Opaque x Copper spawn log

This pairing is my attempt to create my own platinum halfmoon line. I know I could have imported a good quality pair of platinums. But aside from the costs involved, I’m fascinated with colour genetics in bettas and this is a great way to learn. As an added bonus the parents turned out to be carrying the double tail trait. Unfortunately, I struggled to maintain water quality in the fry tank and consequently there are only a small number of survivors. Their colours are mostly pastel steel and pastel green with a lot of red wash. I’m hoping to see in the next generation a strengthening of the metallic and opaque layers. Click here to read the full AusAqua spawn log thread.

Red HM x Red DT CT

This was an on again, off again spawn which I kinda gave up on. I never intended to work with reds but I saw this beautiful red halfmoon male and I just had to have him. My first attempt at spawning him was with a gorgeous red HM female. I set the spawning tank up, placed the female in a chimney and returned the next morning to find her dead. I then had a couple of attempts with the red doubletail crowntail female who eventually became the mother of this spawn. She became so badly battered during their unsuccessful courtship that I had to allow her to rest. While she rested I tried a red veiltail female which also failed. But the rest seemed to do the red DTCT some good and on the sixth spawning attempt the male finally spawned with the red DTCT. It wasn’t my intended pairing. I would have liked to have used a HM female. I had previously done a plakat to crowntail pairing and really didn’t want to bring crowntail into another non-CT line. But she was the only red female I had so that’s what I used. There were only a small number of eggs and there seemed to be hardly enough fry to worry about. I dutifully added food to the tank for a while but I could only ever find one or two fry among the plants. After a month I gave up on the fry and was in the process of cleaning out the tank when lo and behold, 6 little bettas revealed themselves. Click here to go to the AusAqua log.