Culturing Daphnia
Daphnia makes a great live food for bettas. I have had success and failure with keeping cultures going. When I was in Ohio I had a tank by a window that produced a ton of green water. Every other day water changes produced plenty of food for my daphnia. Here in Texas I seem to have difficulty keeping the green water supply going so have been having issues keeping my daphnia culture going. So I have done some searching on the net to see what others do to keep their daphnia going.
Many people feed the daphnia dry yeast. It is dissolved in water and dropped sparingly into the daphnia container, The daphnia eat the cloud of yeast. You will need to watch not to overfeed so the culture does not crash. Other suggestions are a cup of manure in a 5 gallon pail of green water with a 50 watt light bulb over the top. The daphnia eat the bacteria that grow from the manure and whatever green algae they can find.
Several places on the net also recommended adding calcium for the daphnia shells. A nylon bag filled with some crushed coral or something similar will increase and buffer the ph and supply the calcium for their shells. Without adequate levels they will reproduce sexually instead of asexually and produce resting eggs instead of living young.
A fellow betta breeder uses lettuce straight into the daphnia container. As it disintegrates the bacteria that forms on it feeds the daphnia. This has kept a small amount of daphnia harvestable on a regular basis.
Daphnia are great foods.. if you can figure out how to keep a culture going you will have some happy bettas.
Fish for Sale
We have been busy taking pictures and getting fish loaded up on Aquabid. There are several young spawns about 5 weeks that are coming on like gang busters and I need room for them to grow out so the older fish need to go! The brilliant royal blue male to the left here in only one of our metallic males for sale. Check out our fish for sale here.New Import
Love the color on this male.. just bought him on AquaBid. Got to check with the breeder to see when he will be exported to the states. I have several yellow and an orange female waiting for him when he gets here. This is the first time buying from this breeder so looking forward to seeing this fish up close and breeding him. Some Thai breeders seem to produce fish that are easier to breed than others.. will keep you posted.New Spawns
- Three and a half week old betta fry
We have had a breeding blitz and have several new spawns. Some of the older ones are close to 4 weeks now and starting to color up. Here are some of our upcoming spawns.Blue/Yellow DT Male Betta
Spawn 32 - We imported a huge yellow/blue DT male. I crossed him to a pineapple female and got a spawn I loved every fish in. I crossed him back to a blue/yellow daughter and am looking forward to some very nice bicolored fish. I am also looking to fix the traits I loved so much in his off spring. We got a small spawn but they are looking good.BLue/Yellow DT
Spawn 33 - DT Black x black female. Both these fish are mostly black with more iridescence that I want or can be shown. But, they are what I have and we are working with it. Female is very typy and has a great 180 spread tail with good edges. They could be a bit sharper but overall good. Dad is shorter bodied than I would like but he is a double tail so will add broader dorsal bases. And, he is from my breeding so I know what is in the line. These two were the blackest fish I had so we crossed the best form in the darkest coloring. We also have another cross to a charcoal colored dt male and the same female to hopefully improve the color. I am seeing several nice single tails in there with the broader dorsal bases so looking forward to the next few weeks as they develop. The blacks seem to take a while to really get good color so it may be more than a few weeks.
Spawn 34 – Steel x Royal. I love this steel male. Big, huge dorsal with great shape, nice 180 spread with good edges and an anal fin that is shaped well and in proportion to the rest of the fins. I’d like a tad more length to the tail to be in better balance.. but overall this is a nice male. He took first place the first show of the season and as soon as I got him home he went into a spawn tank with a royal female that also took first in the same show. We did not get a large spawn so repeated it a few weeks later. I am hoping for steels and royals with great form out of this cross.
Spawn 35 - I got this multi female fromKaren McAuley. She is a top breeder here in the states and her fish have great strong branching and I was looking to add in the ray strength and solid 180 spreads her fish have to the nice dorsals my line has established. I crossed her to a fairly dark male and got a nice blue/yellow bicolored male. He had nice length of fins and the sharp-edged 180 spread common in Karens fish. Still needed dorsal improvement so I crossed him to a blue/yellow female out of the blue/yellow dt above. She has a broad dorsal base and good length of fins so should be a nice compliment to the male. So far the 3 week fry are looking to give me the characteristics I desired.. I’m seeing broad dorsal bases and long straight edges on the tails.
Spawn 36 – A repeat of Spawn 34 above.
