Betta

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This page is about the entire genus Betta. For more specific information about the pet fish commonly sold as "betta", see Betta splendens, the Siamese fighting fish.

Betta Bleeker, 1850, is a large genus of small, often colourful, freshwater ray-finned fishes in the gourami family (Osphronemidae). The type species is B. picta, the spotted betta.["Betta"]. FishBase. Ed. Ranier Froese and Daniel Pauly. March 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006. By far the best known Betta species, however, is B. splendens, the Siamese fighting fish.

All the Betta species are small fishes, but they vary considerably in size, ranging from under 2.5 cm (1 in) total length in B. chanoides to 14 cm (5.5 in) in the Akar betta (B. akarensis).

Bettas are anabantids, which means they can breathe atmospheric air thanks to a unique organ called the labyrinth. This accounts for their ability to thrive in low-oxygen water conditions that would kill most other fish, such as rice paddies, slow-moving streams, drainage ditches, and large puddles. Marcus Song, Caring for Betta Fish (Lulu Press, 2006). ISBN 1411693655

The various bettas can be divided into two groups, based on their spawning behaviour: some build bubble nests, like B. splendens, while others are mouthbrooders, like B. picta. The mouthbrooding species are sometimes called "pseudo bettas", and are sometimes speculated to have evolved from the nest-builders in an adaptation to their fast-moving stream habitats.

Name

There is frequently much confusion in terminology regarding these fishes. B. splendens is frequently sold in the United States simply as "betta", and fish fanciers are often unaware that there are nearly fifty other Betta species. A further source of confusion is that while the generic name Betta is italicized and capitalized, when used as a common name it is usually not capitalized; the common name of Betta pugnax, for example, is thus Penang betta.

The name Betta (or betta) is pronounced /ˈbɛtə/. (That is, the first part is the same as the English word bet.) By confusion with the name of the Greek letter beta, the name is often (erroneously) pronounced /ˈbeɪtə/ in American English, and is even sometimes misspelled with one t. The name of the genus is completely unrelated to that of the Greek letter, however, being derived from the Thai ikan bettah.

Conservation

While many Betta species are common and B. splendens is ubiquitous in the aquarium trade, other bettas are threatened. The IUCN Red List classifies several Betta species as Vulnerable. In addition, B. livida is Endangered, and B. miniopinna, B. persephone, and B. spilotogena are Critically Endangered.

The United Nations Environment Programme lists an unconfirmed species, Betta cf. tomi, as having become extinct in Singapore between 1970 and 1994. This likely refers to the extirpated Singaporean population of B. tomi, which continues to exist in the wild in Indonesia and Malaysia as well as in captivity; the Red List classifies it as Vulnerable.

Species

The currently described Betta species can be grouped into "complexes" for conservation purposes. (This grouping of species makes no claim at representing a taxonomic reality.) The complexes are the associated species are: [Betta (TSN 172610)]. Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Accessed on 30 June 2006.

• Akarensis complex:
• * Betta akarensis Regan, 1910 – Akar betta
• * Betta balunga Herre, 1940
• * Betta chini Ng, 1993
• * Betta ibanorum Tan and Ng, 2004
• * Betta pinguis Tan and Kottelat, 1998
• Albimarginata complex:
• * Betta albimarginata Kottelat and Ng, 1994
• * Betta channoides Kottelat and Ng, 1994
• Anabantoides complex:
• * Betta anabatoides Bleeker, 1851 – giant betta
• Bellica complex:
• * Betta bellica Sauvage, 1884 – slim betta
• * Betta simorum Tan and Ng, 1996
• Coccina complex:
• * Betta brownorum Witte and Schmidt, 1992
• * Betta burdigala Kottelat and Ng, 1994
• * Betta coccina Vierke, 1979
• * Betta livida Ng and Kottelat, 1992
• * Betta miniopinna Tan and Tan, 1994
• * Betta persephone Schaller, 1986
• * Betta rutilans Witte and Kottelat in Kottelat, 1991
• * Betta tussyae Schaller, 1985
• Foerschi complex:
• * Betta foerschi Vierke, 1979
• * Betta rubra Perugia, 1893 – Toba betta
• * Betta strohi Schaller and Kottelat, 1989
• Picta complex:
• * Betta falx Tan and Kottelat, 1998
• * Betta picta (Valenciennes, 1846) – spotted betta
• * Betta simplex Kottelat, 1994
• * Betta taeniata Regan, 1910 – Borneo betta
• Pugnax complex:
• * Betta breviobesus Tan and Kottelat, 1998
• * Betta enisae Kottelat, 1995
• * Betta fusca Regan, 1910 – dusky betta
• * Betta prima Kottelat, 1994
• * Betta pugnax (Cantor, 1849) – Penang betta
• * Betta pulchra Tan and Tan, 1996
• * Betta schalleri Kottelat and Ng, 1994
• Splendens complex:
• * Betta imbellis Ladiges, 1975 – crescent betta
• * Betta smaragdina Ladiges, 1972 – blue betta
• * Betta splendens Regan, 1910 – Siamese fighting fish
• Unimaculata complex:
• * Betta macrostoma Regan, 1910 – spotfin betta
• * Betta patoti Weber and de Beaufort, 1922
• * Betta ocellata de Beaufort, 1933
• * Betta unimaculata (Popta, 1905) – Howong betta
• Waseri complex:
• * Betta chloropharynx Kottelat and Ng, 1994
• * Betta hipposideros Ng and Kottelat, 1994
• * Betta pi Tan, 1998
• * Betta renata Tan, 1998
• * Betta spilotogena Ng and Kottelat, 1994
• * Betta tomi Ng and Kottelat, 1994
• * Betta waseri Krummenacher, 1986
• unassigned:
• * Betta dimidiata Roberts, 1989
• * Betta edithae Vierke, 1984

References