[Betta_addict36]

I’ve wanted a pair of imbellis Bettas for about four years now and I’m finally getting one!! They’re shipping right now and will be here tomorrow. I’ll be posting updates here whenever anything significant happens. I just finished setting up the tank, here’s the pics. I’ll post some pics of the bettas tomorrow if I can manage to get some without stressing them out too much.

 

[betta4ever!]

I'm so excited for you! Wild Bettas are so different than the domestic Bettas, but SO much fun to watch! Out of curiosity, what's the tank size and the water parameters? Looking forward for pics/ updates!!

 

[Betta_addict36]

I'm so excited for you! Wild Bettas are so different than the domestic Bettas, but SO much fun to watch! Out of curiosity, what's the tank size and the water parameters? Looking forward for pics/ updates!!

Tank size is 10 gallons, not sure of the water parameters- I’ve only got one test strip atm so I’m gonna wait to use it till right before I put the pair in. I put water conditioner and bacteria starter from an existing tank (and a bottle for extra measure) as well as some rooibos tea to add some tannins to the water. I also threw some flourish in the tank since all the plants are new and they could use a boost. So basically the water should be pretty good but I’ll give you the parameters when I post pictures of the couple tomorrow

 

[NoodleTheMysteryBetta]

Exciting stuff! I have a friend who has a pair of imbellis and he’s told me that they breed like crazy so be prepared for babies! It is also worth noting that the pair might not get along so definitely keep an eye on them as they get settled in.

 

[Betta_addict36]

Exciting stuff! I have a friend who has a pair of imbellis and he’s told me that they breed like crazy so be prepared for babies! It is also worth noting that the pair might not get along so definitely keep an eye on them as they get settled in.

Cant wait for babies! Yay! And thanks for mentioning that, I’ll be sure to watch out for any fighting. They’ve come across each other a few times and so far they both seem cool with each other so hopefully it stays that way. ✌🤞

 

[Betta_addict36]

They’re here!!! I’ve got them both settling in to their 10 gallon right now. The female has been super exploratory and I’ve seen her swimming around quite a bit- frequently out in the open right in front of me! The male is quite a bit shyer. He really only comes out to get a breath of air at the surface before warily swimming back to a hiding place. They’ve seen each other a few times and seem curious about each other and I’ve seen them following each other around a few times but they mostly stick to their own hiding places in separate parts of the tank. No aggression so far though so that’s promising. The water parameters are as follows:
Gh- 120
Kh- 80
Ph- 7 (this might go down a bit further as more tannins release into the water- I have a pretty good sized driftwood, three small catappa leaves, and two rooibbs teabags in there atm)
NO2- 0
NO3- 0
I have the heater set at about 78 right now and may raise it to 80 once they’ve settled in to promote spawning.

now without further adieu, some pictures!!

The males colors have already started coming out a lot more now that he’s in the tank, I haven’t been able to get any pictures of that yet though. I’ll update again once they’ve settled in more and are more willing to tolerate a paparazzi XD

 

[Ratvan]

Love the look of your set up and those are some lovely looking fish. Following along for more photos down the line

 

[Betta_addict36]

Love the look of your set up and those are some lovely looking fish. Following along for more photos down the line

Thanks! I’m really happy with the fish and I’m glad you like the setup! I spent a couple hours on it making sure it looked the way I wanted so I’m glad people think it looks nice

 

[Betta_addict36]

Wasn’t expecting to update so soon but here we are! The male has created a huuugeee bubble nest and the female has super dark breeding stripes. Hopefully I get some babies soon!! I’m posting this question in the breeding forum too but I saw the female mouthing the bubble nest- like eating the bubbles?? I know there’s no eggs in the nest yet so I have no clue what she was doing. Anyone else have any ideas? It didn’t sabotage the nest, do I don’t think that was the goal but I don’t know, I’ve never seen this before.

 

[betta4ever!]

Wow, the male is stunning!! And what a huge bubble nest! Maybe the female was helping the male build the nest?

 

[Ratvan]

I have had a female in the past that used to blow bubble nests, while rare its not unheard of. As above maybe she was helping out, or even just investigating the work to check suitability? Do you feed live foods, could have found a little snack as well?

 

[Betta_addict36]

@Ratvan @betta4ever! I’m not sure she was helping, it didn’t look like she was adding more bubbles just rummaging through the ones already there. What sounds like it makes the most sense is her checking suitability, is that something they do sometimes? I don’t feed live foods (yet, im getting some in the mail within the next few days) so it couldn’t have been that…

 

[Ratvan]

I believe so, all my experience is not of the wild type though. I've seen and heard a few people say that the female has destroyed the bubblenest before, guessing it was not adequate for her. But that was jumping through the nest. Interesting none the less

 

[Betta_addict36]

I believe so, all my experience is not of the wild type though. I've seen and heard a few people say that the female has destroyed the bubblenest before, guessing it was not adequate for her. But that was jumping through the nest. Interesting none the less

Yeah that is interesting! I’ve heard of that before too, I think you’re probably right and that she’s just checking that it’s good enough

 

[Betta_addict36]

Well, she must’ve decided it was cuz we have eggs!!! And fry!!! I just checked the tank and this is the first time I’ve opened the lid and checked from above which is the only way I was able to see them. So, im not really sure how old the eggs are but I can see little babies moving around in them and the one I took out to look at under a microscope hatched while on the slide and proceeded to swim around in the water bubble I had it in! It was crazy! Also, the bubble nest is huuugggeeee now!! Like- it takes up a fourth of the tank! Here’s some pictures of all that!!

 

[NoodleTheMysteryBetta]

That’s awesome! Congratulations!

 

[Betta_addict36]

That’s awesome! Congratulations!

Thanks!! I’m so excited I’m kinda bummed I didn’t get to see them spawning but getting to watch an egg hatch made up for that for sure! I was trying to keep a good eye out for eggs so I could make sure the male wasn’t aggressive toward the female after spawning but turns out he’s not so that’s great!

 

[betta4ever!]

Congrats!! So excited for you ☺!!

 

[Betta_addict36]

Congrats!! So excited for you ☺!!

Thank you!! I’m super excited too hehe 😁

 

[Rose of sharon]

Please keep posting pics when you can!! Your pics are absolutely fascinating!!!