My Not-So-Handsome Fish, And Some Questions

[Erisna]

Hello everyone! I found this forum while I was looking for information on planting tanks for Bettas, and I felt like registering and saying hello!

My only fish at the moment is my (affectionately-nicknamed) fugly fish, Severus. He was advertised as a half-moon betta, but after seeing the gorgeous HM bettas here I'm not so sure that he is one. Would anyone mind taking a look at him and telling me if he is a HM or not? Here's a picture of him: (Silly guy must have wanted to show off- he spread out all his fins and turned sideways as soon as I pulled out my camera!)

He has the oddest coloring- he was pale white with a greenish tint to his fins when I bought him in September of last year, but now he's this really pale pink with a smattering of darker red scales and weird coppery fins. His tail fin has a hint of metallic blue in it when it catches the light just right.


He's currently living in a heated 2.5 gallon, but I'm working on setting up a filtered, planted 5 gallon for him. I have a few questions about that, if nobody minds giving me a little guidance?
- The filter I have in there is a 100 gpm Whisper filter that came with my tank kit. I'm hoping it won't be too strong for him, but I can barely feel the current when I put my hand in the water and the free floating anubias and java ferns I have in there (need to get driftwood to attach them to) aren't being pushed around too much and aren't being sucked into the intake. I'll definitely be keeping an eye on him, but does that seem too strong to anybody?
- I have a thermometer in the tank now, but I don't have a heater- without a heater and with the lights on, the tank stays about 78 F. The light gives off a lot of heat, and my room is very warm anyway from my gecko's heat lamp. This morning, when I went to turn the lights on, it was about 76 F. Is that temperature fluctuation okay for a betta, or will I need to find a way to keep it more stable?
- This is my first time with a planted tank. So far I have an Anubias, two Java Ferns (two came in the same package from the store- score!) and a small patch of micro sword, which I'm hoping will spread and give a nice ground cover. I'll probably also put in the two silk plants he has in his tank currently, to fill things out until the live plants take off. Does this setup seem alright? Any general tips for a planted tank?
- I was debating getting a couple snails or shrimp to help keep the tank clean and entertain Severus. Would they be alright in that size tank, with that setup? I've never had either of them, are they hard to take care of?

Thanks for all your help, this forum is very entertaining and educational! I'm generally quiet and don't post much, but I look forward to keeping up with your betta adventures!

 

[Meggie :)]

Hi erisna! Welcome to the forum! Hopefully you will learn as much as I did on here...and the people here are great!

I may not be able to thoroughly answer all of your questions but I may be able to help a little...(your betta is gorgeous by the way)

I'm not sure about the filter you have as I have never used it, but I can say that I bought my 5.5 gallon tank as a kit as well a while back...I wasnt sure about the flow of the filter and it ended up being way too strong...you need to find a happy medium (at least IME) where the surface is still being slightly moved, but the current isn't uncomfortable for your betta...every betta is different, though...I have found that This filter has worked the best for me. I know it's only made for three gallons, but that's okay because it just means that much less flow, it gets the job done just fine, and bettas really don't have much bioload anyway...if there were more fish in that tank, I would change the filter...but with just a betta, it gets the job done (and I replaced the carbon media it came with with a sponge media).......edit: in case the filter link I put in didn't work, the filter is called tetra whisper 3i In-tank filter

For your second question the only thing I can do is suggest a heater...anything is better than nothing...it's a lot better to have a stable temperature IMO...yo said your 2.5 gallon was heated...why not move that heater over to the 5 gallon until you can get a new one? I'm not sure about your question about the fluctuation, sorry.

As for your question on the plants, I am definitely no expert...but I can tell you what has worked for me...I have found that in a low tech setup (it sounds like that's what you're going for...lower lighting, little to no ferts, no co2) I have found that these plants do well...someone correct me if I'm wrong...java moss, java fern, anubias, crypts, swords, actually moss balls too haha...maybe someone else can extend or correct that list a little for ya

And about the snails and shrimp....I absolutely LOVE my shrimp...but I would never put them with my betta..every betta is different, but many of them will just see shrimp as a tasty snack. If you do want to try shrimp wit your betta, have a backup plan just in case they start becoming his dinner. As for the snails, I have only ever owned one snail besides my assassins...he was some kind of mystery snail I think...you can put them with bettas. I had mine with my betta...some people say that their bettas like them...I heard of one person's betta that would always pull their snail off the wall, wait for it to crawl back up, and do it again...but I've also heard that snails can be pretty messy..

Quick question(s)...are you cycling your filter? And if so, how?

