Koi Fish
Koi fish are domesticated Amur carp, which have been specially bred to display a wide range of striking colors and patterns.
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Family: Cyprinidae
Genus: Cyprinus
Species: C. rubrofuscus
Common Names: Koi, Nishikigoi, Brocaded Carp
Koi fish are omnivores, meaning they will eat vegetables and animal matter. As a fully domestic fish, they are often fed a specific type of food designed for koi, which must be balanced with their nutritional needs. Koi are often kept in large ponds, where their vibrant color patterns can be observed and admired. Koi food is often designed to float, in order to bring koi to the surface, as they are traditionally a bottom-feeding fish.
Koi are believed to be very long lived animals. They are known to live up to 50 years, but some studies indicate they may live well over 100 or even 200 years. A koi fish named Hanako was believed to be 226 years old at the time of her death based on examination of her scales. However, this age has not been accepted by some scientists.
Koi have been selectively bred for centuries to create numerous different varieties. A few of the most common and well known are:
Kohaku – a white koi with large red-orange markings on its upper body. Kohaku means “red and white”.
Taisho Sanke – similar to Kohaku, but features small black markings called “sumi”.
Showa Sanke – black koi with red and white markings.
Bekko – solid color (either red-orange, yellow or white) with black sumi markings.
Tancho – a koi with a single red-orange circle on its forehead. These are rare because the Tancho marking cannot be selectively bred for, so this variety can command high prices.
Koi are a domesticated variety of a fish called the Amur carp. There are many different, selectively bred color variations, but the overall body shape and design remains the same. They have a fairly typical body representative of most bony fish, with large scales and small whiskers (barbels) near their mouth.
There are more than 100 different color varieties of koi, that fit into 16 different groups. The varieties feature distinctive coloration, markings and patterns.
The domestic koi is derived from a species of carp known as the Amur carp, once believed to be a subspecies of common carp. They are native to East Asia, and have been introduced far outside of their original range.
Carp were originally domesticated within China to serve as a food source, since they could survive in a wide range of different temperatures and conditions, as far back as the 5th century B.C. Over a thousand years ago, carp in China began to be selectively bred for different color patterns.
Koi breeding spread to Japan, which would begin selective breeding for desired colors in the early 1800s. It wasn’t until almost a hundred years after that, in the early 1900s, that the wider world became aware of this practice.
As they are a fully domesticated animal, koi fish are currently in no danger of extinction. Their wild ancestor, the Amur carp, is considered a species of Least Concern.
The care and breeding of koi fish is now a popular hobby that has spread throughout the world, well outside of its Chinese and Japanese origins.
Highly sought after koi fish can get quite expensive, with the priciest ever sold in 2018. This extremely valuable fish was sold for a record $2 million!