Koi are very popular fish bred and taken care of by hobbyists the world over. Koi is a Japanese word that means "carp" and covers the dull gray wild carp caught in rivers and also lakes for food, as well as the brightly colored varieties. It is the colorful koi fish which are bred for their magnificence. Although the proper expression for these "living jewels" is nishikigoi, many people, especially those in the United States, call them simply as koi.

A Very Koi Story

The carp originated from Central Europe and also Asia where it was basically a food fish. It was the Chinese that began propagating specific species of carp until they developed the gold fish more than a thousand years ago. The Chinese first brought koi as food to Japan in 200 AD. Seeing the beautiful color mutations, Japanese farmers in Niigata, a prefecture in Honshu, bred them for aesthetic purposes and produced several color patterns. The first variety to be popular is the kohaku, the red-and-white koi.

The Niigata koi was first seen by the community in 1914 during the annual exposition in Tokyo. The charming, colorful fish mesmerized the whole of Japan and some kept koi because they seemed perfect for their water gardens. It didn't take long before the rest of the world caught up on the hobby. These days, Niigata remains to be the home of the finest koi breeders though you can buy koi from most pet stores. Then again, you have to go to specialist dealers if you want the higher-quality fish. Prices of koi differ according to the very koi-like feature of the fish.

Koi Characteristics

You can find koi with different colors and designs. The usual colors are white, black, red, yellow, blue and cream. Female koi are usually plump while the males are more streamlined with torpedo shapes. A fully-grown koi can grow as long as 36 inches and weigh over 17 pounds. The koi are hardy and durable, and can live for decades based on their genetics and living conditions. The oldest koi ever reported was "Hanako" that reportedly lived up to 226 years.

The Koi are omnivores which means they eat almost anything including vegetables. It is very koi of the fish to look for food at the bottom of the pond. Although koi fish are basically shy and will dash away when disturbed, they often recognize the person frequently feeding your koi fish. It is common to see koi gathering around their keeper during feeding times with several eating directly from the hand.

Varieties of Koi

There are several types of koi that are distinguished by the color, pattern and scales. There are a few hybrids like the Ghost koi and Butterfly koi that have also acquired popularity but are not considered as true Nishikigoi. Among the prominent types of the true Nishikigoi are the following:

- Kohaku - white koi with big red markings on top

- Taisho Sanshoku - looks like the Kohaku but has more small black markings

- Showa Sanshoku - black koi having red and white markings

- Tancho - any koi with a lone red patch on top of its head

- Asagi - is colored light blue on top and red beneath

- Utsurimono - black with very koi markings of red, white or yellow

- Bekko - base color of red, white or even yellow with small black markings

- Goshiki - black koi accented with red, white, brown and also blue marks

- Shusui - does not have scales other than a single row of large mirror scales running down the dorsal area, from head to tail

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