she will spawn and then fertilize the eggs. So being the perfect parent, he will collect the eggs in his mouth and tenderly place them in his bubble nest. That is all; The interlude about him was his ‘Brief Encounter’.
9. For 2 days after the eggs have been laid and safely deposited in the bubble nest, the male fully cares for them, if any of the fry falls out of the nest, he picks them up in his mouth and returns them to laying, so it’s the beta male who looks after the eggs until and after they hatch, after which he may or may not choose to devour some of his young, so much for being the perfect DAD!
10. If the female does not turn her tail and get out of there as quickly as possible, the male, like the female black widow spider, will turn against his male partner, the male betta will turn against the female.