Koi
Koi (Japanese: 鯉, Romaji: koi) or more specifically nishikigoi (錦鯉, literally "brocaded carp"), are ornamental varieties of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) that are kept for decorative purposes in outdoor koi ponds or water gardens.
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| Subspecies: | C. c. haematopterus
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| Trinomial name | |
| Cyprinus carpio haematopterus (Linnaeus, 1758)
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Koi varieties are distinguished by coloration, patterning, and scalation. Some of the major colors are white, black, red, yellow, blue, and cream.
It is illegal to keep koi in Queensland, Australia because they are an invasive species.[1]
Koi Media
Several koi swim around in a pond in Japan. (video)
A school of koi containing multiple different varieties
Terraced rice paddies in Yamakoshi, Niigata Prefecture
Illustration of a three-colored carp in Ritsurin Garden, 1900. This is the oldest illustration of koi. It has the kanji characters for asagi on its back and red on its belly.
Koi in an artificial pond at a hotel in Hilo
Cyprinus haematopterus
Cyprinus melanotus and Cyprinus conirostris
The Ojiya no Sato Museum in Niigata Prefecture, Japan, is the only museum in the world that exhibits both varieties of living koi and data that show the history of their breeding.
Koi have prominent barbels on the lip that are not visible in goldfish.
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References
- ↑ Carp, Queensland Government Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, archived from the original on 7 October 2015, retrieved 1 May 2015