The veiltail betta is the default betta in most chain stores, usually sold by color and priced below the fancier tails. It is a good first fish for a calm, planted tank.
Did you know
The veiltail betta is the fish most people picture when they hear betta, and show clubs spent decades breeding away from it. Judging standards reward an even fan, so the pet store shape ended up on the wrong side of the score sheet.
Caring for the veiltail betta
Keep a veiltail betta in a planted tank of at least 5 gal (19 L), with some cover at the surface. The long caudal drags, so a strong filter outflow pushes males around and split fin edges are common. Baffle the flow and give it a resting spot near the surface.
Heat the tank to 72 to 86°F (22 to 30°C) and keep the pH between 6.0 and 7.5. It is a carnivore, so feed a quality betta pellet and rotate in frozen or live bloodworms and brine shrimp.
Males are aggressive and cannot share a tank with another male. Trailing fins draw fin-nippers, so choose tank mates with caution or keep one alone.
Males carry the long fins and females stay short-finned, which makes shelf sexing easy. Bettas are bubble nesters, and a spawning male blows a raft of bubbles at the surface and tends the eggs himself. A veiltail crossed into a show line tends to give veiltail fry.
Good to know
The veiltail's tail is asymmetric, sweeping down and back rather than opening evenly above and below. Hobby genetics treats the veiltail caudal as dominant over the symmetrical delta and halfmoon tails. Show breeders treat it as a fault and cull for it, since it is hard to remove once it enters a line.
In the wild
The veiltail is the first long-finned, ornamental shape to come out of Thai fighting stock, once breeders selected for looks instead of combat. Wild Betta splendens is short-finned, so nothing like it swims in a rice paddy. No single originator is recorded, and the form spread through the trade long before modern show classes existed.
From published sources
Tank mates
Each fish here is named as a tank mate for the veiltail betta by at least two published care guides. Seriously Fish and Practical Fishkeeping recommend keeping it on its own instead. The pairings below assume a planted tank of 10 to 20 gallons (38 to 76 liters) or more, with plenty of cover.
Sources: Aquarium Co-Op, Fishkeeping World, Chewy, Tropical Fish Hobbyist, Aqueon, All Pond Solutions.
Is a veiltail betta a different species from the Betta?
No. A veiltail betta is a variety of the Betta, Betta splendens, and it wants the same tank, water and food as the species.
What size tank does a veiltail betta need?
A veiltail betta needs at least 5 gal (19 L). It spends most of its time in the middle.
What does a veiltail betta eat?
A veiltail betta is a carnivore. It eats a quality betta pellet, with frozen or live bloodworms and brine shrimp rotated in.
How big does a veiltail betta get?
An adult veiltail betta reaches about 3 in (7.5 cm).
How can you tell a male veiltail betta from a female?
Males carry the long fins, while females stay short-finned. That makes a veiltail easy to sex on the shelf.
How does a veiltail betta breed?
A veiltail betta is a bubble nester, and the male tends the eggs in a raft of bubbles at the surface. Crossed into a show line, a veiltail tends to give veiltail fry.
2.4 in (6 cm)11 gal (40 L)72–82°F (22–28°C)
3.9 in (10 cm)20 gal (75 L)72–79°F (22–26°C)
3 in (7.5 cm)20 gal (75 L)72–81°F (22–27°C)