Goldfish123

Life History and Behavior

In the wild, goldfish live in lakes and other slow-moving, freshwater bodies of water. In captivity, they thrive in aquariums and garden ponds. They eat plants, insects, and crustaceans in their native habitats while experts suggest a high carbohydrate diet in captivity. Goldfish will swim together to some extent but do not mind being alone in aquariums. Goldfish should only a share a man-made habitat with other goldfish. Being peaceful fish, goldfish of different sizes will live happily together as long as all fish are equally able to feed. Goldfish can live to be more than 10 years old with some individuals passing the age of 40.

Human Interaction

The Chinese have been breeding goldfish for over 1000 years, and the fish has been introduced all over the world. Goldfish arrived in the United States in the 1800's and quickly became popular as ornamental fish and pets. Goldfish are very smart and have excellent eyesight and hearing. They can recognize the person or people who feed them by sight and sound. Touching goldfish is not recommended as their protective coating may be damaged leading to infection. Goldfish are edible but rarely eaten except by crazy college students from past generations. In some areas in the world, goldfish have been introduced into stagnant waters to reduce the number of mosquitos. However, goldfish have a tendancy to drive out native fish so they have become a ecological problem in some countries.