Red Color Development In Koi Fish

Red Color or Hi in Koi Fish make koi more beautiful and wonderful. But the depth of red color make one koi fish different with other. Depth of red color depend on genetict, environment and food. Red color in koi also depend in the age of koi fish. Hi (red color) in young koi may be not yet depth (orange) but tend to dark in the age.Koi development can be a confusing topic particularly for folks just getting into the koi hobby. One of the reasons for this is that there are no "exacts" in koi. Another reason is a koi's colors can be easily changed by environment and diet.



It is simply immature orange based Hi. It is probably high quality Hi, but it is not ready to be red yet. Most, or at least many, young koi for sale by dealers are "colored up" or fed large amounts of color enhancing food, or forced into finishing early, to enhance the red. It is simple koi business.

There are some young koi that have a purple based Hi that looks deep red even in very young koi, but in the experience purple based Hi does not last long. It tends to bleed around the edges where red meets white as the koi grows. Orange based Hi is high quality "elegant" Hi. It thickens and becomes red slowly over time, and it stays. Well finished orange based Hi on a jumbo koi is an incredibly beautiful thing to see.

Koi color development takes a back seat to growth, and a koi's growth takes a back seat to egg production. So, if a koi is growing quickly, as in a mud pond, or in a large sparsely populated koi pond, the koi's colors will be "down". The Hi will look thin and can be perceived as of low quality.

Young koi should not be fed food high in color enhancers as they are growing because as they are developing we really need to know what stage of development they are in. When a person buys a "colored-up" fish with little information about the koi's history they have no idea whether the koi is finished, or near finished.

It may not be your intention to buy a koi that is finished at only 12 inches long. Knowing the koi's history, true age, and stage of Hi development will prevent this from happening, or it can help you choose a high quality small koi that will stay small, if that is your desire. If a koi's colors are "finished" at an early age the koi should be kept small to maintain this beauty.


Source:
http://www.lotuslandkoifarm.com/Articles/The_Basics_of_Hi/the_basics_of_hi.html