Betta

Betta smaragdina

The fighting fish ( Betta ) are a genus small permanent freshwater fish within the labyrinth fish ( Anabantoidei ), the largest species, Betta unimaculata not exceed a total length of 160 mm.

Like all labyrinth fish have the species of the genus Betta about a labyrinth organ for uptake of atmospheric oxygen, which also allows them to colonize enormous oxygen-poor freshwaters (eg in rice-growing areas in Southeast Asia). All species feed mainly on small aquatic insects and molluscs and operate brood care.

Some fighting fish - especially males - are characterized by a pronounced colors and therefore are very popular as aquarium fish, especially since these types usually only low demands on the welfare questions and therefore also a beginner in the hobby may be recommended.

To facilitate an overview of the large genus, to group similar to each other species in the form circles.

• 5.1 Akarensis - form circle
• 5.2 Albimarginata - form circle
• 5.3 Anabantoides - form circle
• 5.4 Bellica - form circle
• 5.5 Coccina - form circle
• 5.6 dimidiata - form circle
• 5.7 Edithae - form circle
• 5.8 foerschi - form circle
• 5.9 picta form circle
• 5:10 Pugnax - form circle
• 5:11 Splendens circle
• 5:12 Unimaculata - form circle
• 5:13 Waseri - form circle

General to the genus Betta

Your trivial names owe the fighting fish of the Thai tradition, males of some species ( Betta splendens Betta imbellis, Betta smaragdina and hybrids thereof) for fish fights use, which enjoy great popularity today. In particular, the naturally equipped with a high potential for aggression in Siamese fighting fish ( Betta splendens) was domesticated for the maintenance of this tradition. " By-product " of this domestication is the Siamese fighting fish, which has established itself by the targeted further breeding world as aquarium fish and now has a wide variety of cultivated forms in its kind; Experts distinguish the different races especially the shape and size of the tail fin.

The scientific genus name is derived from the Javanese Betta term " wader bettah " or ikan bettah from 1878 and was used by Bleeker for the description of Betta picta. In Thai, they are also known as Trey Krem or Pla - kad.

In nature, especially the smaller ones fighting fish species do not reach old age, since they are subject to natural threats such as predators, parasites and diseases.

Distribution area

The genus is widespread and colonized large parts of Southeast Asia both stationary and flowing freshwater habitats of different water quality.

The distribution area of ​​fighting fish extends from the islands of Bali in Indonesia (including the islands of Sumatra, Borneo and Java) on the Malay Peninsula to Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and Cambodia.

System

The systematics of Anabantoidei in general, and thus the genus Betta was subjected to various changes in recent years. The last substantial work on the systematics delivered in 2006 Rüber et al. with the following final result, which is recognized and applied by leading organizations such as the IGL ( International Association for labyrinth fish ):

• Order: Perciformes ( perch-likes) Subordination: Anabantoidei ( climbing fish) Family: Osphronemidae Subfamily: Macropodusinae ( great fins ) Genus: Betta

The Belontiidae ( Bettas ) family, which is still often called is revised so.

Reproductive strategies

In the fight fish there are two basic reproductive strategies: one is the mouth brood care, on the other brood care in the foam nest. In both cases, primarily the male takes care of the brood, while the females are only secondarily involved in the rearing and care for the defense of the territory and the brooding male in some cases. Some types of combat and also distribute the female after oviposition and fertilization; particularly in brood care with a foam nest. Experienced aquarists set in this case the female into another tank, on the one hand to protect this, on the other hand to prevent the male -winding eventually destroyed his bubble nest by too many stressful faults yourself.

Brood care in the foam nest

The strategy of brood care in the foam nest is considered in the genre of fighting fish than the more primitive reproductive strategy. You can find this form of parental care, especially in species from standing waters. The characteristic bubble nest is a structure made of air bubbles, which was added by the male at the water surface, encased in the mouth with a special secretion, and then at a suitable location (usually under plants at the water surface, less often in caves ) are combined to form a loose nest. Depending on the species and individual character, the male can range from several centimeters in diameter and height, the size of the nest of a few air bubbles to relatively large structures. The spawning usually goes directly under the finished nest vonstatten, in which the male spends the fertilized eggs after each mating and guarded it until the eggs have hatched and free swimming (in most cases 3-5 days). Foam nest end Betta species are generally small ( 3-6 cm snout-vent length, an exception is the B.bellica - form circle) and color- dyed relatively intense and lively, many species also form iridescent luster shed off. In particular, during the spawning period, some of these types behave very aggressively towards conspecifics.

Typical representatives of the foam nest-building species are:

• Betta splendens
• Betta bellica
• Betta coccina

Mouth brood care

The mouth brood care is generally regarded as an adaptation to a life in waters with surface flow in which a bubble nest would find no support. The male assumes the fertilized eggs after mating in his mouth (often can thereby " pre spit eggs " a behavior called watch, in which the female picks up the eggs after mating and she spits the males before the mouth) and protect them by to hatch and swim free of the boys. The mouth brood care usually takes significantly longer than the brood nest in the foam ( depending on the type approximately 10-20 days). The mouthbrooders represent the much larger group in the genus Betta.

Typical representatives of the mouthbrooding types are:

• Betta pugnax
• Betta dimidiata
• Betta picta
• Betta unimaculata

Exceptions and transitional forms

As transitional forms between foam- nest-building and mouthbrooding Betta apply primarily the species from the B. foerschi - form circle. It was assumed initially to, it would be, for example foerschi a foam nest-building fighting fish because the body and can include head shape it - on closer observation it turned out that the type must be counted among the mouthbrooders, although the spawning behavior many parallels with foam nest-building species emerge.

