# Black Halfmoon male X black dragon plakat female



## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Spawn date: 5/13/20
Eggs hatched: 5/15/20
Free swimming: 5/17/20


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Male (Drac)










female (Steel)


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Don’t mind pinky in the background, she always photo bombs the other girls lol


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Today the black babies are 13 days old.
This being the first time I’ve ever done anything like this I wasn’t sure what to expect. It seems to me that my female ate most of the eggs from the spawn because the male didn’t pick them up fast enough 🙃 It was a large nest but I noticed the male also ate eggs as time went on, I assume they were un-fertilized. The day they hatched I only saw six little tails, but when they started to fee swim I only ever counted 3 at a time. Yesterday I moved them to another tank and surprise surprise... 8 babies. I’ve been calling them my baby black sheep batch.
here are some OK pictures I managed to get yesterday before I switched them to their new tank.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Because I thought I only had three babies I decided to try spawning a different pair. Those babies are 9 days old. Should I do a second spawn log? Or just consolidate all the info here in this thread?


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

I love the parents so much!  I bet their babies will be glorious.
Do you think you'll spawn this pair again?
Do what you feel like


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## Rana (Apr 27, 2013)

Lovely parents, I can't wait to see how the fry grow! 


My opinion on the spawn log is if it's a pair with different characteristics, you might want a new log to make sure you don't mix up info for your own sake. Or if one of the parents is the same, or they're similar color/tail types as the first spawn, consolidating it into one thread may work well. But there's no rule, I don't think, so it's your choice.


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## Fish 4 sale ¢50 a fish. (Sep 30, 2019)

Yay for Steel! She was a winner in the recent contest I hosted!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

CosmicSyringe said:


> Do you think you'll spawn this pair again?


Thank you! I really like my black bettas, I just think they look so different than what I’m used to when I think of betta colors. I have no idea if I’ll spawn any bettas again but if I do I definitely think these two paired well and seemed to like each other. I’m pretty sure that it’s my own fault that they didn’t spawn more, I was so excited that they were wrapping that I watched for awhile and definitely distracted them. Then I peeked in periodically and noticed my male had two separate bubble nests and was moving the eggs away from my “viewing window” I believe if I would have left them alone more from the start it would have turned out better buuuut they were learning right along with me so I’m happy I got the 8 babies. The second pair I left alone a lot more and have a bigger spawn. Learned my lesson lol


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

@Rana good points! I’m keeping a spawning journal for myself so although I won’t get confused it probably will look really confusing here LOL. I’ll start another one maybe.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Thanks for your feed back you two! I appreciate it 💜


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

Great you have more in your second spawn  
I really like the black colors as well, I have thought for a while now that if I ever buy bettas again, it'll be a black pair. 
You could always see how the black fry turn out and possibly breed a male and female from the black spawn based on what traits you see that you like or dislike.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

*June 8th *
Hellooooo betta fish fam!
Babies are 25 days old today. Still have 8 babies thank goodness. They have changed so much since the last post, they have all their fins now including itty bitty ventral fins 💜 there are 4 dark, 2 blonde, and 2 silver. I saw two doing a face off yesterday lol territory disputes happen now. They have all picked a “spot” they like and defend it. Pretty amazing to watch this unfold in front of me. From the dance to the eggs to the bouncing babies... now they look like fish and are starting to show those famous betta characteristics.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)




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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

So I’ve started supplementing their diet With gel food and vita chem soaked pellets. Yesterday I put three soaked pellets in there and they all looked stuffed silly 20 minutes later. So definitely one soaked pellet next time and work my way up as needed. This morning was their first bite of gel food and they are eating it without issue. Had to use a turkey baster to suck out the extra food when they were full. It’s a learning process for me, I’m obviously a poor judge of portions but I think I got the amount down now. Positive point is my adult bettas LOVE the vita chem and the gel so this is all Win/win in my fish room today.


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

I've heard good things about those foods!  It's crazy how fast they get full when they are so small 🧡


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## Rana (Apr 27, 2013)

Cute itty bitty fry! I love when you can start to see their betta-ness but it's still a mystery how they'll turn out.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Oh yeah Rana, for sure they will keep changing lol that’s just how I’m telling them apart right now. There is only 8 of them 😉


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

*June 25th *
Fry are 6 weeks old today.


