Celestial Eye
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Celestial eye goldfish | |
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| Country of origin | |
| China, Korea and Japan | |
| Type | |
| Fantailed | |
| Breed standards | |
| BAS |
Celestial eye goldfish or choten gan[1] is a double-tailed breed of fancy goldfish that has a breed-defining pair of Telescope eyes which are turned upwards, pupils gazing skyward.[2] Celestials first appeared as a direct mutation of the Telescope goldfish in the 18th century after 600 years of selective goldfish breeding by Japanese, Chinese and Korean breeders. When the fry hatch, the eyes of young Celestials are normal but gradually protrude sideways, as in the Telescope goldfish, and then turn upwards within a period of six months.[3].
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[edit] Description
The Celestial is a relatively small variety of goldfish that has a torpedo-shaped body similar to the Bubble Eye. Like the Bubble Eye, the Celestial does not have a dorsal fin. Their paired fins are of the Fantail or Ryukin type. They are most commonly seen with metallic scales colored various shades of orange (called 'red' by fanciers), white, or red and white (pictured). Celestials with nacreous scales are known but rarely seen. Despite their limited vision and their lack of a dorsal fin, they are active and agile swimmers. They do require some special attention since, apart from sporting easily damaged upward-oriented eyes, and having limited vision, they are also sensitive to cold water temperatures. They are unable to compete with more vigorous goldfish for food. Sharp ornaments and objects in the aquarium are contraindicated. They are best kept with other limited-vision breeds (i.e the Bubble Eye) or in a tank of their own.[2][4]
[edit] Variants
The original Celestial breed, described above, is still bred and exported by Chinese and Japanese breeders and is commercially available to fanciers, though they are not as commonly stocked by aquarium shops and dealers as some other goldfish varieties. It is this 300-year old form that is described in the American standard. British fanciers prefer their Celestials to have deeper, egg-shaped bodies and shorter fins, and have selectively bred for these features as required by the British standard. In recent decades, the Chinese have crossed Celestials with several other breeds, most commonly Lionheads, Ranchus and Pompoms, producing much larger fish with short fins and very deep, blocky bodies, often with narial 'bouquets' (pompoms) and rudimentary headgrowths. These crosses tend to be less animated swimmers and can be quite sendentary, spending most of their time at or near the bottom of the aquarium. A more expansive color range can be found among these hybrids, with metallic specimens appearing in chocolate, black and various bi-colors in addition to the standard metallic colors, and nacreous fish seen in bi-color, tri-color and calico. These hybrids are not generally available commercially outside Asia but can be acquired through specialist dealers and importers. The Deme-ranchu, is identical to the Celestial in conformation save for its telescopic eyes which do not turn upward. In any spawning of Celestials, many fry will be found to mature with telescopic eyes that never turn upwards. These fish are identical to deme-ranchu. The toadhead or hama-tou in Japanese, is similar to the Celestial in having upward-turned eyes, though they are not protuberant, each supporting a small bladder-like growth beneath it.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ "Fishes in Nature and in the Aquarium" from Nutrafin News Aquatic magazine, Rolf C. Hagen (U.S.A.) Inc. and Rolf C. Hagen Corp. (Montreal, Canada), Issue #4, 2004
- ^ a b c "An Interpet Guide to Fancy Goldfish" by Dr. Chris Andrews, Interpet Publications, 2002. - ISBN 1-902389-64-6
- ^ Free Information Keeping Celestial Eye Goldfish
- ^ "Fancy Goldfish: A Complete Guide to Care and Collecting" by Dr. Erik L. Johnson, D.V.M. and Richard E. Hess, Weatherhill, Shambala Publications, Inc., 2006. - ISBN 0-8348-0448-4
- Innes, Dr William T. "The Sacred Fish of Korea," AQUARIUM HIGHLIGHTS, Innes Publishing Co. Philadelphia, 1951.
[edit] See also
- celestial goldfish
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Black moor • Bubble eye • Butterfly tail • Celestial eye • Comet • Common • Fantail • Lionchu • Lionhead • Oranda • Panda moor • Pearlscale • Pompom • Ranchu • Ryukin • Shubunkin • Telescope eye • Veiltail |
