Betta Imbellis - 6.4 Gallon

[BlueBennett]

Hi,

I have a 6.4 gallon (24L) tank which houses 6 young Betta Imbellis. They are about 4-6 months old. There are lots of Java Fern plants, some Java Moss and some unidentified plants. They are very peaceful fish. There are three females and three males supposedly although because they are still young it is a little difficult to sex. Will this tank be sufficient for the 6 fully grown Betta Imbellis when they get older? They are very shy fish and prefer lots of plants, as it is I rarely see them and think that if I have to get a bigger tank I will probably never see them. I dont think they produce a great deal of waste and are fine at the moment in there by themselves, they wont be growing much bigger than what they are now so I just wanted to check if this will be ok. IMO they are fine as they dont produce that much waste but then I dont have that much experince and was hoping to get clarification.

Thanks in advance for any response.

[BlueBennett]

Anybody?

[NYCguppydude]

I Honestly think they will be fine in 6.5 gals. Maybe post a pic. to help judge whether you have enough plants? Otherwise sounds good to me.

[TwoTankAmin]

I kept a trio of them in a heavily planted 10. They actually gave me a few surviving fry. I think you are right on the edge in terms of space and there would be little or no chance that eggs/fry would survive with that many fish in that small of a space.

[BlueBennett]

ok thanks will post one tonight.

[LeahK]

Hmmmm... 6.4 gallons seems cramped for six fish, no matter how small they are. Even with peaceful fish, aggression issues can arise when in cramped conditions.

Other websites say, of these bettas:

"Pairs can be housed in a 10 gallon tank, groups should be housed in a 30 gallon tank or larger." -- http://www.seriouslyfish.com/profile.php?genus=Betta&species=imbellis&id=14

"An 18" x 12" x 12"/45cm x 30cm x 30cm/42.5 litre tank could easily house a pair of these. Something in the region of 30" x 12" x 12"/76cm x 30cm x 30cm/70.8 litres would be required for a group." --http://www.seriouslyfish.com/profile.php?genus=Betta&species=imbellis&id=14

Is there any other reason why you don't want to upgrade to a bigger tank, other than concerns about not being able to see the fish?

[BlueBennett]

I kept a trio of them in a heavily planted 10. They actually gave me a few surviving fry. I think you are right on the edge in terms of space and there would be little or no chance that eggs/fry would survive with that many fish in that small of a space.

Ok, good to know. My intentions are to remove each pair for spawning when I think they are ready, having said that I did however notice a male showing good colouration and a female displaying the vertical bars. If as they say they are similar to breed as siamese fighters than I presume this would show their readiness to spawn.

I have a filter at the top corner and doubt they will even attempt to build bubble nests in the tank as there is sufficient movement at the top to deter them.

Since I will not be spawning them in that tank I guess then it is ok for the time being then, however I guess a ten gallon will probably be best in the long run and would be best suited to housing three mature males and females.

Thanks for your advice.

[BlueBennett]

Hmmmm... 6.4 gallons seems cramped for six fish, no matter how small they are. Even with peaceful fish, aggression issues can arise when in cramped conditions.

Other websites say, of these bettas:

"Pairs can be housed in a 10 gallon tank, groups should be housed in a 30 gallon tank or larger." --http://www.seriouslyfish.com/profile.php?genus=Betta&species=imbellis&id=14

"An 18" x 12" x 12"/45cm x 30cm x 30cm/42.5 litre tank could easily house a pair of these. Something in the region of 30" x 12" x 12"/76cm x 30cm x 30cm/70.8 litres would be required for a group." --http://www.seriouslyfish.com/profile.php?genus=Betta&species=imbellis&id=14

Is there any other reason why you don't want to upgrade to a bigger tank, other than concerns about not being able to see the fish?

That and the fact that they are still very tiny, they are still under an inch. I am willing to move them to a bigger tank when they are fully mature, I wasnt sure if fully grown if they would be ok, but judging from the information I will move them to a bigger tank probably in the next month or so.

thanks for that information.

[Death Pony]

Post pics!!! I want to see these beauties. They are on the larger side as bettas are concerned, so they will need bigger tanks.

[BlueBennett]

Here are some pics of the tank and one of a couple of females looking a little nervous and a male which is starting to show good colour.
There is also a large piece of bogwod present in the tank.

http://i726.photobucket.com/albums/ww261/bluemanmanblue/BettaImbellis001.jpg




http://i726.photobucket.com/albums/ww261/bluemanmanblue/BettaImbellis002.jpg




http://i726.photobucket.com/albums/ww261/bluemanmanblue/BettaImbellis003.jpg




http://i726.photobucket.com/albums/ww261/bluemanmanblue/BettaImbellis005.jpg

Sorry about the large pics.

[LeahK]

Those are such cool fish! How did you get yours? I've never seen one in a store around here.

[BlueBennett]

Those are such cool fish! How did you get yours? I've never seen one in a store around here.

I doubt you will find them in your ordinary fish store. I live in London and obtained them from someone in Scotland. Who in turn imported them from Asia. I think in a couple a couple of weeks they should be showing greater colour in their fins and I can then take more photo's and post them.

