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Female betta sorority

8K views 76 replies 7 participants last post by  Pod 
#1 ·
I started my first Betta sorority today, which consist of 4 female betta's, 2 albino corydoras and 1 Chinese algae eater in a 6 gallon tank. At first, all was well, but then my oldest and largest female began going around and chasing every betta she could. She even attacked my Chinese Algae eater out of excitment.

Now, this is my first sorority, but not my first betta's. I currently have 9 betta's[3 of which are the newcoming females]. I know that the 6 gallon tank isnt large enough, but, its all I can do until i receive my 10 gallon.

My main question is:
Is it normal for the largest female to push around all other betta's in her territory, even when they are simply going up for air?

Note: the tank is well planted and has many hiding spots.
 
#33 ·
Agreed. Not only do they max out at about 12 inches long, they can also become really territorial. Mine is about six inches long (was about 2.5" when i got him) and will chase ALL of the fish away from his territory, including my 10 inch granulated catfish. He is a jerk. I have tried to give him away to friends several times, but he is also very smart and hides every time I approach the tank.
 
#4 ·
I figured that she was simply behaving out of instinct, and not establishing a hierarchy. I did remove her, and the other betta's are quite fine, no aggression or anything.

I am expecting to get a 10 gallon tank within a few day period, so, the tankmates of the current tank will most likely be moved into that tank, along with all decorations.
 
#5 ·
All bettas, including females, are very aggressive and territorial. They will fight and bicker over everything. I have 8 females in a 15gal and they still bicker. I wouldn't have put them together for even a few days because of the aggressiveness and the small size. They will establish a pecking order, and you will get ammonia build up very quickly.
 
#6 ·
So, this raises another question. Actually, a few.

Do I keep the larger female in there[highly doubt this is recommended, but, just figured I'd say it].

The ammonia build up I can deal with, since i preform 100% water changes with all my betta tanks. I clean out the gravel and decorations, making sure everything is sparkly clean for my fish.
 
#8 ·
Noted. I have separated the larger female, placing her within the cup she came in for a bit while I debate on where to hold her until the bigger tank arrives. Upon removing her, the other three females' stress bars went away and their full color came back.

Do I keep the three in the tank, or, separate them into their individual cups?
 
#10 ·
Upon placing the four into the tank, they all showed no aggression. The larger female flared, showed her fins, then left them alone. Then, she turns into a piranha and starts abusing the others.

I understood what to expect, but, it was getting out of hand. A few of the newcomers were starting to get weak. So, i netted her and placed her into her cup.

Not to mention she is much MUCH larger than the other 3, due to her age. She is most likely 6-9 months of age, or maybe more. The other 3 seem like 4-6 month olds, since they are so tiny compared to her. I can gladly get an image of them, if you'd like
 
#11 ·
Uh, I'd return your chinese algae eater.. they need to be in 40 gallon set ups or else they will be stunted. They get pretty big. And you need at least 4 cories. You can't have 4 girls and 4 cories in a 10 gallon. You also run the risk that your cories barbels will fall off in gravel, they really need a soft sand substrate.. I'd leave the cories in the 6 gallon and get them more friends. I hope you're testing your ammonia levels daily..

Also when you get the 10 gallon, buy two more females, so you have 6 in the ten gallon.. They more females the better it should work..
 
#12 ·
Thanks for the advice. I know the size that CAE's get, and I have another tank. Its a 75 gallon tank with 4 Convict chilids and one Alligator gar. Im kinda a bit hesitant to put the CAE in there, since it's small enough for the Chilids to devour in a single gulp.

I also know that CAE's are aggressive and territorial when fully grown. Hes only in there until he reaches a size where he wont be devoured by the chilids.

I can try to get 2 more female betta's for the ten gallon. And yes, i check my waters every day, and preform 20-100% water changes, depending on the tank. The 6 gallon had a 100% water change the day i got the betta's, with gallons of water that i keep at room temp, and usually sit out without the lids on.
 
#13 ·
Sounds like you're good to go!
Haha I had a pair of convict chicilids once. They had eggs, and they stripped my poor pleco's scales off. A PLECO. Like, I thought they had good armour, but those things get aggressive when they have eggs.
Also I'd love to see a photo of your gar. They are adorable :3
 
#14 ·
Yeah. The Convicts I dislike greatly. They are just too aggressive. I'd rather keep the Gar in there with something much more peaceful, rather than have the Gar in there with fish that tear up any other fish that is placed into the tank.

