Beautiful Koi Fish

When any one has a landscaping pond on their property most people wonder what type of fish they put in it. So we had to ask a few people to see if the answers would be the same. They all answered fish. In the beginning when I first saw them swimming under the water it was amazing to see the size. Koi fish looked like overgrown goldfish to me and then as I stared at them longer they were much prettier and had a variety of colors. They seemed very fluent under the water. It actually made me more curious about them.

Koi fish are ornamental domesticated varieties of the common carp (Cyprinus carpio) that are kept for decorative purposes in outdoor ponds and water gardens. They are also called Japanese carp. These fish were developed from common carp in ancient China in Jin Dynasty and was later transferred to Korea and Japan, and are still popular there because they are a symbol of love and friendship.

Breeding for most Koi fish is they reproduce through spawning in which a female lays a vast number of eggs and one or more males fertilize them. Nurturing the resulting offspring (referred to as "fry") is a tricky and tedious job, usually done only by professionals. Although a Koi fish breeder may carefully select the parents they wish based on their desired characteristics, the resulting fry will nonetheless exhibit a wide range of color and quality. I thought this was pretty neat. I didn't realize it took professionals to assist them in their breeding.

Koi fish make beautiful house warming gifts or anytime gifts when you know the person has a pond and others in their pond. These fish are not cheap fish to purchase, in fact they are ranked on four factors with the first being the the body shape of the koi is the most important. This helps determine if it will grow to at least 30 inches. The second is its lustre and you look for shiny lustre over the entire body. The third factor is the depth of color, which is referred to as its coat of paint. The last factor you look for is the pattern on the fish. In order to enter your koi fish in competition your fish must meet the criteria of patterns to enter.