Dad’s Job

The male will now take care of the eggs and will spend the majority of his time right under the nest.  You should leave a light on for 24hrs a day so he can see any eggs that fall from the nest and we prefer not to feed the male during this time in case he decides to eat his eggs too.

The eggs can take from 24 – 48hrs to hatch depending on the water temperature.  Once they have hatched you will barely be able to see them as they are so tiny but you should be able to make out their little tails hanging down from the nest and one or two will be bobbing up and down.  Any that fall too far, Dad will collect up in his mouth and pop back in the nest.

By day 2 they should be free swimming and Dad can be removed from the tank and given a good feed.  You may find that he sulks for a few days, so if you can distract him with things in his tank, that might help.

The sponge filter can now be turned back on.  Just a bubble every 2 seconds or so.

Male Betta collecting the eggs