Koi fish keepers will likely be surprised to learn how much information has been compiled about these amazing, beautiful animals once they begin to learn about the culture, traditions, and historical events surrounding them.
I cannot even begin to describe the history and rich data surrounding the curation of ornamental carp, without discussing its subvarieties.
Check out one of the most stunning and controversial koi sub-varieties, the gold ghost koi, and see what makes it so special, intriguing, and potentially divisive.
Why would you want to own a Gold Ghost Koi?
Ghost koi are often colored gold.
Resulting from mating wild mirror carps with metallic Ogon koi, the results are fish in cream, silver, or gold, with long fins and a stunning overall appearance.
It is said that these koi are hauntingly beautiful as they glide through the water, hence their name.
Gold ghost koi are truly unique, displaying a brilliant golden hue that makes them appear to be pulled straight from molten gold, thus creating a gilded and glistening effect.
Naming the Ghost Koi
The name ghost koi may seem obvious to you, but its origin is actually quite interesting.
The first ghost koi that were bred were not white at all; actually, the koi were extremely dark and extremely metallic, which resulted in their scales glittering in the pond while the depths of the water shrouded their shape, creating a ghostly trail of fins with no apparent connection.
Breeders eventually began breeding for other solid colors, such as the ones cited above. Because of their long fins and stunning, brightly metallic coloration, they don't have quite the same ghostly impact as their dark-toned predecessor, but they are still impressive!
The enchanting nature of these fish is hard to describe.
The Gold Ghost Koi Controversy
A lot of controversy still surrounds gold ghost koi's acceptance as koi fish.
more info and ghost koi in general are stunning and fascinating additions to any pond of aquascape. However, they are still rarely accepted as real koi fish by the koi fish community.
Because of their breeding method, this is the case. Due to the fact they were created by crossing wild-caught mirror carp with metallic Ogon ornamental koi fish, they are not solely of ornamental koi blood. It is due to this deviation in lineage that many traditional breeders refuse to breed ghost koi fish and cull wild-caught based babies.
A bit of conflict and contention between traditional and modernized breeders occurs because traditional breeding is treated as an art form.
Ghost Koi Attributes
Besides being one of the most controversial koi fish varieties, ghost koi have a different body type, personality, and overall health profile. The reason for this is that they have adopted many characteristics from their wild mirror carp heritage, which resulted in a very different body composition than the typical ornamental koi carp bred from selective breeding.
This breeding decision has led to some astounding results, not least of which is the longevity of the gold ghost koi and their strong immune system.
In general, ghost koi, including gold ghost koi, have extremely durable immune systems and are sick much less often than traditional ornamental koi. The wild ancestors were exposed to much more than handraised ornamental koi, which resulted in them developing the ability to fight off infections and other illnesses much more effectively.
Koi with ghosts also grow much bigger than ornamental ones. Additionally, they grow much faster, sometimes reaching forty pounds! As a means of survival, they inherited the mirror carp's genetic coding for growth and got larger faster.
There are many reasons why wild carp grow bigger than captive ones, including their diet and the fact that they are less likely to be eaten by most predators. As a result, ghost koi have become very popular among people who want to have a lot of large koi or who want to see their pond grow quickly.
A ghost koi can also be very friendly and active. Their parentages have inherited this trait, which is why ghost koi are very curious about humans and willing to swim along the surface of water in search of food.
Since they are so visible, they are also a favorite among fish keepers of all skill levels because they are so fun and interesting to watch.
Ghost Koi Quirks
When ghost koi are very young, they have translucent skin on their heads, which is one of the weirder aspects of caring for them.
Koi with white ghosts usually have visible skulls at a young age. Eventually, the skin thickens and becomes less see-through, but for a while, they look creepy.
Stunning, Shiny Fish