Good luck! Hope this helped!
Meg

 

[danele]

Your betta is cute, he looks hm from the pic
Your filter sounds ok, if it isnt blowing the plants around that arent even attached yet, it shouldnt be a problem
You should have a heater in the tank, just so you have better control of the temperature
Plants are fine as long as there's no plastic, sharp edges.
Snails are very easy to have and betta's sometimes eat shrimp
Keep us updated, love to see his new home when it's finished

 

[OldMan47]

Welcome to the forum Erisna. I also have a fish with semi-transparent fins that seem a bit faded out right now. This is him.

Don't worry so much about a mere 2F variation in temperature. In a wild setting a fish may easily experience a 5F daily variation with no harm. We are accustomed to controlling temperatures closely but that is not what happens in nature. Something as simple as a good rain can easily drop temperatures in a creek by 5 or more degrees F. We still find lots of fish in our streams though. To me that means that the fish just are not that sensitive to temperature variations. It might be a bit different for a salt water fish where the whole ocean must change to truly affect the fish but in fresh water temperatures change frequently over a rather wide range. That means that our fish have adapted to just such changes.

 

[Dieses Madchen]

That's actually a very pretty hm with a very unique coloring that makes him a stunner!! How can you call him fugly? Your setup sounds like it will be amazing and if you set it up and the flow seems to strong, you can rubber band a piece of sponge filter around the outtake to make it more comfy.!!

 

[Erisna]

Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone! I'll be sure to post pictures of the new tank as it starts coming together- I'm going to the store tomorrow to get driftwood and a water testing kit.

Dieses Madchen- Honestly, though I love him very much (and I think his fins are GORGEOUS) I've never been a big fan of Severus's color. =p He looks mottled and I've always thought it made him look diseased/dirty. He looked a lot different as a young fish, when I bought him!

As a baby:

Another picture of him now, with better lighting: - you can see his mottling (I don't know what else to call it) if you zoom in a bit.

OldMan47: Your betta is very handsome! I love blue bettas. Thanks for the reassurance about the temperature fluctuating. I think I'll see how the tank does without a heater- it's plenty warm enough for now, and I can always buy one later if temps start dropping.

Meggie: My filter isn't cycled as of yet. I think one of my neighbors has a tank, I'm going to see if she'll let me have some of her filter medium to jumpstart it. If I can't find live media, I guess I'll have to come up with a plan B!

Oh, and just for fun, this is a shot of his current tank:

His castle will be going with him- every Potions Master must have his Hogwarts, right? ;D It's hollow inside and he loves to hide in it. I would have tried to get a picture of him sitting just inside the castle with his head peeking out the front, but my camera was scaring him and I didn't want to stress him too much.

 

[FishFanatic04]

I do love a Potter fan I have to say, from an outside perspective I LOVE your betta. I am about to pay $25 for a halfmoon and then another $15 on top for shipping. I can't get a Betta like that locally. All betta's are special to me personally. I never knew there were breeds other then the veiltails that you find at places like petsmart.

He is really lovely. IF you wanna trade him for a fish I would gladly do so My last betta adjusted quickly to a higher filter flow. I suggest trying out a few days and seeing how yours reacts. A few days and he may be strong enough to handle the higher flow, even if he is nervous at first.

 

[FishFanatic04]

Something I missed....The snails and shrimp MAY be OK in the tank. Some bettas do fine with them and other bettas will see a nice snack. All I can suggest is to try it out and watch for signs of aggression. If the snail leaves the water and never goes in then the betta is probably pecking it. MY bettas ate all of my shrimp.

 

[fizzlesticks]

He looks amazing to me!

 

[seizethecupcake]

I think he's rather handsome and I do love his name! I keep a couple of my boys in a 2.5 gallon tank, and, as suggested above, I've wrapped bits of sponge around the filter intake to make the flow more gentle. I think it's funny how bettas can completely transform over time, lol. My pale blue and brown VT turned into a gorgeous rich blue with pink in his fins. Likewise, my solid white HM male is now partially red. If I had a fugly betta, it'd be him!

 

[Erisna]

Well, I finally got the driftwood and everything is attached. While I was at the pet store getting the driftwood I noticed they had moss balls, so I got one... and then I noticed they had ghost shrimp on sale. =p I got two of them- one is a little juvenile (I guess- he's small) and the other is an adult female who is carrying eggs. Their names are Peeves and the Grey Lady. No, I couldn't resist!

Also, after I added the shrimp I noticed that they were having a very hard time swimming, so I decided to go ahead and reduce the filter flow. I didn't have any sponges, so I got a clean (brand-new) washcloth, cut a piece off, and attached it to the front of my filter with bobbypins. (I jury rig stuff a lot.) It's not pretty, but it works, and already my shrimp seem much happier- especially Peeves, the baby.

Here's a picture of the new tank (still a work-in-progress)- you can see the washcloth, it's the white thing on the right upper side.

What do you guys think? I'm worried that adding Severus's castle would make it too crowded. The driftwood takes up more tank space than I thought it would, and I want everyone to have plenty of swimming space, but plenty of hiding spaces too. Any thoughts?