CKP - Koi Varieties

est. 1995

koi varieties: gosanke

What makes koi keeping so exciting is the fact the fish come in a great variety of colours which provide endless combinations of colour arrangements

There are 13 recognized classes, based on a set of different characteristics including colour, pattern and scale type. Unique koi with new colour and pattern combinations arise from time to time

Of course everyone has their favourite, but Go-Sanke are the most popular. Kohaku, Showa and Sanke are the 3 varieties that comprise this group and dominant most ponds

kiwa
This picture illustrates Maruzome Kiwa. That is when the edge of the red (beni) follows the scales and takes their circular shape (grapes)

kohaku As they say, koi keeping begins and ends with kohaku

Sandan Kohaku	Yodan Kohaku	Maruten Kohaku
This koi has 3 distinct patterns of red so it is a 3 step kohaku. Sandan means "3". This is a very nice fish. Classic type of pattern, with an incredible tail tube and conformation	This 4 step koi has a more interesting pattern, particularly the head. The white cloudiness that appealers on the head and shoulder looks like a costia infection	The maruten designation for this kohaku comes from the round beni located on the head. This is a very full pattern with a lot to look at, very nice tail stop

Showa sanke/Sanshoku Black fish with accents of red and white. Showa take a lot of time to develop and getting 3 colours to peak at the same time on any fish is a challenge

showa sanke	tancho gin rin showa	kindai showa sanke	This showa has very nice motoguro (black pec fin joints). It also look interesting on the head with the sumi starting to come through to form a nice menware/hachiware pattern
This is a very nice showa. Clean pattern without flecks of sumi scattered about with a nice underlying kohaku pattern. The sumi should join on the head. It could use more should sumi however	This is a very pretty fish and one you don't see everyday. Tancho Showa feature beni only on the head and this beautiful fish also has Gin Rin scaling. The fish literally shines with the skin quality and great white base	This new style type of showa features less sumi (black) than the typical older style of showa. This is a full bodied fish making the fins look a little undersized

Taisho Sanke/Sanshoku These fish are sometimes confused with showa by the novice enthusiast. They have less black or sumi than showa, with no sumi appearing on the head. They also have stripes of sumi on their pec fins (Tejima) as opposed to the all black or black jointed pec fins (motogoro) of the showa

Taisho Sanke	doitsu sanke	gin rin taisho sanke	This group photo illustrates how different fish with 3 colours can appear. Sanke should have good underlying kohaku patterns, with a nice accent of sumi on the shoulder. Black should not appear below the lateral line and of course, confirmation is everything
Sanke have a beautiful elegance many people love. The sumi can be placed on the white skin (Tsubo Sumi) or it can appear on the beni as Kasane Sumi	The Doistu Sanke (right) is a scaleless fish. This makes for exceptionally sharp edging (kiwa) of the colours which is quite attractive	This is an exceptional fish that almost looks to perfect to be real. The sumi steps are placed like stepping stones in a amazing arrangement

Last Modified : April 4, 2009
Created January 2009