Goldfish are ultimately very little understood and truly known to the public. Zoom in on this animal, full of surprises.
As a child, would you have loved to have a goldfish? Or maybe you have already had one, during a fair or after taking a ride in a pet Shop ? Perhaps you have this little aquatic animal in your apartment at this very moment? It doesn’t matter if you are the proud owner of a goldfish or have never had one, this article will teach you some truly amazing things about these little creatures. Memory that only lasts two seconds, fish not growing and who does not live long… Here are 5 stereotypes on the goldfish !
A goldfish can measure up to 40 cm: exit the small bowl!
So yes, here is a first received idea that should be debunked. The goldfish is about 10cm when you pick it up from the pet store. But… Did you know that a goldfish can easily 20 cm long, even 30 cm. Note that the largest specimen observed (there are certainly larger ones that have never been seen) was still 40 cm long!
Yes, know that if your goldfish does not grow as much, it is caused by the lack of room to develop. So if you raise it in a aquarium too small, the latter will keep a small size. don’t even talk of the famous jar in which many children hold their goldfish in captivity… This bed is far too small for this animal which, as a result, will not be able to develop.
By its other name, golden cruciangoldfish is a Cyprinidi.e. a fish ofpure water. Like many fish that live in stagnant waters, the latter essentially lives in shoals. This is also one of the reasons why it needs space.
Very sociableit is also not recommended to raise a goldfish alone in an aquarium… However, this is how they are, most of the time, raised with us, the individuals. Insectivorous and detritivorousthis fish pollutes enormously in an aquarium, hence the interest of installing it in a very large tank in captivity: to give it a filter pump of competition! But also, to raise it to many. Many followers of these fish like to keep them in outdoor poolsto several, and it is certainly one of the most natural ways to let them develop freely.
Goldfish can live up to 30 years, if I swear
In addition to becoming relatively large, goldfish can live a very long time. Indeed, raised in small aquariums without filters and alone, it certainly does not help it to stay alive for long. But, with good living conditions, with enough room to growfood, good filtration and what socialize, goldfish can live a very long time. Even longer than a dog! Indeed, goldfish can even live to be 30 ! Just that. Moreover, several specimens have already reached the age of 50. A record which is ultimately not so rare for this animal.
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“Goldfish have no memory”: this is a received idea
So no, your goldfish is not Dory in “Nemo”. Moreover, even dory doesn’t have a two-second memory. This little cartoon fish is suffering from a pathology. In reality, NO fish has a short memory. Goldfish are no exception to this rule. The received idea that says that the goldfish goes around its bowl then forgets to finally go around in circles tirelessly is simply false. Fish, like most aquatic animals, only have room for one thought at a time in their brain. This is true. On the other hand, no, they do not forget where they have been.
Furthermore, goldfish are very smart. Able to socialize with other fish, but also with humans (in its own way, cases of tamed goldfish returning to their masters, even released into the wild, have already seen each other), this fish learns throughout life, like a cat does. If in a jar you have the impression that it is stupid and that it goes around in circles, it may (definitely) be because it does not have a large enough living space and that it does not ‘has no decorations or hiding places. He quickly made the rounds and inevitably he around in circles. Quite simply.
There are many varieties of goldfish
Now you know if fish drink water, but did you know that some fish born in captivity don’t have the same color in nature? First Thing You Definitely Didn’t Know But Goldfish are not… red. Indeed, in the wild, the famous goldfish is actually gray (like prawns which, once cooked, turn pink). But, the red color of this fish is not unnatural.
In fact, it is a evolution which has been made over hundreds of years, because of its breeding in captivity notably. Thus, there are goldfish that are red in nature, if their ancestors were released after being born in captivity. But also, it can also be another variety of goldfishbecause yes, there are others in addition to the one we know in pet shops.
- The common goldfish we know. In nature, it is gray, but can also be red, black, white, orange or yellow. The same goes for captivity, even if gray is more rare because less requested by customers.
- The Black Moor.
- There is also Bubble Eyes.
- The celestial.
- The comet.
- Also, the fan tail.
- The Lion’s Head.
- And there are so many more!
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These animals are real predators outside captivity
In addition to being made for live in benches, goldfish are also very large predators. Yes, we know, they don’t look like that. But put a camera on your fish’s head in its (large, please) pool, and you’ll see that its behavior is aggressive when he doesn’t want to. In the wild, but it also happens in ponds, in captivity (if you don’t feed them properly), goldfish can especially eat the eggs of other fish.
opportunists, these fish are also very attached to their food and will not hesitate to fight to keep all the food for themselves. But, this kind of behavior only happens if the fish is poorly fed. Generally, in captivitythe latter remains very peaceful.