Can-Betta-Fish-See-Color-

Color Vision in Betta: Can Betta Fish See Color

An aquarium full of colorful fishes adds beauty to a place. People have a preference for various types of fishes and the most popular are goldfish, guppies, swordfish and many others.

However, Betta adds a different charm to the aquarium by its sheer colorful presence and elegance. Betta or Siamese fighting fishes are native of Southeast Asia and belong to the gourami family.

They are vibrantly colored and there are around 15 different varieties of Betta. They are mostly named after their tail types – veil tail, half-moon, crown tail, double tail, spade and so on.

Let us learn some facts about these unusual fishes.

See Also:

Are betta fish color blind?

Betta fishes are not color blind. They have good eyesight, especially for shorter distances.

However, they are slightly near-sighted. Nonetheless, they have good recognition of colors and different shapes. It is an intelligent breed that recognizes the owner and his ability to perform tricks on training.

The general perception of color is dependent on spectral composition, the intensity of brightness and contrast in the surrounding. The retina of a betta has two kinds of photoreceptor cells – rods and cones.

The rods are responsible for perceiving low-intensity light and cones for strong light. It is the cones that are instrumental in distinguishing the colors in bettas.

Can betta fish See Color?

Betta fish can see color and even distinguish between red, green and blue shades.

They have a monocular vision that allows them to perceive and see objects bilaterally, simultaneously. Nevertheless, they do not have the ability to recognize colors in depth.

Bettas can recognize colors invisible spectrum. As we know, the colors of the rainbow have different wavelengths of light. Green, blue and violet have shorter wavelengths.

However, red and orange fall under longer wavelength categories. Since the iris of bettas does not work fast, they have the incapability to adjust to the different brightness instantly. On the whole, one can say that bettas have poor eyesight for accurate perception.

Of the various varieties of betta, the Veil tail and Crown tail bettas have better color vision than Double tail, Comb tail, Half-moon, and Delta. These other varieties have limited color recognition. Besides, these species do not have proper judgment of black and white.

These breeds of bettas have specially developed cones that detect the different hues of color pertaining to their habitat.

Can betta fish see in the dark?

do-betta-fish-need-light

Bettas have slightly poor visibility in darkness. This is because of the inability of their iris to adjust to the sudden changes in brightness. The monocular vision of bettas allows them to see in two different directions at the same time.

However, they lack a perception of depth. They have a way to overcome this weakness and make use of “lateral lines” that run along their side. These lines have small holes to gauge the water pressure around them and thus permit them to approach the desired object.

Inside the retina, there are photoreceptors in rods and cones form. These receptors allow the eyes to distinguish the various colors. Since bettas have more cones than rods, they visualize the image in high spatial and sequential resolution. They recognize the light of different wavelengths and thus identify colors.

Bettas do not have eyelids, which means that their eyes are “open” at all times. Thus, it is a clear reason to believe that the bettas, in spite of their poor vision, can see in the dark.

However, their activity is highly reduced when the lights are off. Bettas get terrified when the lights are switched off and may take a while to settle in the tank. Observing them in darkness after they settle can ascertain the validity of the fact that they can see in the dark or not.

More so, if we are not aware of their sleeping pattern and since their eyes remain open even when they are resting, there may be a misconception that they cannot see in the dark.

Bettas are highly active throughout the daytime and prefer to rest in darkness. Therefore, once the lights are off, they prefer to retire in a comfortable spot in the bowl or aquarium and sleep. Bettas can see in the dark and even though there are other fishes in the aquarium, they do not collide with them in dark.

Moreover, they use their sensory organs connected to the nervous system to aid in vision during darkness. Besides, the lateral lines with sensory holes assist in sensing the nearby objects. Bettas have a unique ability to identify the edges of the tank and steer clear.

How well can betta fish See?

Betta fish has a monocular vision. This gives it the ability to see in two directions at the same moment. Their retina has more cones than rods and thus they have the capability of fine contrast-detection and perceive clearly focused image.

Various experiments have established the fact that territorial fishes like betta have better color perception in a minimum level of light in their surroundings.

Their sense of vision depends on light conditions. Nonetheless, they cannot have an in-depth analysis of color and may see red in the shade of pink. Since bettas depend upon their lateral lines and vibrations for guidance in vision, it can be said that they do not have excellent eyesight.

So What Colors Can betta fish See?

Bettas can see a spectrum of colors through different light wavelengths. Their retina has more cones than rods and this enables them to get a clear focused image of the nearby objects and perceive the colors. However, different species of bettas have different color perception abilities.

The betta’s vision ability varies as per their surrounding conditions and the same results may not be observed in lake, river or aquarium. Since they perceive colors through different light wavelengths, the density of clear and turbid water permit variable refraction of light and thus alter the wavelengths.

In general, bettas can see green, blue and red colors and distinguish them within their habitat. However, different species have different levels of perception. Some varieties (Veil Tail, Crown Tail) have good color vision whereas others (Double tail, Delta, Half-moon and Comb tail) have limited color sensibility. These breeds cannot differentiate between black and white easily.

Since betta’s vision is mediated by four visual pigments that absorb different wavelengths of light, the color perception varies as per the ability of the pigments.

Each pigment is made up of a transmembrane protein called opsin and chromophore. Mutation of opsin permits the absorption of ultraviolet radiation. Thus, bettas can see objects that reflect ultraviolet light.  

FAQs

If I leave a blue, or a red, light on in his tank, will he see it?

As mentioned before, bettas have the ability to identify colors, especially red, green and blue. They can easily relate to these colors in their regular environment and more so at a short distance.

Bettas can perceive light through different light wavelengths and their ability of visual pigments to absorb ultraviolet radiation.
Do not leave the light on in the tank for more than 8-12 hours. They need to learn to adjust to daylight and night light.

Though some species of betta may find it easy to identify the colors, there are some varieties which have limited color vision. Nonetheless, even if bettas can see colors, they have inability to access them in-depth and red can be seen as pink and so on.

Is This Why Bettas Get More Aggressive When They See Certain Colors?

Bettas are territorial fish, especially the males. Thus they are quite protective about their own space and get aggressive when other males try to intrude.

Since they perceive different colors easily, it affects them when they are surrounded by a particular color dominantly. In such circumstances, the males may respond aggressively to the dominant color as a perception of possible threat to their existence. Studies have revealed that the aggression is more towards red color than black or some other shade.

Aggression is displayed through various means. They flare their gills and spread the fins and in more aggressive display they resort to tail biting.

CONCLUSION

Bettas are territorial fish that can live in an adequate sized aquarium. They are an intelligent breed that can recognize the owner, perform tricks on being trained and respond to colors.
Bettas are native of Southeast Asia and are mostly found in paddy fields and surrounding water bodies.

They are vibrant in color and have very attractive tails in different shapes, due to which they get different identification names. Males are territorial and aggressive in nature.

Thus they are also known as Siamese fighter fish. They look after the eggs till they are hatched. Female of the species live comfortably with other of the same kind as well as other fishes

1 thought on “Color Vision in Betta: Can Betta Fish See Color”

  1. My Betta, Rapala, swims around his tank, trying to intimidate the snails! He may need glasses. The snails appear to be unimpressed!

Comments are closed.