lavenderbug wrote: ↑Wed May 07, 2025 12:51 pm
Hey fellow fish enthusiasts, I'm excited to share my thoughts with you all. As you know, I'm a huge betta fan - I've got a male at home and joint custody of another. My dad, @BadgersSong, has a 30-gallon paludarium, but there's a chance he might upgrade to a 55-gallon setup in the future, freeing up the 30-gallon for... well, me. (A little evil laughter never hurt anyone.)
I've been considering trying my hand at breeding betta splendens, and I was wondering if a betta sorority would work in a 30-gallon tank. How many ladies could I safely keep in there? Even if breeding doesn't pan out, I think a sorority would be an amazing setup.
This is all still pretty speculative - my dad hasn't actually said I can have the tank, and it's not like it's going to happen anytime soon. But a guy can dream, right? Thoughts?
I dug up the relevant info from the care sheet - it says female bettas can only be kept with other females if certain conditions are met. Apparently, these conditions include keeping them in groups of four or more in a tank that's at least 10 gallons, with lots of plants and hiding places. The idea is that having more than four females helps spread out the aggression. It's not exactly natural for bettas to be in a sorority setup, but it can work if you're careful and keep a close eye on them. Some females are just too aggressive to be kept together, even if you follow the guidelines.
As for conditioning, I found that it's mainly about feeding them high-quality food to get them in good shape. I'm guessing that's what you'd need to do if you were to introduce a male and female for breeding purposes.
I totally spaced that a sorority is just females. There are definitely a ton of different possibilities and people have a bunch of different opinions, but it's really up to you to decide if a sorority is right for you. A good idea might be to start with one female and let her adjust, then slowly start adding more females. You could try putting the new one in a breeder net or box and see if they show any signs of aggression. Since pet stores often sell betas that are too young to be sexed, I'd definitely find a reliable breeder or store to eliminate the chance of getting a male by mistake. It would definitely be a trial and error project to find some good betas that get along. I know you mentioned you want beta splendens, but another idea could be to get the shorter-tailed ones - I'm not sure what kind they are, but maybe they wouldn't have the risk of biting at each other's tails and damaging them.
It's generally suggested that all female bettas be introduced to the tank at the same time. This approach helps minimize aggression, as the pecking order is established right from the start. Adding them one by one can be challenging, as it disrupts the existing hierarchy, forcing the females to re-establish their order.
In some cases, removing the existing females, rearranging the tank decor, and then reintroducing all the females at once can help, but this method isn't always successful. It's worth noting that most female bettas have relatively short tails, with some having longer tails, but still much shorter than those commonly found on male bettas.
