The spotted betta or Java fighting fish (''Betta picta'') is a
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of
gourami
Gouramis, or gouramies , are a group of fresh water, freshwater Anabantiformes, anabantiform fish that comprise the family (biology), family Osphronemidae. The fish are native to Asia—from the Indian Subcontinent to Southeast Asia and northeas ...
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...
where it inhabits relatively cool, 22‒25 °C (72‒75 °F), highland streams of
Java
Java is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea (a part of Pacific Ocean) to the north. With a population of 156.9 million people (including Madura) in mid 2024, proje ...
.
In 1967, D. S. Johnson reported the species to be common in
blackwaters of southern
Malaya.
Of largely unremarkable ''Betta'' appearance, ''B. picta'' attains an overall length of 6 cm (2.4 in).
It is noted for the pale bars on the male's back, absent in other similar ''Betta'' species.
Mouthbrooder
Mouthbrooding, also known as oral incubation and buccal incubation, is the care given by some groups of animals to their offspring by holding them in the mouth of the parent for extended periods of time. Although mouthbrooding is performed by a va ...
s, spotted bettas spawn ''en masse'' when triggered by water changes; this is likely to be an adaptation to reduce the chances, by saturating the environment with young, of individual fry falling prey to predators. This betta spawns readily and prolifically in captivity, producing easily raised fry.
Even though it is easily kept and bred, it is not one of the more popular ''Betta'' species among hobbyists, likely because, in the words of one ''B. picta'' keeper, "many just can not get excited by watching a drab colored fish that spends most of its time hiding away under the rocks and behind the plants."
Originally described by Valenciennes and assigned to genus ''
Panchax'' (as ''P. pictum''). It was found that Bleeker's ''Betta trifasciata'', described in 1850 and used as the type species of his genus ''Betta'', was identical to ''P. pictum''. As the original
type specimen
In biology, a type is a particular wikt:en:specimen, specimen (or in some cases a group of specimens) of an organism to which the scientific name of that organism is formally associated. In other words, a type is an example that serves to ancho ...
s are now lost,
H. H. Tan and
Kottelat redescribed the species in 1998.
References
External links
International Betta Congress Species Maintenance Program photosSpotted Betta Fish - Facts You Need To Know
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1938877
Spotted betta
Taxa named by Achille Valenciennes
Fish described in 1846
Freshwater fish of Java
Endemic fauna of Indonesia
Freshwater fish of Sumatra
Freshwater fish of Malaysia