4 Weeks of Winter Rest, So Far

Another week has passed and there has been nothing notable to report regarding the ranchu. They all continue to rest, and look well, with water temperatures dropping to a controlled 6.8 degrees C at night and rising to about 7.5C on milder days.

Today, just out of interest, i decided to run a couple of pond water tests. Given that the ranchu are in unfiltered ponds and have now been in the same water for for a few weeks, i was keen to see if my confidence in their current condition was valid. I wasnt disappointed, nitrite and ammonia tests both returned negative readings which was reassuring.

Today i also spent time studying the development that each of my ranchu went through this year, comparing the same fish as tosai and nisai. There were obvious noticable changes in size but also interestingly real improvements and noticable changes in (what i believe to be) important areas of the ranchu's form. 

Whether the changes be genetic or through grooming it will certainly give me something to consider when selecting spawning pairings and sorting fry next year.