Betta Age And Growth

[TribeOfShroom]

How old do bettas get before showing male/female characteristics and colour/form? I only ask because I've just come across 2 websites. 1 states it's after 11wks, the other states it's after 30wks.

Is this from temperature/breed/etc?

EDIT: and are male bettas over 12months old, really too old to breed??

 

[dmarie04]

30 weeks is over 7 months. If you haven't figured out if your betta is a male/female by then, then you got a problem with your fish!! (or eyesight!!). Around 6-8 weeks of age males will start to show their male behavior (fighting and nipping and possibly blowing tiny bubblenests) usually. By 12 weeks of age you *should* be able to succesfully sex all the fish, if they've grown on schedule. It might take a few more weeks if you have some runts or slow growers in the mix.

Males sometimes can breed over 1 year. The problem is that sometimes they are not fertile anymore, or are not up to breeding (too old and cranky, maybe?!). It can be done, though, with certain males...it just isn't always successful.

 

[TribeOfShroom]

I was thinking that 30wks was taking the biscuit. Right so no worries there. Now as for males over a year in age... ok my male is about 1 and a half. He's not aggressive (well saying that, he did put on one hell of a show when my gf left her male betta next to my tank, while she got her tank sorted).. fertility... it's quite shocking to think that they are only fertile for a year??! is this due to imbreeding?

I hope my male has still got it in him. He's a good community fish and I was hoping for a good breeder to be made out of him (even if it was just for one spawn)