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Origin
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The crowntail betta was first bred in Indonesia. All pet shop bettas belong to a single species, Betta splendens. This species originates in Thailand, formerly Siam. However, decades of selective breeding has produced colorful, long-finned fish completely different from the original, drab bettas. The king crowntail is one of these cultivars. The original crowntail betta was developed by a breeder named Achmad Yusuf in Indonesia in 1997. He originally named the fish "cupang serit," which is Indonesian for crowntail.
Genetics
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The crowntail gene follows "simple" Mendelian genetics. Genetically, the gene for crowntails is recessive to normal-tailed bettas. In genetics, recessive means that a betta needs two copies of the same gene to express it. For example, if a crowntail betta was crossed with a normal-tailed betta, all of the offspring would have normal tail fins. However, the offspring would carry one copy of the crowntail gene. If two fish with the recessive gene for crowntails were crossed, some of their offspring -- about 25 percent -- would have two copies of the crowntail gene, and would thus have crowntails.
Care
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While bettas can survive in tiny bowls, all bettas -- regardless of tail shape -- need a real aquarium to thrive. Generally, only male bettas get aggressive, and then only with other male bettas. So you can keep them with other peaceful aquarium fish. The one special requirement of bettas is that they need aquariums free of strong currents. This holds especially true for bettas with long, ornate fins like king crowntails. You also need to avoid placing them with fish who have reputations for fin-nipping, like certain barbs.
Breeding Bettas
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Crowntail bettas breed like any other Siamese fighting fish. In this species, the male actually creates a nest for the young out of bubbles. After an elaborate breeding dance, the male and female mate. The male will scoop up eggs in his mouth and spit them into his bubble nest. After this, the male tends the nest for several days until the young hatch. After the young absorb their yolk sacks, they can eat very tiny foods such as newly hatched brine shrimp.
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Fun Facts About King Crowntail Fish
The king crowntail is a variety of Betta splendids, the Siamese fighting fish. Selective breeding produced the crowntail, which has fin rays extending beyond the webbing of the tail fin, giving the tail fin the look of a king's crown. The king crowntail takes this effect a step further, with crossed fin rays, making the fish's tail fins look even more crownlike.