I still want to get a yellow female bred and I have a copper black spawn I am waiting to see if I get anything out of. Got one more show and then convention.. but for me.. breeding the next generation and watching them grow is what I enjoy most about Bettas.
Hatching Brine Shrimp
We have 6 spawns currently growing out, so we need a daily supply of baby brine shrimp. If you search the net there are various ways to hatch and harvest baby brine shrimp. What you will find is the big needs for shrimp are warm water and light. For me, to satisfy those needs I have come up with a simple setup that produces plenty of harvestable shrimp about every 24 hours.
Creating a shrimp hatchery is very simple and inexpensive. I use an empty 2 liter Pepsi bottle that I have cut the bottom off. I did the cut about 3” up from the bottom of the bottle so the top could be inverted into the bottom and remain fairly stable. I then placed them into a box that is slightly taller than the Pepsi bottle. I had a bunch of bubble wrap lying around and I put it into the box around the bottle. I did this to stabilize the bottle as well as to insulate and keep the contents warm. The top half of the soda bottle gets water added till about 1” shy of the top. I add 25 grams of salt or about 1 tbs. and a measure of bbs eggs, about 1/8 tsp. I use regular table salt and have used both iodized and non iodized with the same results. If your water is really soft a pinch of baking soda will improve your hatch rate.
The eggs now need to be kept moving until they hatch. Initially I tried to use just airline hose for aerating my shrimp but found I could not keep it down in the neck of the bottle and my eggs piled up there and reduced my hatch rate. So I got some stiff tubing they use for under gravel filters and cut a piece so it could sit in the neck against the cap at the bottom and be a few inches taller than the bottle. I then attached the air line tubing to that and it worked better at keeping the contents moving around. I use a small pump that I put on some bubble wrap to reduce vibration and noise. Over the top of the box I have a light I got from Wal-Mart. I paid about $7 for it and removed the clamp it comes with inverted the light over the top of the box. The light provides both light and heat needed for the shrimp to hatch.
In about 24-36 hours you can harvest your shrimp. They time they take to hatch depends on the how warm they are. For me, the next day about the same time produces a good harvest. I remove the bottle and set it into a 2 cup measuring cup on my counter. I also remove the stiff tubing from the air line hose and run water through the piece of tube to remove salt and calcium deposits. These deposits can quickly build up and make air passage impossible. If the deposits are stubborn, a soak in vinegar or bleach water will get them dissolved.
After a few minutes of sitting you should see a clump of orange in the neck of the bottle and the egg-shell floating on the surface. I have another piece of airline tubing I attach to another stiff tube. I put the tube down into the neck where the orange is but not all the way to the bottom as eggs will be down there. I start a siphon and run the shrimp into a very fine brine shrimp net. You will have to do some searching to get a real fine net. I bought 2 and can not seem to find them again. After they are drained thru the net a quick rinse and invert the net into some water. I have small condiment cups I got from Wal-Mart that I put the water in and then rinse the shrimp into. I then take a plastic dropper and suck the shrimp up to feed.
When you set the shrimp back up you will need to thoroughly clean the container out. If you don’t you will find your hatch rate is affected in no time at all. I have a small spray bottle that I have a weak bleach solution mixed in and spray the Pepsi bottle, scrub with a sponge just for that and then rinse good. Then you can set it all up to have another hatch again the next.
Brown Algae and Silicates
Just when you think you have something figured out, a new twist appears. The move to Texas brought with it water issues. If you have not read previous posts, we had 12 spawns fail. Either the male ate the eggs or fry and the young never got free-swimming if they made it past dad. Instead of getting horizontal and growing they spent days twirling up from the bottom of the tank till they eventually died. It was finally determined that there was something wrong with the water.
We got a reverse osmosis unit and started mixing the r/o water with 25% tap water run through peat. Everything was working well raising the fish. Since I was going through so much water I decided to use more of the tap water and made the mix 50/50. Within a short period of time I get an over abundance of brown algae. I had barracks running for 6 months and did not have a problem, then over night I had a mess. I headed to the internet and found this type of algae thrives on silicates. Some one had suggested a fine particle might be causing problems with the fry when they became free-swimming and it almost makes sense.
I went back to a 25% mix instead of 50/50 and spent the next several days scrubbing the barracks. The algae became reduced but I really could not get rid of it all together. So, I have finally given up and now use 100% reverse osmosis with ro right by Kent to add back in minerals to the water. The change in water has pretty much gotten rid of the algae and using the Kent ro right has improved the health and growth of my plants. So far I am happy with the results. The next thing on my agenda to improve my water will be a uv sterilizer to get rid of parasites and disease.
