Male And Female Bettas Together?

[fishy55599]

I am wondering can u keep a male and female betta in the same tank?
I have heard many opions about this what you guys think?

 

[kizno1]

You cant keep male and female betta splenden together unless breeding and evan then it can go wrong. Betta splendens arnt meant to be kept together they are hybrids that have been breed for the long fins and the aggression because they are used by some people to fight in Thailand.

 

[Tolak]

Betta splendens do occupy the same body of water in the wild, if not they would not breed. If you had a large enough tank set up in a similar manner to their natural environment there is no reason you could not keep them together. The question is how large of a tank would be needed?

I've asked this before, and have yet to get any sort of answer, you would think the more serious B. splendens keepers here would have the curiosity as well as experience needed to see just how much territory these fish do require. This would also aid in determining a suitable size tank for a single species, as well as certain particulars about setups that would be more compatible to this species. As with any species there will be variables where aggression is concerned, with other species this has been worked on for many years, for whatever reason B. splendens has fallen to the wayside.

B. splendens are not a hybrid in the terminology normally associated with fish, nor are ornamental bettas with the flowing fins the sort that are bred for fighting. A hybrid is most often associated with crossing species from a different taxa, such as crossing B. splendens with B. pugnax. This is an often debated area, as some purists with certain species will do their best to keep members of that species from a certain location when breeding is concerned. They will be from the same taxa, but have traits particular to that location that breeders try to keep intact. Just the same as ornamental bettas are bred mainly for appearance, bettas bred for fighting are oriented more towards strength, endurance, and aggression.

Bottom line; you can keep them in the same tank, how large of a tank you would need has yet to be worked out. Without considerable experience it is not someting to try.

 

[kizno1]

Betta splendens do occupy the same body of water in the wild, if not they would not breed. If you had a large enough tank set up in a similar manner to their natural environment there is no reason you could not keep them together. The question is how large of a tank would be needed?

I've asked this before, and have yet to get any sort of answer, you would think the more serious B. splendens keepers here would have the curiosity as well as experience needed to see just how much territory these fish do require. This would also aid in determining a suitable size tank for a single species, as well as certain particulars about setups that would be more compatible to this species. As with any species there will be variables where aggression is concerned, with other species this has been worked on for many years, for whatever reason B. splendens has fallen to the wayside.

B. splendens are not a hybrid in the terminology normally associated with fish, nor are ornamental bettas with the flowing fins the sort that are bred for fighting. A hybrid is most often associated with crossing species from a different taxa, such as crossing B. splendens with B. pugnax. This is an often debated area, as some purists with certain species will do their best to keep members of that species from a certain location when breeding is concerned. They will be from the same taxa, but have traits particular to that location that breeders try to keep intact. Just the same as ornamental bettas are bred mainly for appearance, bettas bred for fighting are oriented more towards strength, endurance, and aggression.

Bottom line; you can keep them in the same tank, how large of a tank you would need has yet to be worked out. Without considerable experience it is not someting to try.

Betta splendens arent wild so they wont occupy the same areas of water in the wild. Betta splendens where made through selective breeding and crosses of different types of bettas to get the long fins, different colours and aggression. I wouldnt personally risk keeping a male and female together in anything less than a heavily planted 100G because if they meet and the female isnt ready to breed then the male will likely turn on her and if there isnt enough room for her to get away then she could get seriously injured or killed.

 

[BethK]

b.splendens are not wild, i wouldn't keep them in the same tank, due to stress reasons but if you were to keep them together, i would say a min. of 200 ltrs with at least 5 females and a hell of a lot of plants and hiding places.

but i personally wouldn't suggest keeping them together.

 

[Tolak]

Today's long finned colorful splendens certainly did start from wild species. I'm sure there are still splendens in the wild, though finding them for purchase is a long shot. In the breeding of ornamental lines the goal is not aggression, it is appearance. Aggression is a hindrance to any breeding program regardless of the species. Unless you are breeding a fighting line, which few people get involved with, you do want to limit aggression.

You can say I wouldn't or you shouldn't, but it is only words unless you have some hands on experience; this is what is lacking. Thoughts & ideas are great, and a heavily planted 100 gallon sounds like a good starting point, but until you act on those ideas they are only unproven theory. We need someone to step up & see if the theory is valid, with repeatable results.

 

[Deek]

I have a male in my 200L with 6 Girls with no problems could be that i got 4 Bettas when tiny and one turned out to be a male so have occupied the same tank for a while but it is 200L and heavily planted so my male generally has somewhere to hide which he does the only agression is him flaring at any fish that dares goes near his "casa del anubia".

 

[Gill]

males and females do work, if the females are given enough territory and the ratio is adequate.
IME 6-8 females work best with a male, but this is for splendens.
I am not sure what the ratios would be for wild species like imbellis, edithae, raja, etc.

to say that males cannot live with females is just lack of knowledge and experience with the very underated fish. Trial and error works with all species of fish and not all males are suitable to be housed with females. it depends on the temperament of the male and also that of the females. sometimes IME i have seen females be alot more aggressive than males can ever be. Females also require a higherarcea(sp) and also require the correct ratio of partners.
i believe that male and females would be better if they were siblings from the same spawn, but again this is untested and would need to be documented.

there are still many unknowns to be studied with line bred fighters, in to exactly what agreesion levels exist in line bred, and how long it would take to change that thru selective breeding.

 

[aly_starh]

males and females do work, if the females are given enough territory and the ratio is adequate.
IME 6-8 females work best with a male, but this is for splendens.
I am not sure what the ratios would be for wild species like imbellis, edithae, raja, etc.

to say that males cannot live with females is just lack of knowledge and experience with the very underated fish. Trial and error works with all species of fish and not all males are suitable to be housed with females. it depends on the temperament of the male and also that of the females. sometimes IME i have seen females be alot more aggressive than males can ever be. Females also require a higherarcea(sp) and also require the correct ratio of partners.
i believe that male and females would be better if they were siblings from the same spawn, but again this is untested and would need to be documented.

there are still many unknowns to be studied with line bred fighters, in to exactly what agreesion levels exist in line bred, and how long it would take to change that thru selective breeding.

Agree. ^

Although its advised not to put male and female bettas together, it can be done. Even outwith breeding them.