I currently have all 4 females in their cups. I am also now greatly regretting getting a CAE, since I've been looking around on the other threads and finding out just how aggressive they are.

I've placed all 4 females into the 1.75 gallon tank where I keep my red crowntail male[Yes, the tank is small, but, hes quite happy in there. I change his water once every week, and he builds a massive bubble nest every 2 days] to test something out with the females.

All females showed flaring, but, no chasing. Not even Sam[the oldest] chased the others. The problem with the 6 gallon is that Sam has lived there for about half a month now, and the decorations havn't been changed at all. I think shes being over-territorial rather than just being unpleasant.
 
#15 ·
How big is the gar? And are the convicts males and females?

Yes that'd be it. If you have to put them in the 6 gallon for a few more days, then rearrange everything then she will be like OMG NEVER BEEN HERE BEFORE, and won't see it as her territory, which should mellow her down.
Don't keep them in the sight of the male for too long as this can cause them to produce eggs, which can be hard to get rid of without breeding. At least I think so.
 
#16 ·
The gar is 8 inches long, and a year old. I got him from someone who fished him when he was young, but, was gonna kill him. So, i took him off his hands. And the convicts, i have no clue the gender. I know the larger two[Pink and dark black] are males, but, the other two are too small.

I kinda guessed that the same look made her overaggressive. The tank has lots of cave-like areas, including a petco tree root thing in the middle, and fake plants in the side.

I'm actually considering breeding my females, but, the time isnt right yet. I barely have enough room for the 4 tanks on my tiny dresser. The 1.75 gallon and the 1 gallon pet carrier things where I house my Black orchid male crowntail and my Cambodian red crowntail are sitting on something equal height to the dresser.

Yeah, I think i should remove the girls. I keep adding all 4 girls at least once every 6 hours to the 6 gallon tank, and i keep the cups near each other, this way they are used to seeing each other.
 
#17 ·
Females tend to have oranges bellies.

As long as you change the decor I think you can add them in together. They WILL fight and chase each other, but this is natural because they have to establish a pecking order. So some ripped fins are to be expected.
 
#18 ·
The only problem is that I have no idea how I'm going to move the tree root thing... Its always in the middle, because it's too thick for the sides. And my filter and heater take up room, as well. But, it also provides bonus hiding places for the females.

Also, would it be a good idea to get dried Leaves and fallen stick formations from outside and put it into the betta's tanks? Or no?
 
#19 ·
A highly debated concept this is!
I would not put just anything in. Be SURE that no pesticides are used on anything you put in, obviously.
For dried leaves, the only thing I'd put in comfortably would be oak leaves. Put them in boiling water for a few minutes to be safe.
For sticks, avoid softwoods, birch, pine, cedar etc. Oak wood would be good I think. You'll have to soak it, probably for a few weeks, to get out tannins because it will produce way more than you'd ever want in your fish tank. After, or before this, you can bake it in your oven, at a high temp, for maybe half an hour.
 
#20 ·
How would you know what kind of leaves and sticks you have laying around your neighborhood?

I'm pretty sure all my betta's would enjoy some dead leaves and some fallen stick formations. It would make the water more natural. Since I don't have the resources for live plants, I might as well get dead ones that would stimulate a natural environment.
 
#22 ·
I looked up native trees in my state [RI, USA], and came up with these results:
Bitter-nut-hickory, white elm, slippery elm, butternut, chestnut, rock maple, red maple, white maple, black birch, canoe birch, gray birch, yellow birch, and a whole bunch of others.

What would be the best recommended tree-parts. If there are no native recommended parts, if I obtain parts of a species, what do I do to make it safe for the betta's?
 
#24 ·
The only body of water near me is the brackish waters. I don't even know where to find a small creek or something in the more wooded area's of my state. Quite a difficult turn of events.

If i do find suitable leaves and sticks, how do i go about preparing them for my betta's? I know you said to boil the leaves in hot water, but what about sticks? And large, flat rocks?
 
#25 ·
Sticks, soak them in water for a few weeks. Youll have to change the water every now and then, until it stops turning the water brown. Dong boil rocks. Scrub them really well with vinegar and water. Rocks can alter hardness and pH, as can leaves and twigs. You'll have to monitor this.
 
#26 ·
So, in simple terms, it would make the tank more natural looking, but, also make things more harder? Sounds fun.

Would the betta's enjoy floating leaves and stick formations in the tank, or no? Would they find it more interesting?

Also, in the terms of live foods, would they enjoy eating live-wingless fruit flies?
 
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