Post date: Nov 25, 2010 11:0:49 PM
November 25, 2010
So yesterday I decided that I really want a betta sorority tank. For those of you that don't know, a betta sorority tank is an all-female betta tank. They can be tricky in
that you have to have at least five females in there; otherwise they tend to set up a pecking order and there's a queen bee betta who bullies the others. I already have two females and thought it would be so fun to buy three more and have a sorority tank. (Actually, I thought I'd call the sorority betta betta betta since my mom was a tri-delta...punny, I know, although "beta" is Greek and "betta" is not...) Anyway, I'm searching for a tank that I can keep them in. I wonder if five gallons would be too small, that's a ratio of one gallon to one female, which to me sounds reasonable. A lot of people tell me I need at least ten gallons, and while I agree that this would be ideal, I simply don't have that kind of room.
I feel like a lot of people undervalue the female betta. Yes, I do say on my site that a person's first betta should be male, but I say that for two reasons: it's so much fun to look at the beautifiul finnage, and you can see if the betta is happy if he builds a bubble nest. But my second betta ever, Ivy, was female and I adored her. I don't know if this is actually true, but in my experience, the females are smarter than the males. I've heard people say that females are "duller" and "not as colorful" but all of my females have been colorful and peppy. I guess this is why I'd love to have a bunch of them! In the picture above, which I found on a forum, the owner made a bright, beautiful tank with all of the different color fish and plants. That would be fun.
There are a few things that I wonder about a sorority, though. Of course, when I feed my bettas now, they can't compete for food since they live in separate bowls. But if they live together, I wonder how you make sure each gets her share.
Every article that I read insists that you have to introduce the females in the new tank all at the same time. Nevertheless, they will fight and you have to be prepared for that. This scares me a little; I hope that I can determine when it's gotten out of hand.
I liked this article about betta sorority tanks...very clear.
So now the big issue is finding the right tank (which I think I'll get for Christmas...exactly one month!). Here's what I've found so far:
Aqueon Mini Bowl 5 gallon <---got about 80% positive reviews. People said that the filter was ridiculously loud, that it's hard to clean, and that the light is really bright and should be fluorescent, not whatever it is now.
Eclipse Corner 5 Gal <---this got great reviews. The only complaint was that the light blows out easily.
Fluval Chi <--this got almost comically terrible reviews. Apparently the water evaporates really easily and it's almost always cloudy and cumbersome.
I'm asking some questions about sorority tanks and different tanks on Yahoo! Answers. Please answer them here and here if you can help.