
There is much debate about the tank size and shape that’s required for Tosakin goldfish.
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In this part of our guide, you can learn how to care for the enigmatic Tosakin goldfish. Tosakin goldfish are incredibly fragile fish that are prone to many health problems, largely caused by too much inbreeding.įor that reason, we don’t recommend this goldfish variety for beginners. Is The Tosakin Goldfish Suitable For Beginners? Rarer colors will command a much higher price than that. However, you can sometimes find Tosakins for sale online, starting at around $60 for a standard red-and-white example. Price And AvailabilityĪs previously mentioned, Tosakin goldfish are extremely hard to find, so it’s highly unlikely that you’ll find one of these beautiful fish in your local fish store. Colors And PatternsĬompared with other species of goldfish, the Tosakin has a somewhat limited range of colors and patterns to offer the collector, including:Īny Tosakin that emerge with silver-white or yellow coloration on their caudal fins are immediately designated National treasures. Tosakin goldfish can grow to around 6 inches in length. The tail’s inner edges are webbed, while the outer lobes are twisted toward the head and upturned, giving the impression that the tail has been inverted. The exception to that is the tail, which is sometimes described as a cherry blossom or triple lobe tail.
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These goldfish have a full dorsal fin and the other fins are also classed as intact. Rather like the Butterfly goldfish varieties, Tosakin goldfish are bred to be viewed from above, an aspect that best shows off the fish’s amazing, circular tail. Tosakin goldfish are fragile, inbred creatures that have a relatively short lifespan of around ten years. Incredibly, it’s thought that all the world’s surviving Tosakin goldfish are descended from those WW2 survivors! It’s also claimed by some enthusiasts that the Tosakin was originally created by breeding a Ryukin with an Osaka Ranchu, another incredibly rare breed that’s thought to be almost extinct. Today, the fish are also known as Peacock Tail, Curly Tail, or Queen of the Goldfish in Japan, with Ranchus being the King. That discovery saved the breed, leading to the Japanese government declaring the Tosakins a National treasure of the Kochi Prefecture. Two of the fish were a breeding pair, and the remainder were around four years old. Tamura traded a bottle of sweet potato vodka for the Tosakins! With cash in the country now worthless, Mr. Hiroe Tamura, a Japanese breeder, found six of the fish in a restaurant. The beautiful Tosakin was almost lost forever, thanks to a sequence of events that took place in the mid-1900s.įollowing the heavy bombing of the region in World War II, an earthquake and tsunami devastated the area, causing many people to believe that the Tosakin had gone extinct. The first Tosakin goldfish was recorded in Japan in 1845 in Tosa, now known as the Kochi Prefecture, becoming established in the Meiji period from 1868 to 1912.

The fish are characterized by their flamboyant, undivided tails that fan out, extending from gill to gill when viewed from above. In fact, hardly anyone keeps or breeds these fish outside of Japan, where the variety originates. Very few people have heard of the Tosakin goldfish. Over many years, many different shapes, colors, and patterns of goldfish were developed by enthusiastic breeders, and by the 1800s, the fish were being traded across Asia, Europe, and the US as ornamental pond fish.

Instead of consigning the fish to the pot, the fishkeeper removed those “goldfish” and kept them as decorative pets. One day, a fishkeeper spotted a few brightly colored orange carp mixed with the drab, gray ones. 9 Final Thoughts Origins Of The Tosakin GoldfishĪll modern goldfish breeds originate from a species of wild Prussian carp that was kept and raised in ponds as a food fish.Ĭarassius auratus were first bred in the early 1700s in China.
