''Betta pi'' is a species of

gourami Gouramis, or gouramies , are a group of freshwater anabantiform fishes that comprise the family Osphronemidae. The fish are native to Asia—from the Indian Subcontinent to Southeast Asia and northeasterly towards Korea. The name "gourami", of ...

belonging to the genus ''

Betta ''Betta'' is a large genus of small, active, often colorful, freshwater ray-finned fishes, in the gourami family (Osphronemidae). The best known ''Betta'' species is ''B. splendens,'' commonly known as the Siamese fighting fish and often kept ...

''. It is found in the Pru Toe-Daeng peat swamps in

Narathiwat Province Narathiwat ( th, นราธิวาส, Malay: Menara) is one of the southern provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are (from west clockwise) Yala and Pattani. To the south it borders the Malaysian state of Kelantan an ...

in Southern

Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...

, but its range also extends into northern

Peninsular A peninsula (; ) is a landform that extends from a mainland and is surrounded by water on most, but not all of its borders. A peninsula is also sometimes defined as a piece of land bordered by water on three of its sides. Peninsulas exist on all ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

, most notably the states of

Kelantan Kelantan (; Jawi: ; Kelantanese Malay: ''Klate'') is a state in Malaysia. The capital is Kota Bharu and royal seat is Kubang Kerian. The honorific name of the state is ''Darul Naim'' (Jawi: ; "The Blissful Abode"). Kelantan is located in the ...

and

Terengganu Terengganu (; Terengganu Malay: ''Tranung'', Jawi: ), formerly spelled Trengganu or Tringganu, is a sultanate and constitutive state of federal Malaysia. The state is also known by its Arabic honorific, ''Dāru l- Īmān'' ("Abode of Faith"). ...

. It is primarily found in well-shaded peat forest blackwater swamps and creeks where the pH can be as low as 3.0 or 4.0. It is

benthopelagic The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of ...

. It can grow to a maximum length of . It is a fish of mild importance in the aquarium industry. Its diet consists of aquatic invertebrates in the wild, but will also eat frozen, live and dried foods such as larva of

Chironomidae The Chironomidae (informally known as chironomids, nonbiting midges, or lake flies) comprise a family of nematoceran flies with a global distribution. They are closely related to the Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae. Many species ...

(also known as bloodworms), ''

Daphnia ''Daphnia'' is a genus of small planktonic crustaceans, in length. ''Daphnia'' are members of the order Anomopoda, and are one of the several small aquatic crustaceans commonly called water fleas because their saltatory swimming style resembl ...

,'' and

brine shrimp ''Artemia'' is a genus of aquatic crustaceans also known as brine shrimp. It is the only genus in the family Artemiidae. The first historical record of the existence of ''Artemia'' dates back to the first half of the 10th century AD from Urmia La ...

in aquariums.

Anatomy and behavior

Anatomy

''Betta pi'' has a body, coloration, and anatomy typical of the '' B.wasseri'' complex of closely related fish. It is mostly clay yellow, with

iridescent Iridescence (also known as goniochromism) is the phenomenon of certain surfaces that appear to gradually change color as the angle of view or the angle of illumination changes. Examples of iridescence include soap bubbles, feathers, butterfl ...

gold scales in adult males, and black throat markings, which in ''Betta pi'' resemble the

Greek letter The Greek alphabet has been used to write the Greek language since the late 9th or early 8th century BCE. It is derived from the earlier Phoenician alphabet, and was the earliest known alphabetic script to have distinct letters for vowels as w ...

pi, hence the

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

. It is also, like all fish of the ''Betta'' genus, a facultative air-breathing fish, because of its

labyrinth organ The Anabantoidei are a suborder of anabantiform ray-finned freshwater fish distinguished by their possession of a lung-like labyrinth organ, which enables them to breathe air. The fish in the Anabantoidei suborder are known as anabantoids or lab ...

Behavior

''Betta pi'' is a relatively less aggressive fish than most of the others in the genus ''Betta.'' However, it is still not recommended that it is put in a

community aquarium Community aquaria are tanks that are designed to contain more than one species of fish. Most commonly they include a variety of species that do not normally occur together in nature, for example angelfish from Brazil, swordtails from Mexico, and ...

(mostly because of maintenance requirements).

Sexual dimorphism

''Betta pi'' displays mild

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where the sexes of the same animal and/or plant species exhibit different morphological characteristics, particularly characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most ani ...

, with males growing larger, developing more extended fins, and also having a broader head than females.

Reproduction and development

Being a

mouthbrooder Mouthbrooding, also known as oral incubation and buccal incubation, is the care given by some groups of animals to their offspring by holding them in the mouth of the parent for extended periods of time. Although mouthbrooding is performed by a va ...

