If you thinking about setting up an aquarium and are wondering which fish you should stock it with, have you considered Goldfish? Out of all the aquarium fish you can choose from, Goldfish are the most popular aquarium fish available. There are many reasons for this.

Availability

Goldfish are readily available from your local pet store. While some species of goldfish are exotic there are many varieties that are common and are easily found.

Affordability

Unless you venture into the "Show Quality" Goldfish arena, you will find that the most common Goldfish are very reasonably priced. The majority of Goldfish will cost anywhere from $5.00 to $10.00 per fish. If you are interested in show quality Goldfish, you can expect to pay $50.00 and up for one fish.

Variety

There are over 100 different varieties of goldfish. Some of the common ones are listed below. Keep in mind that Common, Ryukin, Comet, Fantail, and Shubunkin are the goldfish recommended for beginning aquarists.

• Common – This is the goldfish you see being given away at county fairs. It is also the fish that most of the other breeds of goldfish were bred from. Common goldfish come in a variety of colors including red, orange/gold, white, black and yellow or 'lemon' goldfish and are a very plain looking goldfish.

• Ryukin – Is a beautiful goldfish with a long, flowing tail almost twice as long as their body. They have a pointed head and a pronounced hump behind the head. They come in white, calico, deep-red, and red and white combined.

This breed of goldfish can reach up to 8 inches long so keep this in mind when choosing your goldfish. This is a hardy beautiful and hardy breed but is very aggressive. Only put it in a tank with other Ryukins.

• Comets – These fish were developed in the United States. They have a long tail that is deeply forked and a skinny body.

Comets can be yellow, orange, red, red-and-white and can grow up to 12 inches long. These fish tend to be more lively and playful than the other goldfish breeds and dart around the aquarium at fast speeds making you wonder if they got their name from their appearance or their behavior.

• Fantails – Has a split or double tail fin and a fat egg-shaped body. These are very pretty goldfish and are often bred for show. Fantails only grow to about six inches but come in a variety of colors.

• Veiltails are beautiful goldfish. They have long flowing tail fins that can make up for half their body length of six inches. Because they are so pretty, they are very popular. They are a hardy fish, but you must be careful of your tank setup so their tails don’t get caught on tank décor and tear their pretty fins.

• Shubunkins – Shubunkins are one of the single-tailed varieties of goldfish. They are typically calico colored with a mixture of red, orange yellow, blue and violet, with some sprinkling of black spots. This breed is very popular for outdoor ponds.

• Black Moors – The black moor is a telescope-eyed breed of goldfish. Telescope-eyed means that their eyes protrude. In Japan, they are also referred to as popeye, telescope, kuro demekin or dragon-eye in China.

They are usually all black but can change to having a rust-colored belly and orange splotches. They have protruding eyes, and can reach up to 10 inches. One of the reasons Black Moors are so popular is because they are black and not the standard gold of goldfish.

Black Moors are also very hardy, but they can't tolerate a wide range of water temperature like other goldfish breeds.

• Lionheads – These fish have a large hood that is a bumpy growth on their heads. It resembles a lion's mane so that is how they were named. Like the Bubble-eye, don't have a dorsal fin but have a double caudal fin. Lionheads can grow up to six inches and you can find them in a wide variety of colors.

• Bubble-eyes – Very odd-looking goldfish with eyes that point straight up and large bubbles or fluid-filled sacs underneath their eyes. They are also unusual because they don’t have a dorsal fin and don’t swim well.

These fish become very tame and aren’t at a disadvantage because of the sacs. If you choose this breed of goldfish, you will need to keep them in a tank that doesn’t have sharp objects and also keep them away from more aggressive or active fish.

Hardiness

Goldfish aren’t as fragile as many other fish and thrive with very little care. Of course, you wouldn't want to neglect your fish, but goldfish just aren’t as fussy as other fish. One of the main reasons goldfish became the most popular fish is because they are so easy to keep as pets.

Goldfish can be kept in a variety of conditions from indoor aquariums to outside ponds and they can tolerate a wide range of water temperature. If well-cared for, Goldfish can live 15 to 25 years.

As you can see, there are not only many reasons to stock your aquarium with goldfish, and many varieties of goldfish to choose from. By choosing the right fish for your tank, you could have beautiful goldfish for many years to come.

Jason Ladock

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