My Betta Spawning Diary - new fry pics 11/4/09

[bherren1]

I like the possibilities here. Now to just get APSU here in Tennessee to go along with it....We shall see what the future holds. Although breeding experiments to eliminate the eating of fry is selective breeding, not natural selection. To let natural selection act on this trait would take longer than you or I have on this Earth.

Although a possible angle would be to simulate a speciation event where the interbreeding population is separated. For instance, say a flood carries the bettas who show cannibalistic tendencies away from the rest population and now the two populations are geographically isolated. Then breeding takes place for several generations. Would the cannibalistic group die out completely over time? Would the once cannibals stop their cannibalistic tendencies and adapt to continue to exist? Would the group that didn't posses any cannibals start to show cannibalistic tendencies? Lots of interesting questions here.

I do know that research in evolution like what we are discussing is hard to get approved for the simple fact that it often takes an immense amount of time, on the order of decades for most, to get definitive results.

But an attempt to describe the mechanisms responsible for spawning habits, mate selection, and brood care can elicit good results in a relatively short time. And this would be a nice place to start, especially for an undergrad. Then there is the fact that I have to look around really hard to see what work has already been done in this area, which I have not done, and do not have the time for at the moment as we are smack dab in the middle of a semester and I have a full load. But the search for other papers on research of this nature can be difficult and time consuming in and of it's self. We already know these things, so there are most definitely papers already covering this. So that brings me back to the eating of eggs/fry behavior. Has anyone tried to tackle this phenomenon? I have read that the female will do so out of simple hunger which is why the male will chase her away. Have you observed this? I swear, if someone starts research on this after right now, October 23, 2009, your my witness that the idea was stolen from or discussion.

Right now I just have a massive amount of speculative ideas floating around in my head about a species that I have minimal knowledge of at best. I do know quite a bit about cichlids, both new world and old world, but they have been beat to death as far as research goes.
It definitely doesn't help that the Betta's natural distribution area is half way around the world...especially for my small university.

[funkyfish]

Originally Posted by speedie408

Wanna trade babies once they get older?

hey Speedie I got more fry and more eggs from my CPDs so I do want to do a trade eventually, once they big enough to be shipped. The only concern is I never shipped any fish before and do not know how to do it properly so I will need some help with that

[syrianrue]

omg i love betas.. and you actually found short fin betas too!! most pet shops i see only sell long fin males :\

[speedie408]

I'll be selling them soon if you're interested. $1 each unsexed. If you want them sexed, it may take another 3 weeks.

[speedie408]

OK, update time for anyone who cares and are following this thread. I got my hands on some Indian Almond leaves and dropped 2 leaves in their tank and they absolutely love it. They're starting to color up and even showing signs of aggression. Please take these guys off my hands... I don't have counter space to be separating all 150+ babies.

[lauraleellbp]

LOL

I invested in quart mason jars from Walmart. Wasn't expensive, but weekly water changes on 100 or so jars was NOT fun!

I just pulled out any fish that started showing aggression and jarred 'em. Had some jarred females, too- but sometimes females can be aggro, too.

[speedie408]

Originally Posted by lauraleellbp

LOL

I invested in quart mason jars from Walmart. Wasn't expensive, but weekly water changes on 100 or so jars was NOT fun!

I just pulled out any fish that started showing aggression and jarred 'em. Had some jarred females, too- but sometimes females can be aggro, too.

Those are big jars laura. I was thinking some clear plastic drinking cups with newspaper on top to keep jumpers in.

[lauraleellbp]

The bigger the container, the longer it takes for the water quality to deteriorate.

If you're looking for fast growth and good color so you can unload these as quickly as possible, I'd personally go for as big containers as you can fit.

You can certainly make smaller containers work, but if you go with cups, I think you're looking at multiple water changes per week to avoid stunting their growth.

Fry/juvies especially are VERY sensitive to water params.

[speedie408]

Copy that. Thanks for the tips laura. Now to find more counter space.

[lauraleellbp]

I bought a cheap 5-shelf unit at a yard sale for like $10 and stuck it in a corner. It worked really well.

[funkyfish]

Wow they grow so quick. And look at the pretty colors Mine are no where close to getting color on their fins. I also think I might've made a mistake by putting fry that was 3-5 days old with the older ones I can not see them anymore I need more counter space and more tanks LOL

[DUHK]

What are the almond leaves good for?

[dxiong5]

The leaves help soften the water and lower the pH (not sure if by a considerable amount). Leaves also release acids that may trigger hanky panky time and act as an anchor for the male to build a nest under.