Red and Yellow Traditional Plakat Project

Horrible picture of a gorgeous Red Show PK bred by Sieg Illig. I saw him at my very first betta show and couldn't stop thinking about him...

Another of Sieg's beautiful reds, this time in the traditional PK form. He swept the Best of Variety Shortfin male and almost went to BOS at the next CBS I went to. I got into a vicious (but good-natured) bidding war with one of the judges just to take him home!

I love plakats. These short-finned bettas resemble their original fighting ancestors much more than their long-finned counterparts. They have violently aggressive personalities and are extremely easy to care for because of their short finnage. These are what bettas are supposed to be for me!

The Red and Yellow Plakat Project is in collaboration with my grandfather, Charles Strickland. We showed horses together for many many years (with my intrepid, if slightly squirrelly, partner Skyler) and now we can enjoy fish together! My grandfather's favorite fish are the shortfins and in the colors red and yellow...so naturally a red and yellow PK line was brainstormed and born :)

Foundation male and female. Male bred by Pichet (Interbettas, Thailand). Female bred by Sieg Illig, and cousin to the male top-right.

I think one of the most important things to keep in mind is that it takes just as much effort to raise a spawn from so-so bettas as it does from really impressive bettas. I waited several months for the right yellow on Aquabid...and then I saw this guy. One of the CLEANEST yellows I'd ever seen. Combined with this magnificent red female from Sieg, and I got a spawn of consistently beautiful bettas. Hopefully my grandfather and I can maintain the quality! You really stand on the shoulders of great breeders when you use their stock...

Yellow male in front of another male. You can see just how intense and clean this male's yellow is compared to the pale yellow male in the back.

Really a beautiful female with almost no iridescence...I miss her a lot :( Sieg Illig's reds are renowned on the IBC show circuit! I was glad that he was wiling to share with me :)