Are you looking for new carps (Cyprinus carpio) for your pond? Then you should definitely consider the Butterfly Koi. Read in this article the most important information on this beautiful Koi.

Appearance: What does a Butterfly Koi look like?

As the name states, the elegant and colourful Butterfly Koi has a special characteristic. Its fins are almost double the size of those of other Koi species. Butterfly Kois can reach an impressive size of up to 60 centimetres.

There are no limits to the imagination in terms of colouring, so breeders offer attractive Kois in all kinds of colours. You can find monotone or multicoloured Kois. Beautiful combinations of blue, yellow, red and white are possible.

Silver or gold shiny metallic Kois are particularly popular. Jet black Kois are also well-known and considered especially elegant.

Depending on their appearance, specialists differentiate between different varieties. Some of these are called Butterfly Kohakus, Butterfly Yamabukis, Butterfly Shiro-Utsuris, Butterfly Tanchos or Butterfly Sankes.

Character: Lone wolves or pack animals?

Like a classic Koi, the Butterfly Koi is a sociable fish. It doesn’t mind whether its friends belong to the same Koi species or a different one.

Care: What you have to pay attention to with housing

Just throwing a Koi into a pond without thinking isn’t enough! In order for your Koi to stay healthy, you have to pay attention to the following factors regarding the set-up and maintenance of a garden pond:

  1. Aeration

Fish need oxygen too despite living underwater. To enable this, you need to connect an aeration system to the garden pond that allows an oxygen content of 6 to 8 milligrams per litre. There are special measuring devices available to continually monitor levels.

  1. Stock density

Kois are pack animals and need to be close to other Kois. However, too many pond fish can worsen the quality of the water. In order to prevent this, one of the many rules of thumb is one medium-sized Koi (around 60 to 80cm in size) per cubic metre of water. Of course there are other factors in play too, which vary from pond to pond.

  1. Water circulation

You have to regularly recirculate the water so that it remains of good quality. You need a filter that filters the water around once per hour. You should occasionally maintain and clean the filter so that it doesn’t get clogged in the long term.

  1. Consistent temperature

Animals like Kois with alternating temperatures adapt their body temperature to the external temperature, so you have to make sure that the temperature of the water remains as consistent as possible. Too many fluctuations affect the metabolism of your fish. They consume a very high amount of energy and suffer from great stress, which can make them sick in the long term.

Conclusion: Are Butterfly Kois right for me?

Like its swimming companions, the Butterfly Koi is also ideally suited to your garden pond at home. sIf you bear in mind the usual hygiene rules, which are essential for good water quality and the survival of the fish, you can enjoy these wonderful animals for a long time!

Source: Zooplus