Lyre Tails!

[frogipoi]

*the expert moves in* It is a double tail! :D A pretty one too.
Lyretail bettas exists (hardly any true ones though, probably none that are real) .... you just have to be lucky enough to see one.
People usually mix lyretails and double tails together :)
Lyretails are usually round with a gape in the middle, they look like pinchers.

[iLovededYou]

thank you!
I'm still proud of my doubletail(: Don't see many like him.

[Jessabell]

My fish Sozin just passed away...but he had the same markings as yours. He was just a regular half moon though.

[YoshesMom]

old fish lady IS an expert if she says its a double tail then thats what it is PERIOD!

[FuulieQ]

Originally Posted by iLovededYou

but if NOBODY can find a betta with a tail like other lyre fish, who is to say the betta lyretail isnt different? unless you're an expert, you can't say.

Well, it would be like saying you have a shrub that is a grass, and then arguing that for shrubs "grass" means a different phenotype than an actual grass-type plant. It doesn't really make sense. :U

At least that's how I look at it. I actually always thought that these were just two different breeding manipulations of the DBT gene - one where the goal is to show off the distinct lobes and the other where the goal is to maximize finnage and create a perfect oval/circle around the fish's body. Does anyone know more about that? What are the show standards, anyway?

[Betta Slave]

Show standards, copy & pasted from Betty Splendens, are-

1. Possess two distinct 'tails' or caudal lobes instead of one, with complete separation to the base of the caudal peduncle.

2. Possess a wider caudal peduncle to support the double lobes.

3. Possess a larger dorsal fin, nearly the size of the anal fin.

4. Their bodies are usually more 'chunky' and often a bit shorter.

5. Bends in the caudal peduncle are expressed to a varying degree in almost all doubletail bettas. These are more easily noticed when viewing the fish from above. Easily seen bends should be faulted; if the bend is not excessive when viewed from above, the fish should not be penalized.

[FuulieQ]

Hm, so I wonder if space between the lobes is favored?

[iLovededYou]

hmm.. i'm not sure..
this is all very interesting.

[MissRockyHorror]

Pretty! :)