When buying koi, of course one of the factors that makes you interested is because of the color of the koi. Do you know how the color of koi fish is formed? Read until the end, okay :). The color of koi fish can arise due to the pigmentation process in the koi epidermis tissue. Koi color is greatly influenced by genetic factors (heredity). Takeo Kuroki said that 70% of koi color is determined by the genetic quality of the fish itself, 20% by water quality and 10% other factors (light and food). Pigment is a substance that gives a certain color quality to fish so that it appears to the eye that the fish has color. The main function of pigment in koi naturally is to provide a certain color so that the koi can appear more beautiful.
The presence of pigment cells is in the koi scales and the skin under the scales. Pigments located on the scales will produce a more concentrated/sharp color. While under the scales the color produced will appear less clear. Koi have special cells as pigment producers, namely iridocytes and chromatophores. Iridocytes consist of leukophores and guanophores which are mirror cells and will only reflect colors from outside the body that enter. While chromatophores are pigment cells that contain color and consist of 5 basic color categories, namely black (melanophores), red (erythrophores), yellow or orange (xanthophores), shiny or mirror cells (iridophores) and white (leukophores or guanophores). The level of pigment cell concentration will affect the quality of the koi color. Melanophore cells contain the pigment melanin which is the pigment cell that plays the most important role in almost all colors. The concentration of melanin will darken or brighten the color of the koi. If the number of pigment cells that make up the color in the koi changes, the brightness level of the fish’s color will also change. The higher the intensity of the pigment cells, the sharper the koi color will be, conversely, if the density of the pigment cells decreases, the color of the fish will fade.
There are two types of pigments, namely carotene (functions to form orange, yellow and red colors) and melanin (functions to produce brown to black colors on the scales and surface of the koi skin). Pigmentation in koi is greatly influenced by integument cells that contain dyes (chromatophores). These chromatophores are what actually give color to the dermis layer. Pigmentation occurs in the skin as protection against high light intensity, maintaining the source of pigment and hardening the dermis. Pigmentation in the body of the fish is caused by the presence of chromium schemas that cause physical configuration and biochrome which is the carrier of pigment produced by chromatophores.
Biochrome Pigmentation produces:
The appearance of color in koi is an expression of the movement and spread or distribution of pigment granules (chromatophores) found in the dermis layer of the skin or under and outside the scales. The process of forming this chromatophore color can spread to all cells or accumulate at one point. If the chromatophores spread to all cells, the color display will be clearly visible, while if the chromatophores accumulate at one point, the resulting color will look faded. Increasing the number of chromatophores can be done by providing additional pigments in the feed to maximize color absorption. Melanin pigments can work optimally with the help of protein. Carotenoid pigments can work optimally with the help of fat to increase yellow to reddish colors. Therefore, feed nutrition is very necessary to maintain koi patterns. The mechanism of movement of color pigment cell granules in koi is controlled by certain hormones, and also depends on the environmental conditions of the fish. Koi can produce different koi color qualities due to several factors, including genetics, water quality, feed nutrition, and sunlight intensity. As for the appearance or basic color of fish, in addition to genetic influences, it also depends on the density of the chromatophore position in the skin. The denser it is, the sharper the color will appear. The position of the chromatophore determines the quality of the fish’s color. Different chromatophore positions on the thin skin surface will make the koi’s color unstable, as the koi ages the color will easily change.
So for those who like the process of caring for koi from small to adult. Enjoy the process of changing the color and learn what to do to bring out the desired color in your koi. Because each treatment to bring out the black color or whiten the fish or even make the koi redder, all require different treatments depending on the needs.
