Understanding the saltiness – or salinity – of our world's water tells us about the life within it.
Today's goldfish are the product of a long "fish-story." Their ancestors were reared as food fish in ancient China. During the Jin dynasty (265–420), it was noted that some of normally gray or silver carp had red, orange or yellow color mutations.
According to a New York Times article from November 1894, "The business of distributing free goldfish to the people of the District of Columbia has become such a tax on the (US) Fish Commission that it appears they must choose between running a goldfish bureau for Washington exclusively and conducting the legitimate work of the bureau."
Sensitive Subjects
Goldfish are still the most popular pet fish in the US. The oldest goldfish on record lived over 40 years! The main reason why so many goldfish die young is that they aren’t kept in the proper conditions. Turns out, these "easy care" pets can be sensitive to changes in temperature, light, and salinity.
Goldfish produce pigments in response to light. This is similar to how human skin becomes tanned in the sun. But too much light can be a problem. Aquarium lights should not be on for more than 12 hours a day, or goldfish may not get enough rest. If it isn’t dark enough for them to sleep, they may hide in plants to seek out darkness.
Please Pass the Salt
Goldfish are "stenohaline": they cannot tolerate a wide fluctuation in the salinity of water. The term is derived from the words "steno" (narrow) and "haline" (salt).
Did you know that a group of goldfish is known as a "troubling"?
Speaking of troubling, goldfish released to the wild can consume everything from plants to aquatic insects, small snails and crustaceans. Their rooting and foraging behavior can reduce water clarity, affecting vegetation. Goldfish may displace or outcompete native species for food and introduce disease to native fish. Wild goldfish can successfully hybridize with common carp, another invasive fish species in the US.
In 1969, Ralph Ryback published the results of experiments on how different kinds of alcohol affected goldfishes’ ability to learn. Turns out that goldfish swimming in a bourbon solution are more impaired than those splashing around in vodka.
Salt is essential. Circulating through our bodies and our seas, it impacts the health of organisms and our planet.
NASA observes salinity from space. Monitoring sea surface salinity patterns provides important clues about changes in our environment.
A narrated world tour of salinity patterns based on data from NASA's first salinity-sensing satellite, Aquarius/SAC-D.
Links and Other Information
- Goldfish [Wikipedia]
- Goldfish from Fish Swimming Amid Falling Flowers c.1080–1120 [Liu Cai, Wikipedia]
- Goldfish [New World Encyclopedia]
- Mid 19th Century glass freshwater aquarium, containing Vallisneria spiralis, goldfish, roach, and minnow [Shirley Hibbard, Wikipedia]
- View of Washington City - 1871 [E. Sachse & Co., Wikipedia]
- TWENTY THOUSAND GOLDFISH A YEAR; Government's Free Gift to Residents of the District of Columbia [New York Times]
- Temperature tolerance in the goldfish, Carassius auratus [For and Beitinger, 2005]
- Will a Goldfish Turn White If Left in the Dark? [ThoughtCo.]
- Facts About Goldfish [Kali Wyrosdic, PetMD]
- Do Goldfish Sleep? [Laurie Hess, PetMD]
- What is a Stenohaline Organism? [Worldatlas]
- Direct Salt Addition Calculator [Hamzas Reef]
- Ryukin Goldfish Just Hatched [Michelle Jo, Wikipedia]
- Wild Goldfish [Texas Invasive Species Institute]
- Effect of Ethanol, Bourbon and Various Ethanol Levels on Y-maze Learning in the Goldfish [Ryback, 1969]
- How to Break Up with Your Goldfish [US Fish & Wildlife Service]
- Invasion USA: Asian Carp Invaders Have Taken the Mississippi, Are the Great Lakes Next? [Scientific American]
- Why You Should Never Release Your Pet Goldfish into the Wild [Business Insider]
- NASA Aquarius Sea Surface Salinity Tour [NASA Scientific Visualization Studio]
- Other images used under 123rf License Agreement [ID 16424651, 95622168, 74350577, 68602294, 118899048, 43374548, 10844338, 74060743, 9270575, 29785324, 10620962, 64335977]