, ''Betta pi'' has a breeding process which is very typical of mouthbrooding fish of the ''

'' genus. Following a protracted courtship,

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

and

milt Milt is the seminal fluid of fish, mollusks, and certain other water-dwelling animals which reproduce by spraying this fluid, which contains the sperm, onto roe (fish eggs). It can also refer to the sperm sacs or testes that contain the semen. ...

are released during a stage where the male is wrapped around the female. This is typical of

gouramis Gouramis, or gouramies , are a group of freshwater anabantiform fishes that comprise the family Osphronemidae. The fish are native to Asia—from the Indian Subcontinent to Southeast Asia and northeasterly towards Korea. The name "gourami", of ...

. The male might have to wrap around the female several times before

spawning Spawn is the eggs and sperm released or deposited into water by aquatic animals. As a verb, ''to spawn'' refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, and the act of both sexes is called spawning. Most aquatic animals, except for aquati ...

happens. Then, fertilised eggs are caught on the

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

of the male, then picked up in the mouth of the female before being spat out into the water for the male to catch. Once the male has all the eggs in his mouth the process is repeated until the female is spent of eggs, a process which can take some time. A brooding male may swallow or release the eggs prematurely if stressed or inexperienced. The incubation period is usually 10-28 days, after which the male will begin to release free-swimming fry. The adults tend not to eat the fry, and some breeders have reported them to develop at a faster rate when left with the parents. The fry are large enough to accept foods such as

microworm The free-living nematode ''Panagrellus redivivus'' (sour paste nematode, or beer mat nematode from its occurrence in constantly moist felt beer mats), is known to many aquarium enthusiasts and fish keepers as the microworm. It is a tiny roundwor ...

and brine shrimp immediately, though there exist reports of young ''Betta'' developing health issues if it eats excessive amounts of the latter. In the aquarium, water changes should be small and regular rather than large and intermittent.

In the aquarium

''Betta pi'' is of mild importance in the

aquarium An aquarium (plural: ''aquariums'' or ''aquaria'') is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aq ...

trade. It is not recommended that it be housed into a community aquarium, not because of its aggressive nature typical of gouramis, but because of its very specific requirements. The water conditions recommendable for ''Betta pi'' include 4.0-6.5 in pH, and 18-90 ppm in GH. It requires acidic water, negligible carbonate hardness and very soft water. It should be maintained in a fully decorated aquarium, and

driftwood __NOTOC__ Driftwood is wood that has been washed onto a shore or beach of a sea, lake, or river by the action of winds, tides or waves. In some waterfront areas, driftwood is a major nuisance. However, the driftwood provides shelter and fo ...

roots and driftwood branches should be arranged so that there is some degree of shade added, while clay pots and tubes can be added as hiding spots and shelter. Adding dried

leaf litter Plant litter (also leaf litter, tree litter, soil litter, litterfall or duff) is dead plant material (such as leaves, bark, needles, twigs, and cladodes) that have fallen to the ground. This detritus or dead organic material and its constituent ...

as a substrate can add even more cover and also starts a microbial colony, and

tannins Tannins (or tannoids) are a class of astringent, polyphenolic biomolecules that bind to and precipitate proteins and various other organic compounds including amino acids and alkaloids. The term ''tannin'' (from Anglo-Norman ''tanner'', f ...

present in the leaves are beneficial for ''Betta pi,'' as it is a fish from blackwater environments. ''Betta pi,'' like other fish of its genus, thrive with dim lighting. Plants that withstand the conditions required by ''Betta pi'' include ''

Microsorum ''Microsorum'' is a genus of ferns in the family Polypodiaceae, subfamily Microsoroideae, according to the Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group classification of 2016 (PPG I). The species are tropical. Like most ferns, they grow from rhizomes, rath ...

, Taxiphyllum,'' and ''

Cryptocoryne ''Cryptocoryne'' is a genus of aquatic plants from the family Araceae. The genus is naturally distributed in tropical regions of India, Southeast Asia and New Guinea. The typical habitats of ''Cryptocoryne'' are mostly streams and rivers with n ...

.'' Floating plants are a beneficial addition to the tank as well. The filter should be a low-flow filter, as ''Betta pi'' is an inhabitant of sluggish water.

Threats

''Betta pi'' is threatened with mostly

habitat destruction Habitat destruction (also termed habitat loss and habitat reduction) is the process by which a natural habitat becomes incapable of supporting its native species. The organisms that previously inhabited the site are displaced or dead, thereby ...

by human activity, with large tracts of forest being cleared for the

rubber Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...

and

palm oil Palm oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from the mesocarp (reddish pulp) of the fruit of the oil palms. The oil is used in food manufacturing, in beauty products, and as biofuel. Palm oil accounted for about 33% of global oils produced from ...

industries.

References

pi Freshwater fish of Malaysia Taxa named by Heok Hui Tan Fish described in 1998 {{Anabantiformes-stub Fish of Thailand