Spinalcore

I'm slowly Catching up to you Chris. 4 (Males), 4 (Females), 2 (3 month juvies), and 6-8 (6 week old fry). I can't think of what the fuzz is on him at the moment. (can't really make it out in the pic) I should have taken a look when I was there the other day. :bang1: Nice bettas.

Update on Spawn 1: The 2 survivors are doing well in the Biotope tank and getting some nice coloring in to them. They are now 4 months old and doing great. Nice Rays in their fins. Update on Spawn 5: I have 6-8 Survivors at this point they are now the same size as guppy juvies and are sharing a 10 gallon tank with the guppies. They seem to be doing really well and have survived the most difficult stage of their life as they are now around 6 weeks old and are doing good.

Beautiful Crowntail Chris.

I like the Idea.

1/2" tempered glass It can hold 2 full 40 gallon tanks on one sheet so I figure that It should be strong enough to stand up to the watter pressure. I got them 4 sheets for free as a shelving unit but am only using 2 sheets in the shelving.

I have put mine on hold due to the space that I have available here at the moment. I have the Glass and wood in storage here just waiting on the money to move before trying to get them ready to be put together. I'm going for 2 that are 60"Lx30"Dx30"H (Aprox. 250 Gallons.) I'm planning on using a 2x4 frame on the outside just for an extra safety feature.

I found out on Saturday that I have known the son of the owner of riverfront for a couple of years and didn't even know that his dad ran the place. He was at the GF's cousin's place on Saturday with me. He often helps in the store for his dad as well he is just a kid and just gets people the things that they point out that they want. He doesn't know much about many of the names of the species of the fish and even less about plants. As long as the custome knows what they are there for he can help them. I believe that he is only 14 possibly 15. Great kid tho.

THE NAME Popular writers tell us that Bettas belong to the order Labyrinthici, sub-order Anabantoidea, Family Anabantidae. The origin of this scientific name is the Greek verb, anabaino, meaning "to journey up" or "to go up." This refers to the habit these fishes have of swimming to the surface every minute or so to inhale fresh air and exhale exhausted air. These little fish are not only provided with the usual gills, but they have an accessory breathing mechanism (labyrinth) which permits them to breathe atmospheric oxygen directly. THANK YOU WARREN AND LIBBY!!! America also contributed to the development of this fish that was first described by Regan in 1910. One of the first Americans to devote his life to the development of the betta was the late Warren Young, who was able to produce the very long finned, highly colorful Libby Betta which he named in honor of his wife and life-long helpmate, Libby Young. The Libby Betta carries at least two mutations for extended fin length. The first of these mutations appeared in this country in fish from Cambodia in the 1920's, and it is the mutation most commonly available. The second mutation appeared in the 1960's and was fixed into a commercial strain by Warren and Libby Young. It is through the interaction of both these mutations that the unusually long fins of the Libby strain develop. The Libby mutation is easily detected even in relatively young males by the development of a unique lengthening of the rays of the pectoral fin, especially on the dorsal edge. Unfortunately not all the fish sold under this name are representative of the strain. The first specimens made available were red, green, or blue, but the mutation was later extended into the Cambodian series. There is also a double-tail strain of Libby Bettas available. The Libby characteristic is easily lost, and for this reason should not be outcrossed to another strain for two consecutive generations. The Libby strain is subject to two problems which hinder it in competition. First is a condition which is referred to as "cranial hump," which is the doming of the top of the head. The second is a pronounced tendency for the rays of the dorsal portion of the tail fin to turn upward rather than follow the normal contour of the fin. Both of these conditions are hereditary and can be controlled by careful breeding.

YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY, BETTA!!! The history of the betta began 100's of years before it appeared in America. It began in it's native countries as a short finned, drably colored fish in Eastern Asia and Thailand (formerly Siam, hence the name "Siamese") in murky, muddy rice paddies. There they were bred for fighting capabilities, unlike the Oriental version that appeared here. The Orientals spent generations producing the long finned, brightly colored bettas. If you were to see what the original bettas looked like, you most likely wouldn't consider them of the same species as our beloved Betta Splendens (Splenden meaning "beautiful or splendid," truly fitting). When they came to America, they caused quite a bit of confusion. Each color and/or fin variation (mutation) that had been produced in the other countries was assumed to be another species. Therefore, Americans gave the betta quite a list of names! HERE'S A TASTE! Cambodian (named for the presumed source) Splendens variation longicauda (referring to the long finnage, specifically the caudal or tail fin) Rubra (red Betta) Cyano (blue Betta) Viridens (green Betta) NAMES OF SOME WILD TYPES: Akarensis Albimarginata Anabatoides Bellica Brederi Burostoma (the Brunei beauty) Coccina Edithae Fasciata Foerschi Imbellis Macrostoma Picta Plakat Smaragdina Taeniata Tessyae Unimaculata.

