You may think you know what a goldfish is but hold on to your hat… knowing which fish is which is no simple task!
Everybody knows what a goldfish is, right? After all, we’ve all read “The Cat in the Hat” by Dr. Seuss, and watched the wild ride of that poor goldfish in a bowl, and just about everybody has kept a goldfish at one time or other!
Fish keepers and even people who aren’t fish keepers know what goldfish are; at least they think they do. So what’s all the fuss? A goldfish is simply a goldfish right?
Goldfish are such a common fish, and they are seen in every pet store. It may have been true that a goldfish was simply a goldfish if humans had not been thrown into the mix. But when a man sees a lump of clay or anything else in his surroundings, human nature takes over. Man simply has to mold that clay into a beautiful creation, and so it has been with the development of goldfish.
Step into your local pet store and tell them you want to get a goldfish. They will happily take you over to their coldwater system and show you their fine selection. You will see fish that look just like the common goldfish, but you may also see all sorts of different fish. And that’s where the goldfish identity crisis begins!
Set aside that cute Dr. Seuss book and step into the world of fancy goldfish. You’ll quickly see that there is nothing simple about the goldfish. There are over 125 different varieties, each with it’s identifying features.
Here’s a look at the complexities of the goldfish:
Body: Goldfish come in all sorts of shapes (and sizes).
There are skinny goldfish… |  Shubunkin Goldfish |
But also goldfish that are so fat they may even look like golf balls… |  Pearlscale Goldfish |
And some goldfish will have highly arched backs… |  Ranchu Goldfish |
Head: Although goldfish can have normal heads, they can also be very abnormal.
Some goldfish have lumpy heads… |  Oranda Goldfish |
And then there are those with lumpy heads AND lumpy cheeks… |  Lionhead Goldfish |
Or how about a goldfish with bushy eyebrows? |  Pom Pom Goldfish |
Eyes: Many have normal eyes, but some goldfish will have very funny eyes.
Some goldfish have bubble eyes.. |  Bubble Eye Goldfish |
Or telescope eyes… |  Telescope Goldfish |
And even eyes that gaze at the stars… |  Celestial Eye Goldfish |
Fins: Goldfish may have normal fins, but there’s also some very interesting fins.
Goldfish elegance shows its stuff with beautiful long flowing fins… |  Fantail Goldfish |
Or full flowery fins… |  Veiltail Goldfish |
But sometimes they are missing a fin, those known as dorsal less goldfish… |  Lionhead Goldfish |
Color: You would think the color of goldfish would be, well gold.
Now this is a typical goldfish!… |  Common Goldfish |
But some goldfish are all black… |  Black Moor Goldfish |
Or they can have a multitude of colors… |  Ryukin Goldfish |
And some will even look like a panda… |  Panda Moor Goldfish |
So yes, there are those simple goldfish that we all know and love, but with an expanded idea of what a goldfish can be… we can bring the goldfish identity crisis to an end!
Clarice Brough is a team member at Animal-World and has contributed many articles and write-ups.