Gold Japanese Rice Fish

The Gold Medaka is a centuries-old cultivated form of Oryzias latipes, developed in Japan alongside the Hikari (shining) and other named strains. The rich golden-amber body colour and reflective scales create a shimmering effect in even modest aquarium lighting.

Care is identical to the wild-type medaka. Gold Medaka are particularly popular for outdoor container ponds and garden tubs in Japan and are increasingly kept by western nano aquarists. They tolerate cold winters in outdoor tubs in mild climates.

Breeding is as prolific as the standard form and produces predominantly gold offspring, with occasional reversion to more translucent individuals.

Water: 10–28°C, pH 6.5–8.5, GH 4–20; extremely tolerant; suitable for indoor nano tanks and outdoor tubs. Tank: minimum 20 L, floating plants for surface shelter and egg attachment. Feeding: omnivore — micro-pellets, flake, frozen baby brine shrimp, cyclops, daphnia. Breeding: egg-carrying female attaches eggs to plants; gold trait highly heritable in this strain. Compatibility: peaceful; ideal with nano shrimp, snails, and other temperate nano fish.