Photo from HERE.
Golden State Betta Show Results
| Show Host | Golden State Bettas | ||||
| Show Type | International | ||||
| Date | 2-Apr-11 | ||||
| Judges | Christine Tanner | Larissa Williams | Mohan Balakrishnan | ||
| Apprentice Judges | Britt Coffman | Patrick Henry | Damian Garcia | ||
| Group A: Regular Classes | Area 1 | 2010 – 2011 | Total Entries In Class | ||
| Division A1: Halfmoon Non-iridescent Dark Solid Color ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| A1. Red STM | John Leach | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| A2. Black STM | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| A3. Red or Black STF | Sieg & Judy Illig | Sherolyn & Reno | N/A | 2 | |
| Division A2: Halfmoon Iridescent Dark Solid Color ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| A4. Blue STM | Leo Buss | Michael Randall | Leo Buss | 6 | |
| A5. Steel STM | Sherolyn & Reno | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | 4 | |
| A6. Green / Turquoise STM | Sieg & Judy Illig | Leo Buss | Sieg & Judy Illig | 10 | |
| A7. Blue STF | Sherolyn & Reno | Leo Buss | Sherolyn & Reno | 6 | |
| A8. Steel STF | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | 3 | |
| A9. Green / Turquoise STF | Sieg & Judy Illig | Joe & Amy Becerra | Sherolyn & Reno | 10 | |
| Division A3: Halfmoon Light Solid Color ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| A10. Clear / Yellow / Orange STM | Michael Randall | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| A11. Clear / Yellow / Orange STF | John Leach | John Leach | Joe & Amy Becerra | 5 | |
| A12. Opaque / Pastel STM | John Leach | Leo Buss | Karen Mac Auley | 3 | |
| A13. Opaque / Pastel STF | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | Joe & Amy Becerra | 9 | |
| Division A4: Halfmoon Metallic Dark or Light Solid Color ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| A14. Metallic Dark Solid STM | Sherolyn Craig/Reno Richenberger | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| A15. Metallic Light Solid STM | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| A16. Metallic Dark Solid STF | Jim Sonnier | Sherolyn & Reno | Sherolyn & Reno | 5 | |
| A17. Metallic Light Solid STF | Joe & Amy Becerra | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| Division A5: Halfmoon Patterned ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| A18. Multicolor STM | Karen Mac Auley | Karen Mac Auley | Lori Green | 14 | |
| A19. Multicolor STF | Karen Mac Auley | Joe & Amy Becerra | Lori Green | 19 | |
| A20. Dark Body Bicolor STM | Sherolyn Craig/Reno Richenberber | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| A21. Light Body Bicolor STM | Karen Mac Auley | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| A22. Dark Body / Light Body Bicolor STF | Joe and Amy Becerra | Britt Coffman | Britt Coffman | 12 | |
| A23. Butterfly STM | Joe and Amy Becerra | Britt Coffman | Joe & Amy Becerra | 14 | |
| A24. Butterfly STF | Karen Mac Auley | John Leach | Britt Coffman | 4 | |
| A25. Marble / Grizzle STM | Karen Mac Auley | Sherolyn & Reno | Sherolyn Craig/Reno Richenberger | 8 | |
| A26. Marble / Grizzle STF | Leo Buss | Michael Randall | Joe & Amy Becerra | 9 | |
| Division B: Halfmoon DT | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| B1. Dark Solid Color DTM | Sieg & Judy Illig | Sieg & Judy Illig | Sieg & Judy Illig | 7 | |
| B2. Light Solid Color DTM | John Leach | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| B3. Dark or Light Solid Color DTF | Sieg & Judy Illig | Sieg & Judy Illig | Leo Buss | 7 | |
| B4. Metallic Dark or Light DTM | Jim Sonnier | Sherolyn & Reno | Sherolyn & Reno | 3 | |
| B5. Metallic Dark or Light DTF | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| B6. Patterned DTM | Britt Coffman | Joe & Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | 10 | |
| B7. Patterned DTF | Britt Coffman | Britt Coffman | Leo Buss | 9 | |
| Division C: Crowntail ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| C1. Dark Solid Color STM | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | John Leach | 4 | |