An exception among the foam- nest-building species also forms a population of Betta brownorum from West Kalimantan. While all other known populations of B. brownorum build foam nests, this variant operates mouth brood care.

Species ( in the form of circles )

Akarensis - form circle

• Betta akarensis Regan, 1910
• Betta Antonii Tan & Ng, 2006
• Betta aurigans Tam & Lim, 2004
• Betta balunga Herre, 1940
• Betta chini Ng, 1993
• Betta ibanorum Tan & Ng, 2004
• Betta pinguis Tan & Kottelat, 1998
• Betta obscura Tan & Ng, 2005

Albimarginata - form circle

• Betta albimarginata Kottelat & Ng, 1994
• Betta channoides Kottelat & Ng, 1994

Anabantoides - form circle

• Betta anabatoides Bleeker, 1851

Bellica - form circle

• Betta bellica Sauvage, 1884
• Betta simorum Tan & Ng, 1996

Coccina - form circle

• Betta brownorum Witte & Schmidt, 1992
• Betta Burdigala Kottelat & Ng, 1994
• Betta coccina Vierke, 1979
• Betta hendra Schindler & Linke, 2013
• Betta livida Ng & Kottelat, 1992
• Betta miniopinna Tan & Tan, 1994
• Betta persephone Schaller, 1986
• Betta rutilans Witte & Kottelat, 1991
• Betta tussyae Schaller, 1985
• Betta uberis Tan & Ng, 2006

Dimidiata - form circle

• Betta dimidiata Roberts, 1989
• Betta krataios Tan & Ng, 2006

Edithae - form circle

• Betta edithae Vierke, 1984

Foerschi - form circle

• Betta dennisyongi Tan, 2013
• Betta foerschi Vierke, 1979
• Betta strohi Schaller & Kottelat, 1989
• Betta Mandor Tan & Ng, 2006
• Betta rubra Perugia, 1893

Picta form circle

• Betta falx Tan & Kottelat 1998
• Betta picta Valenciennes, 1846
• Betta trifasciata Bleeker, 1850
• Betta simplex Kottelat, 1994
• Betta taeniata Regan, 1910

Pugnax - form circle

• Betta apollon Schindler & Schmidt, 2006
• Betta breviobesus Tan & Kottelat, 1998
• Betta cracens Tan & Ng, 2005
• Betta enisae Kottelat, 1995
• Betta ferox Schindler & Schmidt, 2006
• Betta fusca Regan, 1910
• Betta lehi Tan & Ng, 2005
• Betta pallida Schindler & Schmidt, 2004
• Betta prima Kottelat, 1994
• Betta pugnax Cantor, 1849
• Betta pulchra Tan & Tan, 1996
• Betta schalleri Kottelat & Ng, 1994
• Betta stigmosa Tan & Ng, 2005
• Betta raja Tan & Ng, 2005

Splendens circle

• Betta imbellis Chocoholics, 1975
• Betta mahachaiensis Kowasupat et. al. 2,012
• Siamorientalis Kowasupat Betta et al. 2,012
• Betta smaragdina Chocoholics, 1972
• Betta splendens Regan, 1910
• Betta stiktos Tan & Ng, 2005

Unimaculata - form circle

• Betta compuncta Tan & Ng, 2006
• Betta gladiator Tan & Ng, 2005
• Betta ideii Tan & Ng, 2006
• Betta macrostoma Regan, 1910
• Betta ocellata de Beaufort, 1933
• Betta pallifina Tan & Ng, 2005
• Betta patoti Weber & de Beaufort, 1922
• Betta unimaculata Popta, 1905

Waseri - form circle

• Betta chloropharynx Kottelat & Ng, 1994
• Betta hipposideros Ng & Kottelat, 1994
• Betta pi Tan, 1998
• Betta renata Tan, 1998
• Betta spilotogena Ng & Kottelat, 1994
• Betta tomi Ng & Kottelat, 1994
• Betta waseri Krummenacher, 1986

Previously undescribed Betta species

• Betta sp. aff. albimarginata " Malinau "
• Betta sp. aff. pallifina "East Kalimantan "
• Betta sp. aff. smaragdina " Mahachai "
• Betta sp. aff. waseri " Anjungan "
• Betta sp. aff. waseri " Pekan Nanas "
• Betta sp. aff. waseri " Pekanbaru "
• Betta sp. cf prima " Bung Binh "
• Betta sp. " Bangka "
• Betta sp. " Jantur Gemeruh "
• Betta sp. " Karimata Iceland "
• Betta sp. " Ketapang "
• Betta sp. " Medes "
• Betta sp. " Sarawak, Semantan "
• Betta sp. " Sinkawang "
• Betta sp. "Southern Thailand "
• Betta sp. " Tayan "

Swell

• Fighting fish on Fishbase.org (English)
• Donoso R. Buchner, Dr. J. Schmidt: fighting fish - wild forms. ISBN 3-933646 -09- X.
• H. Pinter: labyrinth fish, pike heads and snakeheads. ISBN 3-8001-7093-0.
• Info page for the genus Betta of the association "Labyrinth Fish Forum eV "
• Entry on World-of- Animals.de
• Website of the IBC Betta species protection program