Artist: Bernard Long
(biography) Medium: Watercolour on Board
Size: 11" x 7" (280mm x 180mm)
Date: 1983
This is the unique original Watercolour painting by Bernard Long. The Siamese fighting fish (Betta splendens), also sometimes colloquially known as the betta, is a species in the gourami family which is popular as an aquarium fish. They are called pla-kad (biting fish) in Thai or trey krem in Khmer.
They are aggressive towards their own species (females can group). However, they can be paired with other fish.
This species is native to the Mekong basin of Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand, the latter formerly known as Siam. The fish can be found in standing waters of canals, rice paddies and floodplains.
In January 2014 a large population of the fish was discovered in the Adelaide River Floodplain in the Northern Territory, Australia. As an invasive species they pose a threat to native fish, frogs and other wildlife in the wetlands.
A detailed and colourful watercolour painting from the publication Strange and Curious Creatures, written by Rupert Oliver and illustrated by Bernard Long. 1984.
zBook zNature zAnimals zSea/Maritime zLck