Japanese Koi fish are basically carp with fancy colouration and scalation. In Japan, the Koi is bred for its colour patterns. They can be found in colours of black, gray, white, red, orange, gold and silver. They are not born with these colours; though, they begin to turn colour when they are about three weeks old. At this time, most of them turn orange. As they continue to grow, their colour continues to change and in many cases they continue to change throughout their whole lives. In Japan, an estimated one hundred million Koi fish are hatched each year. From these, the best are chosen to compete in shows. The best in the competition may be valued at forty thousand dollars!
Koi fish are very hardy creatures and can tolerate a wide variety of environmental conditions from near freezing to over 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit). Many people in North America raise the Koi fish as a hobby, keeping them in ponds in their backyards. The Koi will eat almost anything that is small enough for them to swallow. At Marineland, we feed them prepared pellets and small bits of chopped fish. The Koi fish grows to about 40.6 or 50.8 cm (16 or 20 inches) long and weighs about 1.8 kg to 3.2 kg (4 to 7 pounds).
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