what colour is a pure siamese fighting fish

there are many species of betta around, some of which do look very similar. it can be hard to distinguish between them, but they must not be confused as all the same species. what the picture is of, as far as i can tell, is a female betta splendens.

the siamese fighting fish was, and still is, used in fighting sports in its native countries. the cocks (males) were bred to kill each other...and the finnage just made a more elaborate display....but it wasnt bred in - it was already there. neither was the aggresive nature bred in - as we all probably all well know.

anabantoids is a huge group of fish, only a few of which are in the aquarium hobby - these include the fighter, gouramis, and afew others. the main thing that distinguishes this group of fish is their lambriyth (i think thats how its spelt) organ - which allows them to breath atmospheric air where oxygen content is low in the water.
 
ok, i know for a fact, that there are wild betta splendens, they look our female bettas. The long finnage was due to selective breeding, as are the colors. The wild bettas do have the colors in them, just selective breeding made them more elaborate. The picture above is what most wild bettas look like.
 
yep, thats the wild colouration - but it is undoubtably a female. the males do have the long finnage in the wild, well, not AS long, but longer than the females all the same. has anyone seen the fighters fight? their gills flair open, fins spread out, and in they go to fight to the death...wouldnt recommend it thou. is it illegal?
 
Thanks, carpguy, a picture is now worth ten thousand words in this age of inflation.

Many of the colors of the selected domesticated fishes can be detected in the spangled colors of the wild ones. I agree with Anaxus: this is the one I'd want to keep.

All the viscera, including the ovaries, if this were a female, are pushed way forward in these fishes, forward of the front edge of the anal fin, which is where the vent is. All these wild ones are thick through the caudal peduncle.
 
Personally, I think the wild bettas are very cool fish and I'd rather look for them than go with the fancy strains. There isn't anything inherently wrong with the fancy, just a personal preference. I do think the fancy strains suffer a lot of abuse because of some marketing myths that have developed around them, but that has nothing to do with the fish.

According to my betta book, there are almost a hundred identified species in the genus betta. These species are organized into groups and there is a betta splendens group consisting of splendens, imbellis (which may be the same thing), smaragdina, and rubra. Studies have been done with splendens and imbellis that suggest they are extremely closely related and may be varieties of the same species. They have been collected and bred for centuries and possibly millenia throughout SE Asia (Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand at least). Since the selective breeding (and release of selectively bred lines back into the wild) greatly predates modern biology its a little tricky to pinpoint what this group looked like naturally, although the picture of the male (not female) imbellis is closer to natural than the fancytails.

The book mentions that a fight between two Pla Kat Tung (wild caught) might be over in 15 minutes while a pair of Pla Kat Mor (bred for fighting) might slug it out for up to 6 hours. "The wild Pla Kat Tung [biting fish from the fields] has short fins with the anal fin markedly extended and pointed in the male compared with the female"… "All Pla Kat Mor [biting fish in pots, specifically bred for fighting] are short finned with rounded tails, large bodies, a large head…".

It also mentions that the veiltail (Pla Kat Cheen, biting fish in Chinese robes) is probably the original fin mutation ("The extension ranges up to four times normal length") and cornflower blue was probably the first color strain, both predating exportation to the west but not found naturally.

The book also mentions that color was an easy trait to manipulate and identify whereas fighting ability wasn't visible. When a breeder had an especially good fish they could "label" the fish's descendants, using color strains to keep track of their stock.
 
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