Female Bettas

[Mina]

Why are female bettas tails short? You'd think that they would be long like the males since bettas were bred to have long fins.

What is the reason that the long tail genetics does not carry over to the female?

 

[SPLiSH]

That's a really good question... I don't know much about genetics but I assume it's just gender differences - like how female parrots are sometimes duller and males brighter.

 

[Mina]

I could see that being the thing...but I just don't get the how, with all the breeding over the many many years, that the females never really got longer fins even if it was just a bit.

*scratches head*

I had been eyeballing my female tank and just had this question pop into my head where it burrowed into my brain.

 

[Synirr]

Hormonal difference between the sexes cause the males to have longer fins... kinda like how females in our species sprout a couple of extra bits at puberty
Recently some breeders have tried treating their fry tanks with hormones to get more males out of the spawn, and it does work, but they also get a much higher percentage of sterile fish because some of those "males" don't completely finish making the change.