Goldfish
Coldwater fish · from China
- Size
- 15 to 30cm long when fully grown
- Lives for
- 10 to 20 years or more
- Suits
- Families with room for a large tank or a pond
A plump, shining orange fish with a flowing tail and fins.
The goldfish that follows you
This page is under water. Move your pointer and your fish will swim after you. Choose a different one at the bottom, and tap the notes to open them.
01 · OldBred for a thousand years
Goldfish were bred in China from a dull, olive-brown carp more than a thousand years ago.
02 · BigIt keeps growing
A goldfish can grow as long as a ruler. A fish that stays small in a bowl is being stunted.
03 · MemoryA good memory
The three-second memory is a myth. Goldfish remember things for months and can be taught simple tricks.
04 · LidsIt sleeps with its eyes open
It has no eyelids. It rests by hovering near the bottom.
05 · Old ageForty-three years
The oldest goldfish on record, called Tish, lived to forty-three.
06 · PaleIt fades in the dark
Kept without light, a goldfish slowly loses its colour.
Open water
Bring your goldfish into the open water to play
Move your pointer into the open water and wait for your pet to come over.
Meet them all
Six pet fish
Koi carp
Pond fish · from Japan
- Size
- 60 to 90cm long
- Lives for
- 25 to 35 years or more
- Suits
- Garden pond owners, as a serious hobby
A large, torpedo-shaped carp, white with bold patches of red-orange and black, and whiskers at the corners of its mouth.
Siamese fighting fish
Tropical fish · from Thailand
- Size
- 6 to 7cm long
- Lives for
- 3 to 5 years
- Suits
- Beginners with one small heated tank
A small, jewel-coloured fish, deep blue and red, with huge flowing fins like silk.
Guppy
Tropical fish · from South America and the Caribbean
- Size
- 3 to 6cm long
- Lives for
- 2 to 3 years
- Suits
- Beginners with a small heated tank
A tiny silver fish. The male has a huge, fan-shaped tail splashed with orange, yellow, blue and black.
Neon tetra
Tropical fish · from the Amazon
- Size
- About 3cm long
- Lives for
- 5 to 8 years
- Suits
- Beginners with an established, planted tank
A tiny, slender fish with a glowing blue-green stripe along its side and a bright red tail end. They swim in a shoal.
Freshwater angelfish
Tropical fish · from the Amazon
- Size
- 15cm long and up to 25cm tall
- Lives for
- 10 years or more
- Suits
- Keepers with a tall tank and some experience
A flat, silver, disc-shaped fish with black vertical bars, tall sail-like fins and long trailing feelers.
Good to know
Six things about keeping fish
No bowls
A goldfish bowl is far too small for any fish. Bigger tanks are easier to keep healthy, not harder.
Set the tank up first
A new tank needs several weeks for helpful bacteria to grow in the filter before any fish go in.
A little and often
Change about a quarter of the water every week or two, using water treated to remove chlorine.
A pinch is plenty
More pet fish die from overfeeding than from hunger. Uneaten food rots and poisons the water.
Check who lives with whom
Coldwater and tropical fish cannot share a tank, and some fish nip or eat others.
Never release them
Pet fish let loose in ponds and rivers harm wild ones. It is against the law.
Fish and minibeasts: 1 more group
Where next?
Photo gallery
Real photos of the pets on this page. Tap one to see it bigger.
Goldfish
Koi carp
Siamese fighting fish
Guppy
Neon tetra
Freshwater angelfish
Photos are from Wikimedia Commons and are used under free licences. They have been resized, and cropped where they appear in link previews. Open a photo to see who took it.
You keep the water, the water keeps the fish
Fishkeeping is really water-keeping. Get the water right, and fish are among the most restful pets there are. Get it wrong, and nothing else matters.
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