in southeast-Asia lives a whole series of Betta-Arten, of which one, the actual fight-fish (Betta splendens), because of who extremely aggressively executed fights of the males reached severe popularity. This fight-behavior comes from from the especially strongly distinctive precinct-defense. The males build foam-nests, that they defend against other males on lives and death, during the combination-time. In Thailand, even show-fights with fight-fishings are organized and high sums are betted on the winner.
However, not all Betta-Arten are so rowdy. Some, as Betta brederi and Betta pugnax, moved on to the mouth-brood-care and don't build any foam-nests. they hardly still show precinct-behavior and are accordingly little aggressive.
Opposite other fishings, all fight-fish are very peaceful, and one must watch out in the society-basin that these slow fish with its long fins are not ruffled by other fishings to badly.
Shape Fight-fish are long-stretched, lithe fish with small back - and big anus-fin. With the veil-fight-fish, a breeding-form of Betta splendens, sail-good fins and shining colors were out-bred by long breeding-election. Red, blue against the shiny, becomes green or exclude virtually insignificantly also different-colored breeding animals itself game-animals. However also the game-forms, according to geographical origin, vary strongly in the color.
Betta splendens belongs to the smaller fight-fish-types with 6 cm of length. Betta anabatoides, B, become, for example. bellica and B. brederi 10-12 cm long.
Way of life Fight-fish live in versumpfte, flattens and very warm waters with dense plant-growth. The food consists of invertebrate small animals of all the type.
Reproduction The reproductive-behavior lets itself observe well in the aquarium.
With the mouth-brooding forms, the females are very active. After active Balzspiel, the animals are combined narrowly embraced. At first, the female takes the fertilized eggs into the mouth after the spawn-act and then spits it the male, who hatches it in the mouth in 8-12 days, to. During this time, it doesn't eat any food.
The males of the other types, so also with the actual fight-fish, build its foam-nests from big blisters at the water-surface. The animals are combined directly under the nest after vehement love-game. Eggs, that don't stick in the nest with the spawn-act and sink downward, are picked up by the male and are back-spit again. The tiny young-fish hatch already after one day.
Attitude Fight-fish need high water-temperatures (25-28 °C), are very fast-growing, modest and take living - like fodder at. Because they defend its precinct on lives and death against each other, one can never hold in an aquarium more than a male. One quite can the male several females zugesellen in bigger basins.
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