maria hayward
DAVE WOLFENDEN Nutrition and Feeding
Dave Wolfenden looks at how to ensure your koi are fed correctly, and therefore getting the good nutrition they need…
About the author: Part one
Dave Wolfenden started his career with an honours degree in Zoology and Botany at Reading University. After a further year within the aquatics industry he became a lecturer in Animal Management at Merrist Wood College in Surrey, specialising in managing and tutoring on higher education courses. Now a lecturer at Reaseheath College, Dave also acts as a Tetra Consultant for the Tetra Information Centre.
proportion of the money spent within the hobby itself. So what are the nutritional requirements of nishikigoi, and how can the pond keeper ensure that their prized fish are adequately fed? Well, our knowledge of the feeding
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requirements of koi is actually fairly extensive. There’s a lot of science behind this – thanks in no small part to the commercial culture of common carp (Cyprinus carpio – the same species as koi) for human consumption.
when to feed and
how much Koi are, in common with most fish,
ike the old saying goes, ‘you are what you eat’. The subject of koi nutrition is vast, and there’s no doubting that koi foods make up a huge
poikilothermic ectotherms (‘poikilos’ being Greek for uncertain or varied, ‘thermic’, of course, meaning temperature, and ‘ecto’ meaning outside). This means that their body temperature assumes the same value as the ambient temperature of the pond itself (or, in reality, a fraction higher but essentially the same). This physiological aspect of the fish’s
biology has significant implications for their demand for food. As temperatures fluctuate, so does the koi’s need for food. Specifically, as temperatures drop, the biochemical processes within the cells slow down (chemical reactions tending to happen at a greater rate in higher temperatures, and conversely a slower rate in lower temperatures). This explains why food is required in greater quantities in higher temperatures – its component nutrients are needed for those crucial biochemical reactions.
Well, our knowledge of the feeding requirements of koi is actually fairly extensive
AUGUST 2010 33
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