![]() ![]() Low oxygen results in stress, illness and death – some hypoxic goldfish even ‘drown’ themselves by surfacing to gasp for oxygen in the open air.įish are understandably quite particular with the water they spend their lives in, and goldfish are no exception. This results in reduced oxygen levels in the water. Large bodies of water have a large surface area, but bowls have a small surface area, particularly because they are usually narrower at the top with a large volume of water beneath where the bowl bulges outward. The amount of oxygen entering the water is dependent on the surface area of the water. The oxygen dissolves and mixes with the water on the surface and diffuses throughout the body of water. Oxygen in water mainly comes from the atmosphere. It is critical that the water has sufficient oxygen in it to allow the fish to survive. The gills allow the exchange of waste carbon dioxide with fresh oxygen from the water (similar to lungs in land animals). It is likely that guests mistook the temporary bowls as the fishes’ actual habitats, and the idea spread.īut why are bowls so bad for goldfish? Low Oxygenįish get oxygen into their body by sucking water into their mouths and over their gills. After the guests had been wowed by the fancy fish and gone home, the fish were returned to their ponds. Rich Chinese goldfish owners kept their goldfish in outdoor ponds but moved them inside into temporary display vessels to show off to house guests. Why is this? Originsīefore we get into that, the reason why goldfish are commonly kept in bowls is probably down to a misunderstanding. Unfortunately, despite traditions, experts generally agree that most goldfish bowls are unsuitable for goldfish – keeping goldfish in one can be considered inhumane. Sadly, many do not live this long in captivity.įurther selective breeding has led to hundreds of varieties of goldfish, many not even gold in colour! Goldfish can live for up to 15 years, though have been known to live to almost 30. Goldfish can learn to be hand fed, recognise colours or even perform tricks. The world record holder was almost half a metre in length! Despite the old saying, goldfish have memories that last at least 3 months and are quite intelligent for fish. However, they can reach 15-30cm long or more if they are moved to larger tanks or fishponds. Goldfish are a freshwater fish that are usually a few centimetres long. First to rich Westerners and then to everyday folk as they became more widely available. From China, they spread around the world. In Imperial China, the gold colour was considered a symbol of wealth and royalty it was sometimes even illegal for commoners to keep goldfish with gold or yellow scales. These colourful carp were bred together to make the mutation more common resulting in a new domesticated variety with golden scales. The goldfish’s bright orange and yellow scales are thought to be a mutation of the normal silver scales found in carp. ![]()
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