What are the color characteristics of the Five-Color Shusui koi?

The Five-Color Shusui is a koi produced by crossing the Shusui koi with the Five-Color koi. Since the Shusui koi and the Five-Color koi are themselves hybrid varieties, the Five-Color Shusui possesses even more shifting colors.

The Five-Color koi is a variety derived from the Five-Color Asagi. The "five colors" here mainly refers to its jumbled overlapping colors, not that it has only five colors.

⟧ The Five-Color Shusui, meanwhile, blends the most striking features of the Five-Color and Shusui koi: its whole body gleams with a metallic luster, its back bears a row of distinctive large scales while the rest of the body is unscaled, and likewise the blue on its back and the red patterns on its lower belly shine in turn. Its body displays a dazzling array of white, red, black, blue and indigo.

1. Body shape: The fish's back should be straight, the body balanced left and right, the swimming posture steady and upright, and the body robust and powerful. The shape of the cheeks and the position of the mouth should be well-proportioned, without crookedness, full at both ends and not sunken; all fins should be symmetrical and complete, and movement should be agile.

2. Color: When selecting, those that are vivid, brilliant, deeply colored, neatly edged and dazzling are considered top grade.

3. Timing: Selection begins at about 50 days after hatching.

In addition, as a German-system koi, the Five-Color Shusui often also develops individually existing large scales between the row of scales on its back and the row on the sides of its belly; these are known as superfluous scales, and such superfluous scales will affect the ornamental value of the Five-Color Shusui.