No breeding, guard empty nest, aggression or overly gentle??

[indjo]

Basically bettas would breed anywhere. They would breed in 1g water (but the fry wouldn't survive). The trick is to set the mood, for both male and female.

If you have placed them together and the male is not interested, then separate them immediately and isolate them (preferably) in a dark place. Make sure that they can't see other bettas. 1 week should be more than enough (don't forget to condition them).

Then let the male see a female. If he swims as if showing himself off, then he wants to breed. The same for the female and she usually shows breeding signs. You can release the female.

Aggressiveness is not a sign of not wanting to breed. Some males would beat the life out of the female before mating. That's why the female is usually kept in jars for three days; it's a way to make the male tired/less aggressive and give the female time to prepare/ripen her eggs. So when she is released, they would almost immediately spawn.

I don't actually 'condition' my breeders with extra food. I only use frozen bloodworm 2 - 3 times a day. So I believe, live food isn't really a must (it is better though). Just don't use man made fish food.

I hope this helps. Good luck!

[Legendary]

Originally Posted by indjo

Basically bettas would breed anywhere. They would breed in 1g water (but the fry wouldn't survive). The trick is to set the mood, for both male and female.

Ooops sorry but i spawn bettas in a 1 gallon and never had a problem with it, i leave them there for a 2 weeks and then move them and they do just fine, i dont know why people make breeding bettas look so hard when its really easy, i dont even worry about the betta's first breath but i still make sure that the air is warm just in case. IMO the smaller the thank the better but that's just me.

[1fish2fish]

I'd be interested you hear what your set up is like spawning that way. You must do multiple daily water changes to keep the stunting hormone down in a tank that small. I'd also like to hear the avg number of fry you have survive to adulthood in a tank that big.

[dramaqueen]

It seems like it would be very difficult to maintain good water quality in a smaller container.