[BlueBennett]

Finally a good pic (atleast by my standards). 3 fish, female top with vertical lines, male bottom and identified third head in the pic possibly female.

http://i726.photobucket.com/albums/ww261/bluemanmanblue/BettaImbellis013.jpg

[BettaFishMommy]

i would move them to a larger tank now, as keeping them in a small tank will cause aggression and stress, which could ultimately make the fish ill or worse. i personally would set up a 20 gallon long with two sponge filters on a gentle flow for these lil big bettas.

the tank they are currently in is the perfect size for spawning a single pair, but for growing out the babies i would have something bigger, say a 10 gallon minimum, to keep the dilution of wastes between water changes at acceptable levels. as you probably know, baby fish need to be fed more often than adults, and that creates more waste in a tank.

that is a very nice little tank, i'm sure they appreciate the tannins coming from the bogwood, and tannins, blackwater, etc do help to induce breeding in bettas.

a tip on taking photos, do it with the tank light on, you'll get much better pics!

good luck with your breeding! your lil big fish are very cute!

[BlueBennett]

i would move them to a larger tank now, as keeping them in a small tank will cause aggression and stress, which could ultimately make the fish ill or worse. i personally would set up a 20 gallon long with two sponge filters on a gentle flow for these lil big bettas.

the tank they are currently in is the perfect size for spawning a single pair, but for growing out the babies i would have something bigger, say a 10 gallon minimum, to keep the dilution of wastes between water changes at acceptable levels. as you probably know, baby fish need to be fed more often than adults, and that creates more waste in a tank.

that is a very nice little tank, i'm sure they appreciate the tannins coming from the bogwood, and tannins, blackwater, etc do help to induce breeding in bettas.

a tip on taking photos, do it with the tank light on, you'll get much better pics!

good luck with your breeding! your lil big fish are very cute!

Thanks for the advice.

hmm, so that is roughly about 75litres right? Well based on the advice I've been getting, I decided to place a bid on ebay for this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&Item=250436610239&Category=20755&_trkparms=algo%3DLVI%26its%3DI%26otn%3D2 , I inted on using the smaller one, which is a 60 litre tank for the 6 Imbellis, do you think this will be fine? that would be just over three gallons per fish if my math is any good, a pitty about the photo's, the light gave in a few days after buying it, whilst it was cycling, i figured it would be silly to stop the cycling process and take it back. Light fittings are simple equipment and if I cant fix it myself then I will shoot myself in the foot, however I will try changing the bulb first.

[BlueBennett]

calculating that again, it may be 40 litres about 13 gallons I think.

[BettaFishMommy]

the two tanks in that advert are about perfect for your setup. the smaller of the two, being as there is no lid, would be ideal for a grow out tank. just cover two thirds to three quarters of the top with saran wrap to keep the humidity in for the fry. the large tank is more than ample enough to hold your adults in between spawnings and also has room for larger fry once they have grown enough to join the parents without being harmed/eaten. i wish you luck in the bidding!

the way i equate litres to gallons is figure there is roughly 4 litres per gallon. your calculation this way may end up being a little off the exact gallons, but it gives you a rough approximation of how many gallons a tank is if you only have the litre capacity info available. there is also a converter here on AC that will give you the volume of the tank if you plug in the dimensions. just click "Conversions" at the top of the screen, where you would find "New Posts", "Community", "Chat Room", "Search", etc.

the light that doesn't work may have been sold to you with a faulty ballast. if changing the bulb doesn't work, i would look into that next.

[BlueBennett]

Ok, so the big one for all six it is then, I think I will probably stick four female crown tails in the smaller one or one of my male crown tails, i prefer small cheap plastic tubs for spawning and the bigger plastic ones for grow out tanks, they're very affordable and when you done you can stack them in one another saving lots of space or you can even throw them away when you're done with them. Thanks for that, I think I need to remember bigger is better!

[BettaFishMommy]

bigger is always better!

when i started out fishkeeping i had one lil veiltail betta in a half gallon cube. found out two months later that he needed much more space than that to thrive. when i stopped keeping bettas, all my males had a 10 gallon each, filtered and heated. spoiled finkids? naaaaah! lol.

if you plan on using the smaller of the two tanks you are bidding on for a young fry tank at all i wouldn't put female crowntails in there. your fry would end up as snacks, i think.
if i had to choose between imbellis and 'normal' bettas, i would definitely concentrate on imbellis.

[BlueBennett]

bigger is always better!

when i started out fishkeeping i had one lil veiltail betta in a half gallon cube. found out two months later that he needed much more space than that to thrive. when i stopped keeping bettas, all my males had a 10 gallon each, filtered and heated. spoiled finkids? naaaaah! lol.

if you plan on using the smaller of the two tanks you are bidding on for a young fry tank at all i wouldn't put female crowntails in there. your fry would end up as snacks, i think.
if i had to choose between imbellis and 'normal' bettas, i would definitely concentrate on imbellis.

I bet they were in great condition with all that space. Do you have any pics of them? Didnt we all start with the unfortunate veil tail. I am in love with crown tails and enjoy breeding them.


Nope I will use the smaller of the two for the females only. They have been together for a very long time and are quite content with one another. I must admit, having kept splendens, simplex and imbellis,it is imbellis that comes accross as the most interesting. I cant wait to start the breeding process. I already have green water on the go, I am going to take full advantage of the short english summer.

[BettaFishMommy]

i tried to keep my three girls together, but they were just too old and crabby by the time i attempted it, lol.

here's some pics of the bettas i used to keep, and the last one is what the crazy fish lady's kitchen used to look like, lol:

[BlueBennett]

That's some nice betta's you had. I like the female in the third photo. She looks in very good shape and looks fiesty. Did you buy them that size already?

[BettaFishMommy]

the really dark green one i bought at about 3/4 that size. mind you the photo is pretty close up so she looks bigger than actual size. she was the biggest of all my girls when i first bought each. the red betta i was able to keep in a 20 gallon community tank when she was an old gal, she mellowed right out with age, lol.