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Aquarium guides/Breeding bettas

Breeding bettas: what is involved

Breeding bettas means conditioning a pair, letting the male build a bubble nest, removing the female after spawning and the male once the fry swim, then raising up to a few hundred fry that each need their own container as the males mature. Plan where the young fish will go before you start.

A male betta under his bubble nest
Shown: a male betta under his bubble nest. Photo: ErgoSum88, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

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The breeding tank

A shallow tank of about 10 gallons, warm, with very gentle or no filtration, floating plants or a leaf for the male to anchor his bubble nest, and plenty of hiding places for the female.

Spawning

The male builds a nest of bubbles at the surface. When the female is ready, the pair embrace under the nest and the male gathers falling eggs into it. Remove the female afterwards; the male guards the eggs and fry until they swim freely, then remove him too.

Raising the fry

Fry need infusoria, then microworms and baby brine shrimp: feeding fry. Young males start fighting within weeks and need separate containers. Betta care.

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