Betta behavior

[Alshain]

For the past two weeks my betta has been almost non-stop pacing back and forth across one side of the tank. Occasionally he will swim over, pick at something on the ground (presumably food) and then go right back to it. He doesn't come to the top and eat like he used too though.

Water parameters are normal, no ammonia, no nitrites. Temperature is normal. I thought for a moment, perhaps not enough oxygen, but bettas have a lung, don't they? Besides, my filter hits the water pretty hard.

Is this normal behavior?

 

[An t-iasg]

I would say no, it's not normal for the betta to do that non-stop. One of my bettas does "pace" back and forth for a few minutes, but then he calms down. My other betta is very lazy and mostly just drifts along.

Have you monitored your temperature frequently? I had a betta once who was "pacing" very actively all day. I discovered that the temperature was almost 88 degrees when the lights were on. You may be getting temperature swings.

Are there any brightly-colored decorations in the aquarium? Can he see his reflection in the tank wall? Those are both reasons for a betta to swim back and forth non-stop. Some bettas may not care about these things, but you seem to have a very active betta that could be bothered by his own reflection (or another fish's) and a bright decoration.

You say the filter hits the water hard - bettas prefer flow that is slow and calm. He may be stressing and trying to get away from the strong flow. Does he have plenty of hiding places and tankmates that don't bother him?

 

[Alshain]

Yeah, my temp is a constant 78. I can see the thermometer from where I sit at my desk.

The filter doesn't hit that hard. Its a 2 gallon tank with a whisper in-tank filter. But it hits hard enough to drive oxygen into the water.

There are 3 plastic plants in the tank, lately hes been swimming about more. He likes to squeeze underneath the low leaves, or even under the filter air input that is low to the gravel.

His tank mates include 1 apple snail, I'm pretty sure that the snail isn't bothering him, although my co-workers might be.