Betta Fish Facts
For Ellie Boggs
New Words:
Territorial – does not like other animals in the area they consider theirs
Endangered – very few are left in the wild and may disappear forever if not taken care of
Insectivores – animals who eat mostly insects (bugs)
Gills – Part of the fish that removes air from the water. Usually on the sides of their heads.
Hello Elbow! It’s Walter again, and I’m here to teach you more about me and other betta fish like me. Let’s start by learning more about male betta fish like me.
Male bettas are very colorful and have long flowing fins. Female bettas, however, are usually darker colored and have short fins. That’s why all the betta fish you see at a pet store are usually males – people like pretty and colorful fish!
Male bettas are colorful in order to attract females, just like how male birds are usually more colorful too. Male bettas are very territorial, which means we fight to protect our space from other males. That’s why I can’t have another betta in my tank with me – it’ll make me mad!
Now let me tell you about bettas in general – we’re very interesting fish! There are 70 different types of bettas. One of those is the Elephant Ear Betta, also known as Dumbo Bettas. That’s me! We’re called that because our large side fins look kind of like elephant ears. We are actually an endangered species, which means there’s not many of us left in the wild in Asia.
Bettas are insectivores. That means our favorite food is insects. Yum, bugs! It’s hard to feed bettas bugs when they’re in a fish tank though, so then we’re fed special betta food pellets or sometimes dried bloodworms as a treat. Delicious!
One special thing bettas have is called a labyrinth bladder. That’s a special body part that lets me breathe air just like you. That’s why I like to come to the top of the water sometimes! We have those because in the wild bettas live in water that is very still and doesn’t have much oxygen in it. That means bettas can’t get all the air they need from the water using their gills, so they can gulp the air above the water too.
I hope you enjoyed learning more about bettas. Next time I’ll tell you more about the different parts of a betta’s body!
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