It's been widely known, and amusingly observed, one of the most honored traditions in Japan, is dressing up your fish for beauty contests. This means of course the tradition of the Koi. The word itself, un-creatively, just means "carp" in Japanese. But that doesn't mean you can look at the species "menu" on the left and dream of them wrapped in seaweed. The koi has had the fortune of being transformed from an "ugly duckling" of the fish world to become beauty queens supreme of the cold waters. Intense interest in koi breeding happened only within the 20th century.
Koi have more than looks though. They are believed to be able to form social bonds with their owners. In fact, many owners relay stories in which their koi know when they're coming and even patiently eating food pellets out of their hands. It is this connection in addition to its beauty that makes the koi royalty amongst all other "domesticated" fish.
The care and breeding of koi can vary and be as arduous as any other highly-involved hobby. Because koi have developed certain levels of acceptable beauty, it often not surprising though very disheartening to know that many (thousands) of offspring are culled because they lack color or markings. Koi are very active and athletic fish, so they do best in man-made environments. Released into the wild they tend to be the loud, noisy, unruly post-grads in the water world's upper east side. But koi are hardy, typical life spans go into decades. This makes them far more attractive than typical pond fish.
The size, color, and personality of the koi has endeared itself to almost everyone who's ever seen one. It's only fitting that we started beauty contests for fish, so we should extend that banner to more animals out in the ocean in a manner that's more appreciative.
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