Introduction

One of the easiest fish to care for in an aquarium is the Betta. But because they were bred for fighting, finding fish they are compatible with them needs to be chosen with care. Believe it or not there are some that can get along with the Betta.

The Betta

Betta, also known as Siamese Fighting Fish, come from Southeast Asia where their natural habitats are rice paddies, ditches, stagnant ponds and slow-moving streams. For hundreds of years villages have raised them to fight other villages, with the winner bringing honor to the village they fight for.

Fish That Can Share The Same Tank

Because of their semi-aggressive nature, there are few that can share an aquarium with the Betta. But because of the high temperature you need for the aquarium water to keep a Betta happy, the fish you put in with your Betta will need to be able to live in high temperature water, too.

Aquarium fish are categorized by personality as community, semi-aggressive and aggressive. General rule of thumb when stocking your aquarium, you put fish with the same personality type in your tank.

Betta would be classified as semi-aggressive, but they do not necessary get along well with other semi-aggressive freshwater fish. Here are the traits you should look for in a fish to share your tank with your Betta:

• Look for those that do not have long flowing tales or fins. Fish with these traits could be mistaken for another male Betta causing your Betta to attack. Such fish that fall into this category are male guppies, Angel Fish and other long finned fish.
• Since the Betta are also shy, they will not do well with fish that are fin nippers such as Tiger Barbs and Rosy Barbs. Plus some types of Gouramis will chase your Betta around the tank.

Fish that could be compatible with the Betta are:

• Mollies
• Red Tail Shark
• Neon Tetra
• Zebra Loach

These are just a few of the many fish that can live comfortably in the same aquarium as a Betta.

Conclusion

Because of their name Siamese Fighting Fish and their reputation as aggressive fish, people have the misconception that the Betta fish cannot live in the same aquarium as other fish. But fish that do not have long flowing tails or fins can live happily together in the same aquarium.

Also since Betta fish are shy, you do not want to put them in with aggressive fish.