is it normal for my betta fish to be making popping noises?

Question

i just recently purchased a betta for my dorm room and it's living very happily (it swims around like aquaman, makes bubble nests, stares at me while i'm working, and eats like a little piggy). a few days ago i heard it making a small popping noise over and over again until i went to investigate. as soon as it saw me come over, it stopped popping. is that his way of getting my attention because he's lonely or is he sick or does he want to mate? i have no idea what's causing him to pop =(

Answer 1

hnm... sounds to me like what my goldfish do, common among little piggy fish. the popping noise you heard was probably him sucking at the top of the water. I've never heard a betta do it, but I would assume they can do it as well. my goldfish do it because it's mocking what they do when they eat, opening and closing their mouth frantically looking for food.

I wouldn't be too worried about it unless he starts showing symptoms of sickness like discoloration or refusing to eat.

as for mating... forget about it. it's VERY complicated and he does not need to mate, nor is he suffering at all from not mating. you state that he makes bubble nests which would mean he could mate, but any healthy male will make these at any given point and will mate at any given point. however, it's very stressful on bettas and they can even end up dead, it's all very violent.

the only thing I feel I should mention is proper care. I won't lecture you too much, but I know that msot college dormers get a betta because they think it's perfect,after all they're happy in that tiny bowl, right? wrong. bettas are tropical fish and need water temps of around 75-85F but room temp water is only about 65F, they naturally live in rice paddies, which are huge, not muddy puddles. they produce waste like any other fish and need a filter.

so I highly suggest, if you care about you betta and want him to continue to be happy and healthy, that you get him a tank with a filter and heater. if space is an issue and you want a bowl consider the Baby BiOrb, it has a filter and you can get a heater for it. it's $50, and you could get something less pretty and space efficient for much cheaper, but you probably don't have much room. monitor the temp very carefully for the first couple of days and make sure it stays around 78F.

if you do have room I suggest going to a pet store or walmart and look for tanks without hoods, I know most sell 10gallons for $10 with no hood. and I know there are 5 gallon tank without hood, but I'm not sure on he pricing. get an appropriate sized filter (I like whipser power filters because they're quiet) which mean a 1-3gallon filter for a 5 gallon or less tank. and a 5gallon filter for a 10gallon tanks because you don't want o create much current. then get a heater, 25watt for 5gallon or less 50watt for 10gallon. about $15 for a cheap little submergable one. a little $3 bag of rocks will cover the bottom of a 5-10gallon tank well, and l;astly 1-3 silk plants.

the later of the two would be cheaper, but not as trendy looking. as long as the temp is right though and there is filtration for betta will be happy and healthy. he'll live for a lot longer, up to 10yrs. instead of a few months to 2yrs.

if you already have him in a proper house congrats, and thank you.

Answer 2

I've had (and bred) betta's for a long while and have not come across something like this. The popping is probably something that happens when he is blows bubbles into the nest and they burst. Don't be upset over it and rush about to get him a mate. You might end up taking on more than you want to. The pair will need a lot of your time and assistance in rearing the brood which could be as big as several hundred babies! A male betta is pretty used to being solitary for very long stretches.

Answer 3

My Betta does this as well, it isn't when he is at the surface either. For a long time it would happen a night in the dark, and it was so loud I assumed he was moving rocks around - it sounded so loud and crisp , like rock on glass . Eventually I noticed it when it was day time, and I began watching for him to do it . He makes this noise internally , not moving, it isn't rocks and he isn't at the surface. It is an internal ability he has and I have no idea how he does it.

Answer 4

Making bubble nests does not necessarily mean they want to mate. Male Bettas make bubble nests because that's what they do, at least if they are healthy and happy. All mine have. Mine have never made any sounds except little splashes in their tanks. They are so smart, though, nothing would surprise me. If he quits when you feed him I would say he's just trained you to provide food!

Answer 5

If he is popping and expelling bubbles and making bubble nests your beta is desperately in need of mating. You know how that feels like?... Now, beta mating is a bit complicated. You might want to not mate him and that would be alright, but if you are into the whole ordeal then get him a couple. You should get him a female beta and put her in another tank right next to him (or bettter yet, get a bigger tank and part it in the middle with a piece of glass to divide the aquarium. Put the male on one side and the female on the other side. They will both try to attack themselves, you can see that by how their gills pop up signaling their are ready to fight, but after a while they should relax, if they don't, get another female beta, until your guy finds a partner he likes (yeah they are picky). Once he does, then he'll start making a bubble nest, and you should now put the female inside the aquarium with the male. The male should start trying to hug the female to expell her eggs and then fertilize them. It's almost like a dance, enjoy the ritual! Once they are done laying the eggs and fertilizing them (the eggs should float into the bubble nest) remove the female. The male will now abstain from food until their breed give birth. After they are born, he will still not eat as their fry will not have yet developed their labirinth system (breathing system) and their dad will need to lift them to the surface for air every once in a while.... after 2-3 weeks then you should remove the fry and start feeding the male again.

Feed the fry with home made food (usually boiled yolk- look for recipes on the internet) or food appropiate for fish fry you can get from any pet store.

Good luck! Get your man some tail!

Answer 6

many people hear popping noises from the bettas and everyone else will think you are crazy. i know my goldfish make popping noises -- they shoot bubbles up against my aquarium and they make as sound when they hit. its really annoying in the middel of the night but great fun for them i am sure -- perhaps it has to do with acrylic vs. glass.

the bubble nest is a sign he wants to mate. i would strongly advise against it. if you do you need to do lots of research and make sure your tank looks like a jungle so the female has lots of places to escape to after the deed has been done. many breeders are working hard to breed better bettas and many bored kids are breeding their bettas to reverse all that work.

Answer 7

My Dwarf Gourami's make popping noises when they eat or blow their bubbles. It's all perfectly normal. But it kinda startled me too when I first heard it.

Answer 8

bubble nests don't necessarily mean they want to mate like now. if he's making bubble nests, it just means he's happy!

Answer 9

making bubble nests will make little popping noises ... pop pop pop

DONT WORRY HE WILL BE OKAY!!

Answer 10

I always thought bubbles meant they were hungry for food