The Goldfish, red fish, gold carp or Carassius auratus, may be one of the best known and most well-known captive-bred coldwater fish in the world.
Over the hundreds of years that this fish has been bred in captivity, hundreds of spontaneous and forced mutations have been generated, leading to a number of strange and surprising morphological variations.
The goldfish is "unfortunately" associated with crystal ball-shaped fish tanks, which of course, are not the right container for these fish.
A fish tank is not suitable for red fish, I would even say for any fish, since it is impossible to condition the container with aquatic plants, no filtration system, no aeration, which leads to the fish becoming stressed and dying prematurely.
If you have made the decision to buy a Goldfish for your aquarium, you should know that you have made an excellent choice, not only because it is a very popular fish, but it is also very resistant, ideal for beginners in fish farming.
Under the name, carassius auratus, red fish or goldfish, there is a huge variety of fish, each with its own morphology.
Some have a dorsal fin, others do not, some have an ovoid body, others on the contrary have an elongated body.
They have an orange coloration, although others are more reddish, white, black, blue or metallic green, etc.
The same thing happens with the size of the red fish, some can measure up to 35 centimeters in length or more, depending on the variety and the conditions of the aquarium or pond where we are raising them.
To get an idea of the morphological differences and types of red fish that we can get, these are the most original varieties of red fish:
RED LION HEAD FISH:
The red lionhead fish with a red hat is one of the largest varieties, reaching 35 centimeters.
They are ovoid in shape, have a well-developed dorsal fin and a caudal fin cut into four lobes, sometimes with stripes.
The denomination "red hat" is due to the fact that at adulthood, about two years old, it presents some protuberances on the head, which give the sensation of being a beret or hat.
TELESCOPE FISH:
The telescope fish is representative of how different the fish that we find under the denomination carassius auratus can be.
It is a fish native to China.
There are references to him between 1848 and 1925.
We can find this fish with a dorsal fin and without a dorsal fin, with slightly bulging or very bulging eyes.
One of the most famous is black telescope, but within the variety of colors, there are even scales that are completely unpigmented.
We can be in front of a telescope fish and think that it is one of the other varieties with hypertrophied eyes that have been obtained.
SHUBUNKIN:
The Shubunkin is a really interesting variety of the Carassius auratus.
Its main attraction is in its coloration, since the morphological differences are scarce, although it also has them.
It is a fish with a bluish background in most cases, which is then dotted with different black and red spots, even in more original colors such as yellow.
Within the Shubunkin we can find different varieties, as is the case with the Telescope or Lion's Head.
BUBBLE-EYED FISH:
A really original variety and different from any other Goldfish are the bubble eye fish.
As its name indicates, its main difference lies in some bags under the eyes that are shaped like a bubble, although of quite enormous proportions, in relation to the total size of the fish.
They are fish with some difficulties in swimming, they are quite calm and obviously, they cannot be put in an aquarium where they have to compete for food.
DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT OF GOLDFISH:
The origin of the red fish is in East Asia, being China where they reached the most popularity.
Currently it is possible to find different varieties of carp, throughout the world, in any river, stream or swamp. His adaptability is enormous.
Its original habitat, and where it is most comfortable, are cold-water, slow-flowing rivers.
It is able to withstand low temperatures outside, without any problem.
GOLDFISH FISH CARE:
Red fish are very strong, so much so that they are usually very common in outdoor ponds, withstanding all kinds of “limit” situations.
I am sure that if you have bought them for an aquarium, you want them to be in the best possible condition, and despite how resistant they are, it is best to provide them with adequate care.
Although they are more pond fish than aquarium fish, it is possible to have them in an aquarium without any problem.
They require good-sized aquariums, between 40 and 60 liters per specimen, which gives us an aquarium of 80 liters to 120 liters if we want to keep a couple in captivity, between 150 and 200 liters, if we want to have a few specimens.
They are fish that grow quite a lot, before deciding which variety of the many that exist for sale, ask what size it will be as an adult and calculate what aquarium you need.
We will look for a warm room and away from any source of heat.
The bottom must be coarse sand, under which we will place a good aeration and filter system.
We can plant plants, as long as they are resistant, since it is possible that the goldfish will try to eat them.
If we see that we are not successful with natural plants, we can change them to artificial plants.
The ideal water temperature is between 16º and 20ºC, but in an open-air pond it can withstand variations between 5º and 25ºC.
The pH should be at 7, neutral and with a degree of hardness between 5 and 10.
In addition to the temperature, hardness and pH of the water, we must take into account the type of fish we are raising.
They are fish that produce a lot of waste.
The filtration system has to be powerful, a little above what is recommended by the manufacturer.