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

There's just 3 fry right? I wish there were more, if you spawn this pair again I might ask to adopt one of their offspring based on how their colors turn out. I love love LOVE black bettas.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

@CosmicSyringe there are 8 babies in this one. 🤩


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

X skully X said:


> @CosmicSyringe there are 8 babies in this one. 🤩


Oh yes! I knew that before but then I read 3 somewhere xD so glad they're doing well


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Thanks! 😊


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Fry are 8 weeks old now oh my! The time is just flying by!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

three of the dark body babies are now lighter brown with red fins. The biggest baby is black with blue iridescent scales on his face and back. The two that were silver are now black and white and the two that I called blonde are now almost white.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

They are pretty much constantly zipping around. I ended up just recording a video and taking screenshots of the vid when I saw a fairly non blurry image lol.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

I’m pretty positive I have 4 confirmed males and 2 confirmed females the jury is still out on the last two. I could be wrong about the two I believe to be female. Setting up my betta barracks next week when the rest of my supplies come. I’m going to set up a recirculating water system that can house 32 individual containers on the one shelf I have. I might keep 25 on this system and do a second system that also holds 25. I didn’t want a huge bio load as my sump is only 20 gallons lol. I can get a bigger tub to do the sump in... still haven’t decided on that. I’ll see when I get it all set up. It’s going to be a big project for me! Fingers crossed I dont mess this up and accidentally flood my fish room haha.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

While doing my last feeding of the day I saw this guy had a bite out of his dorsal fin 😕 I ended up separating the four fin biters into their own containers.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)




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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

They are so big and beautiful!!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Thanks! I’m going to pick up the rest of the stuff I need for my betta rack tomorrow and my hubby and I are building it this weekend 🎉 it’s gonna be cheap but leak proof hopefully lol


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

Wow thats exciting! I dont have the space nor the money for anything like that. YOU NEED TO SHOW US THE END RESULT! I bet its going to look awesome!


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## MysticBettas (Jul 16, 2020)

They’re beautiful!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

test run on the set up, drainage working awesome, in... well I think I’ll need to tweak some things. I haven’t sealed Some important stuff yet just wanted to see if it worked first. Not too shabby if I do say so myself! Gonna seal the overflow and the in valves tomorrow and move it all inside Monday I hope.


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

I love DIY stuff like this ❤ 
So, I cant tell, each bin has air or are the tubes to change water?


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## AndreaPond (May 2, 2020)

BRAVO! That's incredible!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

The tubes are for water. I’m circulating the water in through the top and out through the back to drain down into the sump. That way I can filter and heat all the containers. We got it set up now and running. I’ll post pics tomorrow.


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

Wow thats a great idea!!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

here it is all set up!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

I tried to measure my fish for the first time today instead of eyeballing like I’ve been and holding a bright yellow measuring tape to the tank was a no no no LOL so I drew on the tank and marked it so I could catch the biggest male swimming by. Not quite 1 inch yet 😂 I think this method of measuring will work out though!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

I’m running late on feeding everyone today but I’ll take pics of all these guys from this spawn and upload later today. They are almost 11 weeks old now 💜


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

#2









#3









#4









#5









#6









#7









#8


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## CosmicSyringe (Jul 20, 2013)

They are looking gorgeous! 
The set up looks good too! Nice job 

Edit: I have a couple questions -
So because the father is HM, most of the fry will NOT be plakat, correct?
Do you know the fathers coloring identification besides black?
Thanks! I'm still learning


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

The father is/was a Halfmoon black butterfly his “butterfly” tail isn’t really symmetrical colored anymore the band fades in and out so not sure if he would be considered butterfly anymore I thought he was black lace at first but I’m not sure he really falls into that category either 🤷🏻‍♀️ The band was a transparent black but is turning white in places and he has always had the white tipped ventral fins as well. This is my first spawn and I’m honestly not 100% sure about what genetics are dominant in my situation. The mom is a Halfmoon plakat. I think someone mentioned that could lead to fins in between the Halfmoon length and the plakat length. Quite a few fry have longer anal fins already but then a few don’t. Maybe they’re females? They all have very pointy and long ventrals lol so that might not be the best way for me to identify my spawn. I’m learning right along with you cosmic! Seeing you handle your fish spawns really inspired me to give this a shot 💜


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## MysticBettas (Jul 16, 2020)

They’re looking beautiful!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Thank you! It’s so exciting right? It’s been an awesome experience so far


