Fish Stereotypes - Goldfishes - 3 - Page 1

Clever, good pets

The goldfish is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. It was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is one of the most commonly kept aquarium fish. It was first domesticated in China more than a thousand years ago, and several distinct breeds have since been developed. Goldfish breeds vary greatly in size, body shape, fin configuration and coloration (various combinations of white, yellow, orange, red, brown, and black are known).

Goldfish have a memory-span of at least three months and can distinguish between different shapes, colors and sounds. By using positive reinforcement, goldfish can be trained to recognize and to react to light signals of different colors or to perform tricks. Fish respond to certain colors most evidently in relation to feeding. Fish learn to anticipate feedings provided they occur at around the same time every day.