Community Bettas

[tetraman]

Could I safely get a male betta in my community tank? The size and inhabitants are in my sig.

 

[pica_nuttalli]

probably not. most people report negative experiences with mixing neon tetras and bettas; a betta would also definitely make short work of any fry.

 

[tetraman]

The fry are in a breeding net. Would a young betta seriously eat a neon tetra?

 

[Kovitlac]

The other way around actually - I believe that tetras tend to nip at the fins of bettas. It's a shame though. A tank full of neon tetras and a betta would be beautiful. But then again, so would a tank full of bettas

 

[SPLiSH]

The neons would nip the betta to shreds most likely. And the betta might mistake the platies for female bettas or just be annoyed by their bright colours.

It sounds like a great community already, a betta might just cause trouble.

 

[tetraman]

My neon tetras stay a few inches from the substrate and don't even come up for feeding. I have to have food drop through for them. Would they even notice the betta at the surface?

 

[tetraman]

Could I put one in it's own 2.5 gallon tank?

 

[pica_nuttalli]

yes. an individual betta would be quite happy in a 2.5g tank.

 

[tetraman]

Wait a sec! Nmonks said in his top-dwellers article in TFH that bettas were compatible with neons.

 

[33moths]

My bettas don't stay at the top- they explore everywhere. Why take the chance? Is it that important to you?

 

[dwarfgourami]

Wait a sec! Nmonks said in his top-dwellers article in TFH that bettas were compatible with neons.

How about doing a separate thread on this- or trawling through old posts with the search function? My impression is that several members have kept this combination- some have done well, and others have had bad fin-nipping problems. It seems to be luck or unidentified factors in the setup or the individuality of the fish. The betta in the community tank seems a bit of an unpredictable adventure altogether.

 

[andyw823]

Dont do it its not worth the upset it will cause the male, take it from experience

 

[jarmado]

i have a male betta together with 10 neon tetras for almost a year now and no problems whatsoever.

 

[jollysue]

Yeah, I doubt that in most cases the neons would be the problem in that tank for the Betta. 30 gallon is a lot of tank for a Betta to patrol.

 

[tetraman]

Yeah, I might get one. Some of them in my LFS are beautiful.