Although it is widely known that Koi fish come in a variety of colors and patterns, the black Koi fish stands apart from the other kinds due mainly to its color. The Japanese began breeding Koi fish from carp fish and at first there was only one or two colors but over the years and with subsequent breeding the color range and patterns have increased to what they are today. Koi fish usually tend to have an extended life when compared to the majority of other fish and may live to be 200 years old, but an average of 25 to 35 years can be expected as the norm.
Spotted frequently swimming in outdoor ponds the world over, the Koi male fish can be easily identified by the concave anal section of the body as well as the breeding spots displayed on the heads of most of them. When spawning takes place it’s possible that there could be as many as 1000 eggs released and the baby Koi, or fry as they are referred to at this stage, start to emerge 4 to 7 days later, depending on the water temperature. What is really fascinating is that until the fish are between 3 and 12 weeks old, their black color doesn’t appear.
Black Koi fish, like all Koi fish, need to be kept in large ponds due to their length which can be anything up to 36 inches. The Magoi Koi species, which was one of the earliest black mutations, grows to a particularly large size and although their coloring is actually a deep bronze, when viewed from above they appear to be black. In order to promote maximum growth potential, Magoi Koi blood is currently being reintroduced to other species of Koi fish.
Another particularly old species of black Koi is the Karasu. This name is Japanese for crow and this fish has black fins as well as a black body. This species can also be found with an orange or white belly.
Both the diet of the fish and the environment it lives in play a part in the Koi’s tendency to change color and more often than not the color changes involve the fish going from duller to brighter shades of its color. The Matsukawabake Koi species is an example of Koi which has the ability to change color and although it is black with white areas here and there, the water temperature it lives in and the seasons of the year can totally change the color of the fish. The Matsukawabake Koi can go from completely black to completely white but astonishingly when the environmental conditions change again, the original color of the Koi will reappear.
The Kumonryu black Koi which was first seen during the 1980’s is the most popular of black Koi fish. The name itself means “dragon fish” and this name was adopted due to the similarity in shape of the fish to the dragons shown in ancient paintings. Quite a few people were of the opinion that these fish looked like dragons coming down through the white clouds of the sky. In a similar way to the Matsukawabake the Kumonryu also change in color from time to time.
Pond owners are attracted to Koi fish mainly because of the availability of so many colors and patterns but it goes without saying that being the proud owner of a black Koi which can change color in front of your eyes has to be an even more appealing experience.
