10 x Butterfly Koi Carp Cyprinus Carpio

10 x Butterfly Koi Carp Cyprinus Carpio

Butterfly koi float through your pond like graceful dragons, trailing a beautiful shadow of long fins behind them. Their unique look make them a joy for pond owners who want to add something a little different to their backyards.

At a Glance: Butterfly Koi

• Butterfly koi are a cross between traditional koi and long-finned carp
• Butterfly koi have longer fins and skinnier bodies than traditional koi
• Butterfly koi require the same care and have most of the same characteristics as regular koi

Butterfly koi are not technically koi according to strict Japanese definitions of the word, but rather a cross between long-finned Indonesian carp and traditional koi (which are also in the carp family). For the casual koi keeper, though, they are koi in all the ways that count: size, longevity, behaviour, colouring, diet and general appearance.

Where butterfly koi differ from regular koi are their fins. Unlike traditional koi, which have genes that tell their fins to stop growing at a certain point, butterfly koi fins keep getting longer throughout their lifetimes. The result is the long, flowing fins that some pond owners love. Butterfly koi’s bodies also tend to be slightly more slender than traditional koi’s, and their barbels – the whisker-type growths on their faces – grow slightly longer.