Betta Fish Facts - Betta Tail Shapes

One of the most recognizable features about the betta fish is its tail. Male bettas have a variety of splendid tails to complement their bright colors. Females tend to have shorter, less vibrant tails. The different tail shapes when combined with certain colors are sought after by betta enthusiasts or collectors.

Here's a rundown of different tail shapes to keep in mind when picking out your betta.

Short Tails: The short tail bettas look much closer to wild bettas. These tails are shorter and more utilitarian. A wild betta can't afford to have the long, flowing tails as it impairs their swimming ability. Short tailed bettas also don't tend to be as vibrantly colored, as they're closer to wild specimens.

Veil Tails: The veil tail bettas are just one step from the short tails. These bettas have tails of the same shape as the short tails, just longer. This makes them droop at the ends. When the betta is calm they simply hang down. When the betta flares its fins the tails do come up, but still don't fan out. These are very common in pet stores and are likely to be your option if that's where you get your betta.

Crowntails: There's a variation of a betta called a combtail, which means that the spines of the fins extend out past the edge of the tail membrane resulting in a "comb-like" appearance. The crowntails have been bred for this trait to the point where the tail is sharp and looks like a crown.

Fan Tails: A fan-tailed betta is one whose tail is solid at the bottom then flares out symmetrically to create a rounded-edged fan.

Delta Tails: The delta tail is another step past the fan-shaped tails. Instead of a rounded fan this looks more like a triangle with sharp edges running down to a rounded tail.

Super Delta Tails: The super delta tail is a delta tail with a very broad width angle. Anything above about 130 degrees from the base can be considered a super delta tail. For show purposes an angle of 170 degrees is desirable.

Half-moon Tails: This is currently the ideal for the betta show quality world. These tails have a full 180-degree spread to them, making the tail look like a half-moon. Half-moon tails are beautiful but also very fragile. The betta is likely to tear them often, which makes showing them a tricky adventure at times.

Double Tails: The double tailed bettas are bettas with two tail lobes instead of one.

As you can see there are a bunch of different tail shapes in the betta world and more are being bred all of the time! It makes them a fun and exciting fish to follow and collect.