Double Tail Betta An interesting mutation appeared in a strain of bettas in the Libby's basement, also! This mutation has two pronounced effects on the fish. First, the caudal fin is split into two distinct lobes. Second, the number of rays in the dorsal fin is enormously increased. This results in a fin that is nearly a mirror image of the anal fin. I had thought this was a mutation that began in oriental countries...Thank you Jim Stigliano for the info!

Part 2 : THE TRUE STORY OF THE HALFMOON: In the early 80's, Guy Delaval and some other breeders imported these fish to France. Guy Delaval selected bred these fish for more angle on the tail fins and in 1987 he had a few fish that had a caudal fin of 180°. At the show in France Rajiv Masillamoni saw these fishes and realised that Guy Delaval had come up with the impossible. Up until this time the angle of caudal fins were about 160° maximum and they could not swim as well or were not as symetrical as the halfmoon caudal fish. Laurent Chenot and Rajiv Masillamoni joined in trying to preserve these fish. They tried to breed these fish, but they were too inbred and would not breed. The male did not build a bubble nest and did not even know how to wrap around the female. The female however would breed. Rajiv and Laurent did many spawns with pet shop fish and fish of various lines. A fish that came out of these crosses had a female of Delaval as mother and a black double tail male from American lines as father: This fish was called R39. This fish was bred by Rajiv Masillamoni to all of the females of his and Laurent Chenot lines. Some Halfmoons turned up and Laurent and Rajiv continued breeding hard. In 1991 Jeff Wilson joined us (he was an American breeder who had earlier been breeding dogs). When Jeff saw our fish he called them Halfmoons...Rajiv thought that it was an apt name. Jeff and Rajiv would ship our good fish by plane over the Atlantic, this way we kept putting the best Halfmoons genes into fish and we were getting Halfmoons more often in the spawns...almost a few in every spawn. In 1993 there was an IBC convention in Tampa Florida. We showed under the name CHENMASWIL and we won best of show with the Halfmoon fish. This fish was shown on the cover of Fama magazine in America and set the Halfmoon craze loose. Every breeder in America started breeding from these Halfmoons. Author: Rajiv Masillamoni

Part 1: THE STORY OF BETTA SPLENDENS: Bettas have been bred selectively for about the last 50 years to improve the finnage. Many breeders in America and Europe set about improving the finnage through selective breeding. The early betta were imported from Thailand, Singapore and other south east Asian countries. These fish had slightly elongated fins. That is the caudal (tail fin) were a little longer than on the plakat betta, which is short finned and had been bred by Thais to fight against each other. Huge bets were made and houses, wives and money often changed hands. The most important breeder in the 50's was Warren Young. He bred fish with superior size and long veil tail fins. Each of the single fins, like the dorsal, caudal and anal fin were as long as the body length. These fish were called Libby Bettas after Warren's wife Libby. In the 60's, Edward Schmidt Focke of Germany was able to breed the first Delta fish from the Thai bettas. His fish were not as long finned as the libby Bettas, but had broad fins like the modern day bettas and the tail or caudal fin was Delta shaped. In 1967 the IBC (International Betta Congress) was formed by a group of betta breeders. The IBC aimed to breed fish with fins that were broad and symmetrical instead of long. These fish were able to swim better than those with fins that were long. By the 80's the IBC breeders like Parris Jones, Peter Goettner and others were breeding fishes which we would call the Super-Delta (fish with round tails and lots of volume).

HM (Half-Moon) This is a tail that has a 180° spread: what I mean is the straight edges at the base of the tail are straight up and down, no tapering. This gives the tail a half-moon shape, thus the name. They don't breed true (so far)...very hard to get that tail span.

