Marine Betta Behavior

[Reef Frog]

Any Marine Betta/Comet owners out there willing to share their experiences?

A LFS has a nice specimen in stock & am considering it for my 65g with a tail spot blennie, a firefish & yellow assessor, all being 1" to 2" long.

Do you think these guys are likely to be eaten? I watched a Youtube video of one eat what looked like a hapless stunned FW feeder fish. It was a short strike hunter; fast but the prey was right in front of it, completely oblivious to the threat. SLURP!!! Otherwise I can tell its a peaceful slow moving fish. It was in a tank of firefish for 2 weeks in the LFS with no problems. These firefish were casual & at ease around the Betta, hovering close to it, even backwards. This M. Betta was ~4" long. My fish are fast, experienced & savvy but don't want them to spend the rest of their lives hiding in terror either.

So my questions:

-My books & various sites list 55g to 75g as minimum size. Opinions on my 65 w ample LR + plenty of hiding places? Everything i see indicates they're hardy & easy to keep. True?

-Some areas have fairly strong flow, will it swim out in the open much? Can it handle some flow? Shy is OK w me but don't want a fish that I don't see 98% of the time.

-Will QT in a 20g. Adequate? Doing Cupramene?

-Is my tank an all you can eat seafood buffet for a Comet? Im reading conflicting information. Have any forum members kept it with smaller fish? I understand there are no guarantees but was wondering what others think & have experienced. BTW I can mix live brine & live blackworms w frozen stuff if that would satisfy its hunting tendencies.

I really like this fish but want to do the right thing. I don't want my current fish to get eaten, especially the yellow assessor but will take the risk if the odds seem fair. I have an agreement to return it if needed. Any comments or first hand experience with a Marine Betta?

[Dmorty217]

One thing is for sure when the marine betta is big enough to gulp your 1"-2" fish it will. They are better left to a FOWLR or a reef tank that doesn't have anything that will make a quick snack for it. The QT you mention is adequate but like I said before they are like groupers as in they will eat whatever they can fit into their mouths and when this guy is full grown anything under 4" is going to be a snack

[Megatrev62]

Had one and got rid of it. Never saw it.

[Megatrev62]

By the way the beta was in with cleaner shrimp and a couple of small damsels for about 3-4 months.(130 gallon) Never touched a thing. 5 incher.

[rachenbrazil]

Assessors would be a risk as they keep hanging under rocks and if marine betta hang in same spot could eat them...
Most bettas keep hiding and from time to time show up... Mine hide for about a year... Now show up every day but love to stay close to rock cave... And eats pellets in open water...
Should not present problem to small fishes...but 1 inch assessors would not be safe ....i would not risk....


But is a very interesting fish that I proud to keep for over 10 years...

[Reef Frog]

Thanks for the replies. Don't want to risk my fish to getting eaten, although it seems some.Can get away with smaller fish in the same tank. The Assessor was hard to find & can see how it would be at risk. I really fell in love with the Marine Betta, but it will have to wait a year until I add a larger tank.

[dvmsn]

They will not eat your fish.

[TheGodParticle]

M. Bettas are nocturnal fish. You are not going to see it much unless you create a cave in plain view that provides lots of shadowing. They can also be challenging to wean onto prepared foods as starting off they will almost certainly accept only live foods. Def one of the most beautiful saltwater fish you can buy and stunning in appearance, but if you plan on this being your main show fish in your tank then I'd plan on a different fish. These are very reclusive. I personally had one in my reef for a longtime, but I also don't have any shrimp, crabs, snails, or small fish.