I'm still pretty new, but I did figure out a method to tell if he can see out of the tank. I took a handheld mirror and put it up against the tank. My betta started flaring right in front of it, which implies he can see outside the acrylic. Also, if you put your finger on the tank and move it around sometimes your fish might follow it. Though with glass it may be different. This is just my experience so far (about a week now lol).

 

I actually tried the hand mirror on all sides and no response whatsoever! Same goes for finger wiggles - it's really, really bizarre. Though... I also held the mirror above the water and he didn't flare at it then, he certainly looked at it though. I love how he watches everything above the aquarium, if only he'd look out at me hahah. D'oh.

I'm considering replacing the aquarium anyway as it's rather old but didn't want to put the fish through the stress... hopefully he'll forgive me if I do find I need to do a switch.

Thank you for your response - sound advice! =]

 

I have two glass tanks. The 15 gallon has a sorority and they can all definitely see me, they even swim down to where I have the big container of NLS food sitting and hover over it. The boys aren't as reactive, but I pressed my finger against the glass and Ares stopped swimming to stare. From an angle it does look very reflective, but I think from straight on, they can see out just fine.

 

Thanks, styggian. I'm probably over-reacting, I just find it incredibly strange how he is completely oblivious to me regardless of what I do outside of the walls but the moment he sees me up top he's all curious and investigating.

 

I've seen fish do that before. Some may just not be reactive. My girls follow me around, the boys don't pay as much attention.

 

Hey Spooky,

My little guy Ghost is exactly like that! Has more apathy than a house cat. Almost never flares, and to make matters worse, when I first got him, he refused to eat for 3 weeks! I was certain he was either blind or seriously inbred.

Eventually I came to realize that he will only eat living things - nothing dead, even if I wiggle it around to try to fool him, he'll just spit it out - and he seems smarter than the average betta. It's as if he KNOWS he's in a bowl, and doesn't care for anything on the outside of the glass because he knows he's safe. I did see him flare maybe 3 times in 6 months, usually at Lucky, his neighbor, but soon afterward he just sort of "remembers" that Lucky can't possibly reach him and he swims away.
I've described Ghost as "swimming to the beat of a different drum" but over time I did manage to train him, believe it or not! His personality is like no other betta I've ever seen and while he doesn't do typical betta things, he brings me a lot of joy with his oddball adventures and habits just the same!
Sounds to me like you have one of those special little bettas as well. Enjoy it! They'll do things that will surprise you! Take some time to learn about his personality and you'll see, he might not be as different as you think

Good luck!

 

Thank you so much for the info, ThorAndGhost. His old tank was... well... old. I'd noticed a few cracks that weren't there prior to setting it up so we had to replace it anyway but I'm pleased to learn of others with similar style bettas.

Trust me to pick the most oddly behaved betta out of the 100 or so the store had! I don't mind, though - it makes us the perfect pair. Woohoo!

I can't believe how silly my question sounded, but at the same time I'd rather ask and look a little silly than find there's a genuine problem and look sillier for not asking and even worse - find Mr. Has-Yet-To-Be-Named gets in a pickle, stressed or worse! Hahah. He seems happy, he's eating and just chillin' out in his aquarium.

He loves his vines. I was worried about them but he thoroughly enjoys weaving through them. Fantastic!

Thank you all again for your responses and I hope you can forgive my silliness. Hopefully I can learn more and eventually contribute to the forums myself. Whew!

 

Don't feel silly! I mean, I thought Ghost was inbred or kind of ... um ... slow! At least your theory was a bit more plausible!

Keep us updated!

 

I will do - thanks again!

 

Remember, everyone here has started out at the same point that you're at. I'm new to aquariums and I've made a fool of myself a couple of times, but the person never mentioned it like that. She said that you don't look foolish when you ask silly questions because they know that you're a beginner and want the best care for your fish. :-D

 

That's a great way to put it - thank you! I've been spotted a couple of times by my betta (still deciding on a name and trying to get photos, we have one but it's rather blurry) from the sides of his new aquarium, which is nice to see. He hasn't paid me much mind asides from when he spots me leering over the aquarium at him... maybe he just prefers to look up? Hahah.

Anyway, he seems happy so that's all that matters really!

 

Sounds like you're doing great with him so far! I was new three-ish months ago, and now I have two tanks and three bettas so be warned! We'd love to see pics...when you get them that is! They're hard to photograph aren't they?

 

They certainly are! I've had my little friend for two and a half days and already want a second haha. I'm going to wait though, medical stuff disallows me from taking on too much so I'm going to spoil this guy rotten. We do have a photo but it's very blurry, I suppose I can upload it anyway.