| While you may purchase young, small koi, like | | | | temperature in a moderate zone. If you'd like to |
| other species of creatures, they will adapt their | | | | have males and females, ask for help from the |
| growth and size somewhat, to the restrictions of | | | | breeder or store in sexing your purchases. Very |
| space. Food and overall conditions in the aquarium | | | | young koi are difficult to tell apart, although young |
| will also affect their growth rate, with premium | | | | adult females tend to have a fuller, cigar type |
| food being important, and overfeeding to be | | | | shape. |
| avoided both for the health of the fish, and the | | | | Some of the more attractive varieties of koi |
| health of the tank environment. | | | | include: |
| Clean water is a must, as is good aeration. Large | | | | Kohaku- White body and red pattern down the |
| fish eat a lot of food and produce a lot of waste. | | | | back. One of the most popular varieties for koi |
| If you have a 50-gallon tank, and several fish, you | | | | hobbyists. |
| may need a filtration system whose capacity is | | | | Tashio Sanke- White body and red patterned |
| actually over 50 gallons, in order to keep the | | | | back, with black accents |
| water as clean as possible. | | | | Showa Sanke- A three colored variety, having a |
| You might like to choose from several of the | | | | black body, with white and red accents, although |
| varieties of koi, for a more interesting mix of | | | | some strains have more white |
| colors, but remember that koi in their natural | | | | Bekko, Utsuri- Body color is non-metallic black on |
| outdoor environment, tend to have more intense | | | | white, yellow or red. |
| color in cooler weather, so keep your tank | | | | |