topline slope question

[Mo]

kinda like this?

[Vashnic]

It does seem that many plakat bettas have shorter and thicker body shapes than the other types--bulldogs of betta world. XD The topline reminds me a little of sockeye salmon, actually.

[Hallyx]

Mo has shown a fish with an excellent topline... smooth like the top of an airplane wing. It doesn't even rise out-of-curve for the dorsal fin.

Also nice alignment, anal not too long, long first dorsal ray, etc. That is a quality HM.

[Mo]

Thanks Hallyx.. He DOES have a SEVERE fault.. If you shine a flashlight which is what judges do to find Irredescence he has tons of it..

[Hallyx]

You're kidding. Iridescence is the best quality in some of my fish, unless we (the judges and I) mean different things by that term.

When I refer to iridescence I mean that quality of "shimmer" or refraction (as opposed to reflection) or subtle color change depending on the light.

I use it also to describe the color/refraction change caused by the activation of photophors which can transform some fish---like some wilds---from dull brownish fish into a glowing colorful spectacle.

[Mo]

I remember Sherolyn Craig saying that you should have 0 irredescence in reds

[VictorP]

+1 Mo
Reds should have 0 irrids in them which is one of the hardest things for a breeder to achieve when breeding reds.

[Hallyx]

Apparently the word iridescence carries a specific connotation in Betta breeding, a definition that is other than or beyond the common English language meaning.

Would anyone care to enlighten me? Thank you.

[Basement Bettas]

Originally Posted by Hallyx

Apparently the word iridescence carries a specific connotation in Betta breeding, a definition that is other than or beyond the common English language meaning.

Would anyone care to enlighten me? Thank you.

it depends on the color. The iridescents are actually a betta color and these colors have a reflective quality.. the blue/green/steels. So they have a bit of shine and that is what you want. To get an all blue/green/steel fish you actually have to have a spread iridescence gene. Otherwise you just get patches of these colors.

Black and red should not be any color but black or red. If you look at a black or red fish and they have specks of steel/green/blue they have iridescence.. not spread iridescence.. but scales that have a bit of another irid color on them. This is a huge fault on those colors as showing red on an iridescent fish is.

Things get complicated when you add a metallic gene.. and you get metallic blues, greens and turqs. You can also get metallic over the red.. though it usually is just hints of steel showing up.

hth

[Hallyx]

Thanks, BB. That simple explanation opened m eyes to what they're talking about when they say iridescence, and what it means in regards to show Betta.