Goldfish are a cultivated form of a silver crucian (Carassius auratus), and it is one of the popular aquarium fishes. The first data about goldfish are received from China and relate to X-XII centuries. The length of a goldfish reaches 30 cm. The aquarium types of goldfish are usually smaller. Their body is extended, ellipse, with a sharp snout. The back of the fish is commonly red, its sides are golden, and the belly is yellowish. Fins may be red, orange or yellow. There are also kinds of goldfish that are light pink, white, yellow and even dark blue. Due to Chinese and Japanese selectors a lot of types of goldfish are received. Some of them are described below.
The Most Popular Types of Goldfish
Bubble eye This goldfish is remarkable for its big eyes, which look like bubbles filled with water and hanging on the both sides of the head. The "bubbles" of the best individuals are equal to a quarter of their body. Eyes start to grow after the young goldfish is 3-4 months. It should be noticed that the eyes are very vulnerable. They can be pierced and then fall down, but in proper conditions they are restored within 3-4 weeks. This type of goldfish should be maintained separately or together with calm kinds of aquarium fish.
Crown pearlscale This type of goldfish was grown in China, and for a long time the exportation from the country had not been allowed. Only in 1926 the goldfish was taken out to Japan. It has a rounded body. Each scale is creamy-white, so that the fish looks covered with pearls. The color of the fish is more often red and white. It is one of the most capricious and gentle type of goldfish.
Comet The comet is the simplest and the most unpretentious type of goldfish. It is small with a long tail surpassing the length of the body. The longer the tail fins, the higher an individual is estimated. The color of a comet can vary, but those fishes, which have contrasting body and fins colors, are considered to be of high value. In China the most beautiful ones are reputed to have silver body and bright red tail.
Shubunkin People are fond of this type of goldfish due to its color that represents a combination of white, black, red, yellow and dark blue. The goldfish is mobile, it feels good in the water with low temperature and it is unreceptive to illnesses.
Recommendations on the Goldfish Maintenance
It is recommended to maintain goldfishes in a spacious aquarium with large pebbles. This attractive fish has remained a carp deep in its heart, and like carps the goldfish adore digging in sand, stirring the water up and taking out the plants. Therefore the aquarium should be supplied with a powerful filter, and the plants should have a strong root system. The temperature of the water can change from 15 up to 25 degrees Celsius for the fish with a long body and from 22 up to 28 degrees Celsius for the short ones. The chemical solution is not very important. Neighbors of goldfish should be calm and peaceful. Goldfish is omnivorous fish. It can be fed with seafood, white bread, cooked semolina and porridge. You can also make balls of bread and meat. It is necessary to give salad and nettle, otherwise the goldfish will start eating aquarium plants. They are gluttonous, but you should not overfeed them.
When you set up an aquarium, one thing that no one misses is the goldfish. Everyone adores its beauty and elegance and everyone is fond of it. When you think of goldfish what comes in your mind is the golden color of the beauty queen of your aquarium. You have so many varieties in goldfish. There are goldfish of different sizes, different shapes and different colors. But all the fish come from the species Carassius auratus.
You have single tailed varieties such as the common goldfish, comet and shubunkin. There are fancy goldfish varieties such bubble eye, celestial eye and telescope eye which are known for its eye shape. Oranda, lionhead and ranchu are the types known for its head growth. And you have better known varieties too such as the pearlscale, Chinese pom pom, veiltail, fantail and ryukin.
The common goldfish is a hard type fish which does not require more special care. You can grow these types of fish in ponds also. Like the common goldfish, the comet also does not require much special care. Shubunkins are also very easy to handle. They are fast swimmers, and need lots of space in the aquarium. However the common goldfish grows very large and isn't suitable for most home aquariums. Fancy goldfish are more suitable for aquariums.
The bubble eyed goldfish is more famous for its big bubbly eyes. It gives them beauty, and it has two large sacks filled with water. These sacs jiggle as they swim and it adds beauty to their elegance. Because of the sack they swim slowly. Then comes the celestial eye whose eyes are protruding has the same shape as the bubble eye. Both the eyes point in the same direction. The telescope eye has the same features of the bubble eye, but its eyes are not pointing towards the same direction. One common variety of telescope eye is the black moor.
The pearlscale is a variety that is normally grown in China. The fish looks as if it is covered with pearl. Its body is round in shape and double tailed.
The Chinese pom pom is a variety that is dorsal-less having the body of a lionhead type. These fishes have a pom pom structure near the nostrils and it will be of a pea size. It is a rare variety.
The veiltail and ryukin are the varieties with round egg shaped body. They have no head growth and the tail is pointed. It is double tailed variety. Some head growth can be seen in the old ryukins.
Oranda, lionhead and ranchu are double tailed varieties. Oranda and ranchu have a round structure while lionheads have a rectangular body. All these varieties have a head growth which mostly covers the whole body.
What is most important is the care we take when we have goldfish in our aquarium. The aquarium should have a good filtration system that has a large biological filter, because goldfish produce a lot of waste that will reduce water quality and may even kill the fish. High oxygenation water levels are important for goldfish and the use of an air pump can be beneficial for these lovely fish. For 2-3 medium sized fancy goldfish you should look at an aquarium which is 30L (8 US Gallon) up to 60L (16 US Gallon). Decorate your aquarium with the queens.
Both Dane Stanton & Bryan Halverson are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
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