Posted by kelly on March 10, 2003 at 13:04:20:
In Reply to: Betta male or female posted by boda on March 09, 2003 at 08:12:20:
Females can and will flare. However, to make sure you really have a female, look for some other things. First, the ovipositor- the white spot under her belly, which is for squirting out eggs. Second, the shape of the fins. Very pointed anal fins are not common to females. The picture I popped on here is a male short-finned betta. Females generally don't have that "point" to their anal fin (though the ovipositor is the MAIN way to tell and you shouldn't depend on outward appearance).
Males can get stripes though it's not very commonly seen. If he has horizontal stripes he's very stressed out.
