- Joined
- Mar 20, 2011
- Messages
- 7,257
- Reaction score
- 4,819
- Location
- near Effingham, Illinois
- Hardiness Zone
- 5b
Yes, Usman, I think the main clarity problem with the koi is they keep stirring up the bottom. Otherwise the water is very clear. In my goldfish pond (3'+) I could count pebbles that have fallen down there, and can easily see a trapdoor snail, even if it's totally covered with algae and seems to blend in to the liner.
I also agree that my goldfish are friendlier, calmer, and easier to see problems with than the koi, who tend to be more flighty. I have not lost a koi in my pond since I got them in 2011 and 2012! I have, however, lost a LOT of goldfish, but think that was a chemical issue (plane spraying surrounding fields), although no real proof. Problem has not recurred. Addy, I have never had my lilies uprooted or problems with them in my koi pond. Maybe it's because I feed my koi well, and they don't have the need to scavenge, not sure. Or, perhaps there aren't any of the bugs burrowed down in the dirt that the koi would be searching for. I do, however, have lots of dragonflies, so I would think the nymphs would be an issue. And, when I tried to grow water hyacinth one year, some in each pond, some guarded in a netted floating ring, and some not, I didn't notice that the roots were eaten in the koi pond any more than the goldfish. Again, maybe there were being fed well enough, although I only feed in the morning what they will all eat within a few minutes.
Back to the white comet issue ... I looked closer at my comets/goldfish in my pond, and noticed that the ones with red eyes are actually red rings around black pupil, just like Betta suggested. I have about 7 fish that are like this, some that came that way from Pond Kid in 2013, and some that were raised from those parents. I love it! Now, someday I would like to introduce a goldfish with blue rings around their eye that I've heard about, but never seen.