Being one of the easiest pets to take care of, bettas (or Siamese fighting fish) are picked up at pet stores and breeders all over the world. I myself have a betta at home, named Harold, that has miraculously stayed alive for over three years. All we do is pick up our fishes, put them and tanks and display them in our dorms, offices, bedrooms, and living rooms, but where do they come from and what happens to them before they are put on the shelves?
First, a little history about these elegant fighter fish. In the early 19th century and before, people in Malaysia and Thailand collected these fish and bred them. They were a dull color and were not as vibrant as the fish we know today. They were caught in rice paddies, streams, and other places that contained water, and people placed them together so they could fight. They were first called by the name "plakat." Later on, the King of Siam gave some of his most prized fish to a man that gave some of them to a man named Dr. Theodor Cantor. He named them one scientific name (Macropodus pugnax) but in the early 20th century received a new name from Tate Regan (Betta splendens). In the last 25 years of the 1800s they were spread to France and Germany, and finally were introduced to the United States in the early 1900s.
We know where they come from; however, how do they get to the United States? In a recent article published by Huffpost they explain that bettas are shipped to the U.S. in very small packages with only a couple inches of water to survive and a chemical that allows them a better chance to survive in these conditions.
These magnificent fish are simple, yet so beautiful.
I want you to take a guess at how many types of betta you think there are.
Ready? 1,400! There are SO many different combinations of betta it's unbelievable. You can find different fin shapes, colors, and also ones with patterns. You could have a crowntail betta, half moon betta, delta betta, double tail betta, comb tail betta, rose tail betta, round tail betta, and more. They could be marbled, butterfly, etc. and can be red, blue, purple, white, orange, black, or pretty much any color.
Another interesting fact about identifying bettas is that they have initials for each breed, so if you were looking for a veil tail betta, it would be V.T. and then have the pattern and color before the initial (i.e. red butterfly V.T.). Pretty cool huh?
Now, as you look at your betta and try and see what kind he is, you now know a little bit more about where the extraordinary fish came from and its history. Love your little betta and admire their individual flair and personality because they were bred from some pretty hardcore ancestors.
