Japanese Koi Fish In Elliðaá

A man looking for salmon last night caught a glimpse of a rather unusual sight in Elliðaá river yesterday evening, RÚV reports: a well-fed goldfish resembling a Japanese koi swimming in the water.

Koi are a decorative breed of the common carp. According to those that have kept them domestically here in Iceland, they are gentle, fun, and able to recognize their owners.

Koi can live to be very old, up to even a hundred years. It’s likely that the specimen seen in Elliðaá is a former pet that was somehow separated or released by its owner.

The man filmed the fish in the water and admired how he had managed to get the better of the salmon he shared the water with while competing for territory.

The fish was last seen swimming towards Kerlingaflúðir, which is the next fishing spot in Elliðaá under a dam. You can see the video below (direct link):

Video by Svavar Hávarðsson

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