COMB AND CROWN TAIL BETTA There has been some interesting breeding going on overseas for the past 5-10 years. The latest finnage of comb and crown are, I believe, being bred in Indonesia and Singapore (at least). The fin's rays extend out past the fin, causing a "comb" look. The crown has two rays which are closer together with the fin extending further between them. DDR has 4 rays to a section. Hard to describe, pic's do much better. This little tidbit is from the Betta Splendens Board, posted by Joty Atmadjaja: The creator or crowntail is an Indonesian breeder named Ahmad Yusuf, he called it "cupang serit" in Indonesian language. When Henry Yin showed this fish in one of the IBC shows, he named it CROWNTAIL.

Trichopsis pumilus Quick Stats Minimum Tank Size: 10 gallon Care Level: Easy Tank Conditions: 72-78°F; pH 6.0-7.0; dKH 4-8 Max. Size In Aquarium: Up to 1½" Color Form: Blue, Green, Iridescent, Red Temperament: Peaceful Diet: Omnivore Origin: Cambodia, Tank Bred, Thailand Family: Belontiidae The Sparkling Gourami is also known as the Pygmy Gourami and is a shy and peaceful fish. They are native to the shallow waters of the rice patties in Thailand and Cambodia, and can be kept in a small shallow aquarium. They are also able to cope with very low oxygen levels. It only reaches a total length of 1-1/2" and is adorned with blue and green spots. A darker band and many dark spots cover the body of these fish. The Sparkling Gourami can be housed with a variety of tank mates that are of similar size and temperament. While males can be territorial with each other, they become timid around other, more aggressive fish. The ideal tank set-up would be an aquarium of a minimum of 10 gallons and have plenty of live plants as well as rocks and driftwood for use as hiding places. The only way to differentiate the male from the female Sparkling Gourami is by illuminating the fish with bright light and looking for the ovaries of the female. When ready to breed, the male builds a bubblenest and then begins to entice the female by swimming back and forth, flaring his fins and raising his tail. When this behavior is noticed, the water level should be reduced to 6 inches. After spawning the female should be removed to a separate aquarium as the male may become aggressive toward her. The male will tend to the eggs until they hatch, and after hatching, there should be frequent water changes, especially during the third week, as this is when the labyrinth organ is developing. The fry should be fed infusoria and nauplii. The Sparkling Gourami is an omnivore and requires both algae-based foods as well as meaty foods. An algae-based flake food, along with freeze-dried bloodworms, tubiflex, and brine shrimp will provide these fish with the proper nutrition.

I am curious to find out what Types of bettas everyone prefers the looks of in general. My Favorite is the Crowntail. How about yours? The Halfsuns also look really nice but are just a Halfmoon with more pronounced rays in their fins. The Combtails are just a Crowntail that doesn't have as many rays as it needs to be an actual crown.

I am planning on going to the auction. I am just waiting to hear that we have enough people to get together for a meeting when ever we can.

I don't see any problems with it. I was even reading last night that alot of people have used convict fry as feeders. My opinion is any kind of fish can be used as a feeder if you want to put out the money for them in the first place and can't seem to even sell them to a pet store. As long as they are small enough to fit in the mouth of the fish that you wish to feed them to they will work. The only exeption is with Piranah they will eat the scales and fins of the other fish first in the wild.

Here is the page for water wisteria (Hygrophila difformis) http://192.38.244.204/go.asp?plant=055

You can count me in on being there as well.

The auction is listed in the bargain finder. So I would guess that it is open to the public. I guess that the public should be able to also setup arrangements to have their items sold as well. The Ad: TFBA FISH AND RELATED SUPPLIES SUN OCT 17 WHITEHORN COMMUNITY ASSOC 228 WHITEHORN RD NE 10 AM VIEWING 11AM SHARP AUCTION STARTS FOR INFO OR TO SELL ITEMS CALL DAVE Tel: 403-204-1181

I am hoping to have some bettas available for sale or trade at the time of the meeting if anyone one is interested. I'm just waiting to hear back from one of the breeders I have found for a larger order.

I still have 15-20 almost 3 week old betta fry in a 10 gallon tank that I will be trying to keep a few of the males from that I plan on trying to keep together once they get bigger. I am currently trying to breed the aggression out of them a little just so that they can share a tank and not kill each other.

This is a good thing to know I tried my 2 males in the 72 together but they nipped each others fins pretty bad after a couple of hours so they are seperated and healing.

I believe that they should work for cycling you tank. All that they really need is declorinated water and regular water changes. So a weekly partial water change on a 10 gallon should do the trick to cycle the tank. I normally just use my Zebra Danios to cycle my tanks. But that shall be changing now that they are a part of my SE Asian biotope.