Understanding Koi Colors!

Understanding Koi Colors!

I always admire the Japanese people for having done a wonderful job of breeding koi fish, producing in the process amazing color patterns and combinations. The sight of koi fish with their breathtaking color patterns is indeed a great source of pride and is part of the reason why koi fish are well loved and treasured by their owners and onlookers as well.

Koi fish should come in bright colors. They may come in red, black or even in white colors. But red koi must be bright red while a black koi must be, in the same vein, deep black. Koi colors reflect the relative state of their health. Colors that have dulled or colors showing scales or spots which have grayed are signs that your koi may not be in perfect health.

Take the case of white-colored koi. When it is not pure white or when it is not as white as snow, it only means one thing—the koi fish is not in good health. This is the case because when koi fish are in poor health conditions or when they are unduly exposed to low quality of water, they expectedly change colors. In other words, what used to be a bright color will turn dull.

Koi color is one of the considerations when you are to buy koi fish. Hence, it is important that you know and understand how these types of fish are supposed to look and look to buy only those whose colors are bright. Understanding this color pattern will also help koi owners monitor and keep close watch on their pet fish.

It is really amazing that these koi fish could come in such various color patterns and combinations. Indeed, their colors do vary. The most common colors that we see among the koi fish are red, yellow, white, black, ivory and even occasionally, shades of blue. These different colors add to the worthiness of the koi as one of the most treasured pets.

Further, these different colors also inspire the Japanese to use varying terms to describe the fish. Breeders have in fact identified and ascertained a good number of categories, the most popular of which is the Gosanke category. This particular and most popular category embraces the Kohaka, Taisho Sanshoki and Showa Sansoki varieties.

Gosanke Koi

The Kohaku koi variety is known to carry white with red markings. This white color of the Kohaku koi variety must be as white as snow while the red markings are sharply set and cover over half of the koi's total area.

On the other hand, the Taisho Sanshoki variety are also white, black and red. Mostly distinguished as white fish that have black and red colorations mixed in.

But what distinguishes the Showa koi is that it is mostly black but with white and also red markings.

Similarly, other koi fish varieties have their own color identities. Ogon koi, for example, come in one solid color, although they can come in red, orange, white, black or yellow. Meaning, the color must be evenly distributed in their body without specific patterns or markings.

Koi color can however be enhanced. You can do this by feeding them the best diet like shrimp, plankton, marigold and seaweed. These types of food are added as ingredients to commercial koi fish diets aimed at bringing out the color of your koi fish.

Feeding them with frozen or dried-types of foods such as shrimp, and foods that contain larger amounts of colors such as anything with orange carotenes, can also lead to improvements in their color.

JAMES FIELD is a koi fish expert. For more information on koi colors,visit http://www.koifishadvice.com/.

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