less <

Varieties

Koi are Japanese carp and are available in many colorful varieties. Kahaku are white with red markings. Taisho sanke, known as sanke, are red and black on a white background. Showa have red and white markings on a black background. Bekko are white, red or yellow with black markings. All koi have some variation of red, black, white and/or yellow markings. Some have an interesting mottled look and others are solid with one spot of another color on their heads.

Water Conditions

In the wild, dilution helps to avoid the buildup of toxic ammonia and nitrites in pond water but backyard ponds require filtration. Local and online suppliers offer complete pond set-ups including the filter mechanism. Eventually, the ecosystem will develop a biological filtering system to do most of the cleaning work. Careful monitoring of water conditions is essential to your kois' health.

Feeding

Koi do best with small, frequent feedings. Koi will always overeat given the opportunity and overfeeding also results in increased ammonia levels. Nutritionally balanced commercial koi foods are readily available in pet stores, pond supply stores and online. Certain foods with added carotene and spirulina algae will add vibrancy to red fish. Your fish will also enjoy live foods such as worms, prawns and tadpoles. Lettuce is one of their favorite foods and they will strip a head of lettuce bare in no time.