Yesterday my pair of Betta miniopinna arrived safely on my doorstep after making the journey all the way from Indonesia. The tank was ready for them to go straight into, and they spent the remainder of yesterday hunting mosquito larvae and chasing each other around. This is the first time I have owned this species, and there really doesn't seem to be much information available online. All I know is that they are critically endangered and come from the Riau Archipelago in Indonesia. If you have anything further to add, please do post it in the comment section of this entry.
I'm hoping that I am able to get this pair spawning once they are more comfortable with their new environment. Due to their status in the wild and relative scarcity in the hobby, I want to make Betta miniopinna part of my 'species focus'. Unfortunately, newly arrived fish make for poor photo subjects, so there probably won't be too many photos of this pair just yet. Today I got the exciting news that my Betta miniopinna had completed their time in quarantine and were waiting to be shipped out to me. However, while I have a tank fully set-up and ready to go for them, I wasn't expecting that my pair of Betta sp. wajok would also be coming in on this shipment. Thus ensued much pandemonium as I rushed about trying to throw together a passable tank, so at least they weren't going to be playing musical tanks when they arrived.
Hopefully if everything goes to plan, my next update here will be photos of both pairs settling into their new homes. I did my weekly water change on my Betta persephone tank and added in a couple of rooibos tea bags to colour the water. Within a couple of hours all the males in the tank were showing off to each other and to the handful of females in there.
Since it's a new year, I thought I'd post a brief overview on what's happening with the various species in my fish room. Unfortunately, I only have a handful remaining from the coccina complex. However, I definitely haven't been short on fry from those species I do still own. Betta sp. apiapi - Along with the original pair, I have at least a couple dozen juveniles and fry growing out. The male has a group of fry that are almost fully free-swimming, while the bigger juveniles are starting to develop their adult colouration.
Betta brownorum - Along with the original pair, I have maybe a dozen or more juveniles and fry growing out. Spawning activity has ceased amongst the parents and the male has become much more shy of late. Some of the bigger juveniles are starting to develop their lateral spot, and I'm starting to be able to get an idea of genders with a couple of them. Betta hendra - Along with the original pair, I have at least a couple dozen juveniles and fry growing out. The bigger juveniles are starting to develop adult colouration, and should be sexable in a few more weeks. Both male and female have been showing interest in each other, so I am anticipating another spawn soon. Betta persephone - There has been some spawning activity from the dominant female and one of the males over the past few weeks. Eggs are either rarely produced, or almost always eaten/abandoned shortly after spawning. However, I did discover a single fry in the main tank earlier today. Betta sp. cf. rutilans green - Unfortunately, this group of fish have been suffering from recurring oodinium for the past few weeks. At the moment they are undergoing a 14 day treatment with 'Seachem Cupramine' and I will see if this has any effect. Because of the oodinium I will not be attempting to work with this group of fish any further. Hopefully in the future I will be able to find a replacement pair of this species. I have been meaning to separate out a pair of Betta persephone for a while now so I could work further with this species. Unfortunately, space constraints haven't made that possible and so I've had to wait.
So imagine my astonishment when I look into the main tank this morning, and discover a fry that would have to be at least a couple of weeks old in there. I have dominant female that spawns every so often with one particular male. Usually the eggs end up eaten or abandoned, probably a result of the other fish in the tank. However, I guess at some point there must have been fry that survived to become free-swimming, and this one has somehow evaded predation by the other adults in the tank. It would be great if there were a couple more fry in there. However, I am pleased to know that at least one of my pairs is compatible and capable enough to produce fry. It looks I'll be starting 2014 with two new pairs of wild betta: Betta miniopinna and Betta sp. wajok. I am excited to have the chance to work with both of these species as I have not had any past experience with either. Hopefully both pairs make it safely through the whole transhipping and quarantine process.
Fishwise, I am hoping that a pair of wild-caught Betta coccina become available before the end of 2014. With the death of my previous pair, they have become a species I desperately want to acquire. Coccina was my first ever species of wild betta, and one of the few from this complex I have yet to successfully spawn. I am still missing a number of species (Betta burdigala, Betta uberis and Betta rutilans) after the lengthy struggles I've had with oodinium. I would like to see those replaced in 2014, but nowadays I've found my focus has shifted from getting my hands on as many species as I can, to slowly building up my collection with a strong emphasis on the health of my current fish. Admittedly, one of the biggest, ongoing goals for the year, will be to get my fish rack moved and set-up downstairs. I've been talking about doing this for months, but our renovations have reached a sort of stalemate, and until the back room is finished I can't do anything. I'm only going to have a single four-shelf, 1800mm wide rack to put all my tanks on, so I have to be smart about how I use the space. I have managed to cross one item off my list in that I have found a buyer for my pair of Betta stiktos. They should be going to their new home this Sunday, and the money from their sale will go towards the long overdue upgrade of my Betta persephone tank. |
AuthorLocated in Melbourne, Australia, I currently keep and breed a number of species from the coccina complex. Archives
November 2017
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