Hi FTG - I'd like to offer my condolences for your loss. I can empathise. When I was a kid (though I still claim to be 18) I used to have a bunch of fish tanks. Aside from the usual livebearers, I got into breeding Anabantids, specifically, Dwarf, Blue, Pearl, and Thick lipped Gouramis, as well as Paradise fish, and Bettas. Aside from attrition I also had a bit of bad luck. A whole tank of pearl Leeris went when the heater decided to malfunction, cooking my fry. Only one fish avoided death, making it to adulthood, and that was a betta I didn't know existed. It was "lost" for several months in a small tank I had set up to grow Water Sprite. The plants took over the tank and hid my my baby from me.