Goldfish

A small freshwater fish of the carp family, native to southern China, where it was first selectively bred for color in imperial times more than a thousand years ago, with the practice firmly established by the Song dynasty. Selective breeding has produced wide variation in size, body shape, fin form and color, spanning white, yellow, orange, red, brown and black. Goldfish were introduced to Japan in 1603, Portugal in 1611 and North America around 1850, and are now kept worldwide in aquariums and ponds. Where released into the wild they have become an invasive pest in parts of North America and Australia.