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Awe! #1 made a tiny bubble nest with tiny bubbles lol. So stinkin cute!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

8/19/20
Update fry are 14 weeks old 

D1 (male)










D2 (female)










D3 (male)









D4 (female)









D5 (male)









D6 (male)









D7 (female)









D8 (male)


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## ralphybetta (Jul 3, 2020)

D1 is gorgeous!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

I think so to! He was always the biggest out of the group but very mild mannered and personable. Always comes to say hi to me and isn’t picky about food.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Update on the spawn. Everyone is eating twice a day still, I’m no longer feeding them bbs instead they eat a mix of frozen foods through the week blood worms and brine shrimp and the repashy grub pie gel food with a few dashes of vita-chem mixed in there. They also enjoy the fluval betta bug bites on the days I’m in a hurry in the mornings. It’s nice that they will except a wide variety of foods. Now that they have been separated for a bit their individual personalities really show. A few really like to sleep at the bottom under a leaf and the others at the top either in an open corner or on a leaf high up near the surface. The Three females are all together in a large group of females from my koi spawn. The males are top shelf of my grow out rack. Every morning I pull the cards from between the tanks while I prep food and just watch them for a bit to see how they are doing. Get a good look at fins and clear out little tummies if that hasn’t happened already lol. I use the large end of a pipette and airline hose as a mini vacuum and suck out the bottoms of the tanks every few days then go around and refill and dump the rest of the clean water into the sump if it needs it. I check the water parameters every Sunday to keep the nitrates down below 10ppm I replace water a lot throughout the week just from sucking out uneaten food and the little vacuum jobs that I haven’t had to drain water out of the sump for big water changes, just the Mini vacs seem to do the job nicely. Ok! now for pictures! Again I apologize for the slight blur.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)




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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

I noticed a few days ago that #5 looks like he has eyebrows.


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## ralphybetta (Jul 3, 2020)

I think rn #6 is my favorite. He has a beautiful color and I love love the white on his ventral fins


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

#6 turned out to be the only over Halfmoon so far his tail has a wide spread. Unfortunately he has four points on his ventrals which make him look like he has hands or gloves on LOL it makes him look extra fluffy like a little black storm cloud. I thought he was a female for the longest time 😂


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

If I had to pick a favorite... hmmm I’d pick #3 he is just so pretty, and his pattern has stayed since he colored up.


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## ralphybetta (Jul 3, 2020)

I have a female who also has four points on her ventrals and she reminds me of a little crab because her ventrals are red


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## ralphybetta (Jul 3, 2020)

How are these babies doing? 🥰


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

They are doing good! I’m getting ready to list them for sale probably next week. I got some new lenses to clip on my phone camera but I’m not sure it really helped much. Here is a picture in natural sunlight









this picture with my finex stingray light. It’s a planted tank light so has red white and blue LED but makes everything tinted blue







this fella still has a shorter tail fin than all the other males.


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)




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## ralphybetta (Jul 3, 2020)

Yaayy I love this spawn, they look great!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Thank you 😊


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

posted for sale today














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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

This is my last post


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## fishowner550 (Mar 26, 2020)

I will miss all of the updates but wish you well!


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## X skully X (Mar 17, 2020)

Thanks @fishowner550 not really anything else to update about anymore. They are grown and thriving. Now I’m just trying to find them homes. I was going to take some of the spawn down to my local fish store but... they are having some issues 😔 they got some sick fish in their last shipment and they have their hands full. Not really in a rush anyhow since the fish are all doing well here in their setups. I would really like to send them to their forever homes though so they get more one on one attention. With remote school this year I haven’t had as much time to spend with each individual fish.


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## MABetta (Jan 10, 2021)

X skully X said:


> Thanks @fishowner550 not really anything else to update about anymore. They are grown and thriving. Now I’m just trying to find them homes. I was going to take some of the spawn down to my local fish store but... they are having some issues 😔 they got some sick fish in their last shipment and they have their hands full. Not really in a rush anyhow since the fish are all doing well here in their setups. I would really like to send them to their forever homes though so they get more one on one attention. With remote school this year I haven’t had as much time to spend with each individual fish.


Very nice set up and fish. Love the colors!


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## Kat50 (Dec 22, 2020)

X skully X said:


> Don’t mind pinky in the background, she always photo bombs the other girls lol


Oh pinky is adorable


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