Breeding of Quality Bettas

It’s every hobbyist dream to breed a good true Half Moon betta but again what are the success rate. Well probably, instead of Half Moon, most of it will end up to be Super Deltas or Deltas. So what are the guidelines or criteria that we should look out for if we intend to breed a good true Half Moon?

1. Selecting the Best
This will definitely be easier to say than doing it for some due to budget constraint. My advice is to choose a pair that is within your maximum budget and always go for the best pair. If you’re seriously going into breeding them, there is no point to spend and waste 2 to 3 months down the road after spawning them, and realised that the spawns are not what you expected. Try to purchase your first breeding pair from a reputable breeder who knows about the “parentage” of the fish. If you wish to increase your success rate, it’s best to purchase a pair from the same parent fish. Try not to purchase a male from o­ne breeder and a female from another breeder. The reason is that if the pair you purchased is from the same parent fish, this pair will be termed the F1 (1st generation), and the subsequent spawn that you breed will be F2 (2nd generation). In most cases, o­nly thru selective breeding (meaning selecting the best pair from F1) of the F1, will give you a higher success rate in the F2.

2. Caudal Fin
The important point to look out for is the straightness of both the outermost edges of the caudal fin. If both the outermost edges are curved towards the same direction, do not choose them for breeding. A good Half Moon is defined as a 180 degree caudal spread measured from o­ne outermost edge to the other. So if the outermost edge is not straight, it will not be consider to be a true half moon. Also, most Half Moon tends to have shorter caudal fins then Super Deltas or Deltas.

3. Ray branching or Split
This is another very important feature to consider. The more ray branching or splits that the caudal fin (include the anal and dorsal fins) has, the larger will be the spread of the fin. It will help to give a better support of the fin and the betta will have a more larger and beautiful finnage even when it’s not flaring. In a very good trait of Half Moon, we may have primary, secondary, tertiary, as well as quaternary splits or branching. This will give you 16 splits out of o­ne main ray! A primary split gives you 2 rays; secondary split – 4 rays; tertiary split – 8 rays; and quaternary split – 16 rays. This is what Peter Choo taught me who is renowned for his line of Yellow bettas which some have up to quaternary split!

4. Clean water environment
This is o­ne factor that will affect the appearance or the development of the finnage. Poor water condition will cause fin collapsing and even fin rot. It’s important to have frequent water change and dechlorinate it if the water used is direct from tap. Chlorine will have a “burning” effect o­n the fins and will affect it’s finnage.

* Please note that the above are my personal point of views, and are written to help those who are interested in breeding half moon or super deltas. I would also like to thank those who have shared their experiences with me.

Note : This article was first written and published by Chris Yew on Friday, December 09, 2005.