If we have a 150 liter aquarium, the ideal is to have a filter for a 200 liter aquarium.
Water changes must be frequent, at least once a week, removing 15% of the total.
Remember that the new water must be clean of chlorine, and at the same temperature as that of the tank.
We can use water conditioners to remove chlorine and any heavy metals that could affect the fish.
Products that may interest you:
- BLAU KIT CUBIC 42.
- HAGEN NANO AQUARIUM FLUVAL FLORA 30L.
- 100L aqualed aquarium kit with Optimus filter (ICA).
- 25L BLACK ICA AQUARIUM KIT.
- AQUALD 68 PRO aquarium kit (ICA).
- KIT AQUA LED 45 PRO (ICA).
- EHEIM CLASSIC 150 / 2211.
- EHEIM PROFESSIONAL 4 250.
- Fluval 207 External Filter .
- JBL Cristal professional e402.
AQUARIUM CLEANING:
Frequent water changes are a guarantee to avoid the appearance of algae, but they are not an insurmountable barrier, due to the very nature of Goldfish, we may have problems controlling nitrates and phosphates, it being useful to apply an anti-algae periodically .
To clean the bottom, we have a very useful tool: siphoners.
The cleaning of the bottom can be done every week, at the same time that we carry out periodic water changes.
If we observe that the walls of the aquarium are dirty, in no case can we use cleaning products inside.
There are some sponges that can be used from the outside, without the need to put your hand inside the aquarium, it is not convenient, especially if we have creams or colonies.
If we have to remove any decoration for cleaning, we must wear gloves, and clean it with warm water without detergents, rinsing very well before reinserting it into the aquarium.
NUTRITION FOR THE GOLDFISH:
They are omnivores, feeding on plants, insects and small crustaceans.
The typical artemia, shrimp, prawns or larvae, will be an ideal food, but we should not abuse it, since they are very gluttonous.
It is best not to give them too much protein, just a couple of times a week.
At Glu Glu Pet we have specific prepared meals for goldfish, based on feed and flakes, with a higher concentration of carbohydrates and few proteins.
Freeze-dried shrimp and bloodworms can be added.
The resulting paste should be solidified with neutral gelatin, so that it floats in the aquarium water and they can eat it without any problem.
It is normal to feed them two or three times a day, only as much food as they can eat without sinking to the bottom.
Remember that the food that is not eaten will go to the bottom, decomposing and altering the quality of the water.
If you go on a trip, you should know that they are very resistant fish, they could go up to two weeks without eating, but it would be an unnecessary cruelty.
For travelers there are many alternatives, such as automatic food dispensers or specific preparations for vacations.
Products that may interest you:
BEHAVIOR AND COMPATIBILITY:
They are gregarious fish, so it is convenient to have several specimens, as long as the aquarium allows it.
Very peaceful in nature, they do not attack any other variety of fish.
If we are going to place several types of fish in the aquarium, the only precaution is that they are not too small, because they could be used as food.
A good idea could be to mix several types of carassius, although if they reproduce we can give rise to a new variety.
Goldfish Compatible Fish List:
Compatible fish without restrictions:
- Harlequin fish.
- Apple Snail.
- Female betta fish.
- Pearl Gourami.
- Molly fish.
- Otocinclo.
- Tetra Neon.
- Telescope.
- Tiger Barb.
- Koy.
- Nun fish.
- Botia Clown.
- Corydoras.
- Ax Fish.
Fish compatible with restrictions:
- Paradise fish.
- Platy.
- drunk.
- Killi.
- Guppies.
- Zebra fish.
REPRODUCTION OF GOLDFISH:
The reproduction of the red fish takes place in summer, when the water temperature is between 18 and 22ºC.
Some female goldfish, depending on the variety, can lay up to 400,000 eggs.
That is why it is very important to be clear that we want to continue with their reproduction, we can find a small fish farm at home and it is forbidden to release them into nature.
The incubation period is about 72 hours, and as soon as the fry are free swimming, they can feed on artemia nauplius without any problem.
GOLDFISH DISEASES:
Red fish can be affected by a wide variety of parasites, the most dangerous being Argulus, which attaches itself to the body of the fish, similar to a tick on a dog.
The wounds caused by the parasite become infected and cryptogamic or bacterial diseases appear, which make treatment necessary.
To treat them, there is a good variety of preventive and curative treatments in Glu Glu Pet, which we must apply once we isolate the attacked fish.
Other articles that might interest you:
Important products for your care:
- BLAU KIT CUBIC 42.
- HAGEN NANO AQUARIUM FLUVAL FLORA 30L.
- 100L aqualed aquarium kit with Optimus filter (ICA)
- External or glass filters.
- TETRA GOLDFISH.
- TETRA weekend.