| C2. Light Solid Color STM | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| C3. Dark or Light Solid Color STF | Leo Buss | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| C4. Patterned STM | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | 4 | |
| C5. Patterned STF | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | Leo Buss | 4 | |
| Division D: Shortfin ST | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| D1. Traditional Plakat Male | Sieg & Judy Illig | Joe & Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | 7 | |
| D2. Show Plakat Dark Solid Color Male | Sieg & Judy Illig | Sieg & Judy Illig | John Leach | 6 | |
| D3. Show Plakat Light Solid Color Male | Joe and Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | 5 | |
| D4. Show Plakat Patterned Male | John Leach | Sieg & Judy Illig | Joe & Amy Becerra | 11 | |
| D5. Halfmoon Shortfin Solid Color Male | Joe and Amy Becerra | Joe and Amy Becerra | N/A | 2 | |
| D6. Halfmoon Shortfin Patterned Male | Joe and Amy Becerra | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| D7. Traditional Plakat Female (any color or pattern) | Yvonne Chaban | Joe & Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | 5 | |
| D8. Show Plakat Female (any color or pattern) | Joe and Amy Becerra | Yvonne Chaban | Joe & Amy Becerra | 11 | |
| TRIAL CLASS | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| D9. Doubletail Plakat Male (any color or pattern) | Sieg & Judy Illig | Sieg & Judy Illig | N/A | 2 | |
| Division E: Breeders Division | *Note: For pairs total the number of entries in each class, not the number of fish. Class winners in E Division are considerd for BOV appropriate to their respective gender and variety. | ||||
| E1. Color or Form Variations | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| E2. Form and Finnage | Sieg & Judy Illig | Michael Randall | Lori Green | 11 | |
| E3. Pairs* | Joe and Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | Joe & Amy Becerra | 9 | |
| Division F: Wild Type Betta Pairs | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| (Not Eligible for BOS) | |||||
| F1 Small / Large Bubblenesters* | Dick Houston – Bellicas | Anthony Mazeroll - Coccina | N/A | 2 | |
| F2 Small / Large Mouthbrooders* | Dick Houston – Pi | Dick Houston – Raja | N/A | 2 | |
| Best of Variety | Name & Class Winner | ||||
| Halfmoon ST Male | Michael Randall – A10 | ||||
| Halfmoon ST Female | Sieg & Judy Illig - A9 | ||||
| Halfmoon DT Male | Sieg & Judy Illig - B1 | ||||
| Halfmoon DT Female | Sieg & Judy Illig - B3 | ||||
| Crowntail Male | Leo Buss – C4 | ||||
| Crowntail Female | Leo Buss – C5 | ||||
| Shortfin Male | Sieg & Judy Illig - D2 | ||||
| Shortfin Female | Yvonne Chaban - D7 | ||||
| Best of Show | Name & Class Winner | ||||
| BOS Male | Sieg & Judy Illig - D2 | ||||
| BOS Female | Yvonne Chaban - D7 | ||||
| Division G: Optional Classes | (Not counted as Regular Entries) | ||||
| (Not Eligible for BOS.) | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| G1 Photography | Jeana Earn | Joe & Amy Becerra | Jeana Earn | ||
| G2 Illustration | |||||
| G3 Crafts | Anthony Blaha | ||||
| Group B: New Breeder Classes | Name 1st Place | Name 2nd Place | Name 3rd Place | ||
| NB-1 Singletail Male | Roberta Jordan | Greg Rutlidge | Anthony Blaha | 14 | |
| NB-2 Doubletail Male | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| NB-3 Crowntail Male | N/A | N/A | N/A | 0 | |
| NB-4 Plakat Male | Anthony Mazeroll | Anthony Mazeroll | Anthony Mazeroll | 9 | |
| NB-5 Singletail Female | Anthony Blaha | Joanna Taylor | Anthony Blaha | 7 | |
| NB-6 Doubletail Female | Joanna Taylor | N/A | N/A | 1 | |
| New Breeder Best of Show | Name & Class of Winner | ||||
| BOS Male | Anthony Mazeroll | ||||
| BOS Female | Joanna Taylor | ||||
| Show Information | Number of Entrants | Number of Entries | Number of Fish | ||
| Regular Classes | 273 | 286 | |||
| Optional Classes | 0 | 0 | |||
| New Breeder Classes | 31 | 31 | |||
| Show Totals | 304 | 317 | |||
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