Did you know that Bettas can tell you how they feel? Well, not with words but rather through body language. Bettas use all kinds of physical displays to send a message. One of the most commonly observed displays is the spreading of their fins and gill covers in an impressive display that says, “BACK OFF BUDDY!” Bettas also have more subtle ways of illustrating how they feel.
Fear Stripes
Betta fish have the ability to alter their pigment creating stripes that communicate to other fish. The light horizontal band running along the fish’s sides is known as a fear stripe. This display is most often observed during times of severe and rapidly occurring stress, such as when you net your fish or put your siphon in the aquarium for a cleaning. Fear stripes are more common when the fish senses a sudden threat and is not usually observed in sick fish or fish that have more gradual stressors.
Breeding Stripes
Breeding stripes are commonly confused with fear stripes but are actually really easy to identify. Only female bettas display breeding stripes. These stripes run vertically along both sides of the fish in a series of 5 or 6 light colored bands. While breeding stripes can be quite intense usually fear stripes appear more vibrant.
When females are in good breeding condition and ready to mate with the male, they will begin to show their stripes as an indication to the male betta to proceed. When selecting females bettas for breeding you should condition them for several weeks with clean water and a well balanced nutritious diet. Look for the breeding stripes as an indication that the female is ready. Females do not need a male betta present to show their breeding stripes. Conversely, if you have a female you suspect is ready to breed but is not showing her stripes, you can put her within view of the male for several hours or even days to encourage striping. Usually they will begin to show their breeding stripes within a short time if the are ready to breed.
View Comments (62)
I have a male and female Betta, But my female Betta is white with red fins. How will i know she is ready to breed with my male?
she will have the breeding stripes. the male will most likely make a bubble nest
Dear Jessica, you can tell when your female is ready by the stripes that appear. Also when the male starts building his nest is a sign too. :)
She will start to get more plump
So when the male is ready to.breed , he will make a bubble best?
Yes. The bubble nest is important as it is where all the eggs will be stored.
my female betta has the verticle stripes on her body and i can see the egg spot too but why isn’t my male betta making any bubble nests
There are many possibility for not making bubble nest. He is not satisfied with the water quality ph etc.... He is not feed enough (when breeding male will not eat for 3 to 4 days while taking care of young). Water temperature is not hot enough (80°F if i remeber correctly). Another think you can try is put a small 1"x1" bubble wrap in the water cause it looks like a bubble nest and this might encourage him to blow bubbles.
Does it hurt a female if she’s showing breeding stripes but doesn’t breed?
No, it’s very common for females to show breeding stripes. They don’t need to breed.
No shelly not at all
my male betta made his bubble nest n seems to be ready ..the female has verticle lines and an egg spot but she is hiding very far away from the bubble when will they spawn plzz help..
When they are ready they will do it. lol :)
my female has the egg spot but is showing fear lines. and my male betta seems not to be interested in her.
Hello
I have a male Betta and he has definitely become a happier fish since I brought him home from the pet shop. However in the last two days he started showing vertical stripes on his body and I can’t seem to find a site to tell me if he is ok or if I should do something differently. Would you have any idea what is wrong with him (or if he is happy)?
my male is scared of my female what should I do . I want them to breed my male does not blow bubbles.
May be your male is not grown to its young stage.. Bottle him separately and feed him live foods. let him grow and feel ok with his habitat and blows bubble nest
or
bottle the female in the spawning tank near him by looking her he may blow bubblenest
I see some strips on my female
I’ve got a male veil tail and he suddenly tonight started to have the vertical style “breeding stripes”- is this an indication of stress too, or is this some kind of a breeding indicator, or just a normal variation in his color?