Want to learn about the amazing Shubunkin goldfish?
You’ve come to the right place!
Today we’re going to dive into learning about this popular breed of goldfish.
I also have some little-known fascinating facts to share…
So let’s get to it!
Quick Facts about Shubunkin Goldfish
| Species Name: | Carassius auratus auratus |
| Temperature: | 65°-70° F |
| Temperament: | Athletic, Playful |
| Lifespan: | 10-15 years |
| Size: | 12”-14” |
| Hardiness | Very Hardy |
Image Credit: Michelle Jo, Wikimedia Commons
Shubunkin Goldfish Breed Overview
No matter the fin-type or coloration, Shubunkins are among the hardiest of all types of goldfish. Their longer bodies mean swim bladder trouble is almost non-existent.
They make excellent pond fish and are known to tolerate even very cold winters outdoors. There are three main types of Shubunkins (the difference is in the tail):
- The Bristol Shubunkin, which has a much taller, fuller tail shaped like the letter “B”
- The American Shubunkin, which has the same tail shape as a regular Comet goldfish.
- The London Shubunkin, which has a shorter tail like a Common goldfish (in fact, it was probably a cross between a Common and a Japanese Shubunkin.)
Bristols are much harder to find in the US than Americans. They were originated in Bristol, UK.
When they come up for sale, they can be quite pricey.
Coloration
Did you know these fish actually come in a variety of color patterns? Their colors are a huge part of making these fish so interesting. Guess what? No two fish are identical in terms of their markings. Interestingly enough, color changes are pretty common on Shubbies as they age. So be prepared in case your fish changes color later on – especially if you start with a younger fish.
- The typical Calico Shubunkin you’ll find at the pet store looks like a calico-colored Comet goldfish, with patches of red, black, and white. They usually have some shiny scales amidst mostly non-shiny ones.
- Midnight Shubunkins are predominantly black with a bit of white. Black Opal Shubunkin goldfish are very similar in terms of markings, which have very pronounced blacks.
- Ghost Bristol Shubunkins (also known as “pinkies”) are entirely white matt with no metallic scales and pink gills. Most have button eyes. Their tail is the heart-shaped kind that Bristols have.
- Imperial Shubunkins have solid red coloration. Some of them even have special shiny scales.
- Sanke Gold Shubunkins have a very bright white (not blue) base with strong pops of red and black. This is very hard to find and costly color pattern.
- Sky Blue Shubunkins have no red and very little black markings with a matt base and a sprinkling of metallic scales. Sometimes they have pink gills. Their unique coloring makes them look almost iridescent. This color pattern can be very difficult to find and expensive.
Image Credit: Humanfeather / Michelle jo, Wikimedia Commons
In the opinion of many goldfish breeders: The bluer that is on the fish, the better.
Guess what?
The blue you see on the fish is actually black showing through from the skin of the fish.
This is similar to what makes blue mystery snails appear the color they do.
Black sometimes gives way to red coloration as the fish ages or is exposed to different environmental conditions.
Here’s an example of a Black Opal Shubunkin with blue undertones:
If the fish is red and white with some shiny scales and lacks any black pigment, it is no longer a Shubunkin – it is a Sakura Comet.
A black and orange or black and yellow fish without any white markings is known as “tiger.”
(These are very rare.)
Thoughts on Long Fins
The tails on both the Bristol and especially the American varieties continue to lengthen with age in proportion to the body size (sometimes even equaling the length of the body)! How long the fish’s fins get also depends on genetics. Very long fins might LOOK beautiful…
But they can pose some potential problems.
As the fish continues to grow larger, the fins do too – and sometimes they can become so huge that they weigh the fish down, causing them to sit on the bottom.
Image Credit: cbransto, Flickr
The long fins can also drag along objects at the bottom, leading to abrasions and scar tissue buildup that looks like whitish lumps.
Such long-finned fish also are prone to issues like fin rot and fin congestion.
You’ll often notice redness or ragged edges with older fish.
It’s probably safe to say that the London Shubunkin is the least likely of the three varieties to have tail problems (of course, it might not look as nice to some people!).
The good news?
These problems might not happen if the fish doesn’t grow much.
Now, speaking of growth:
Size
Shubunkin goldfish can get absolutely HUGE when they are given lots of fresh water.
They can even get up to 14″ long (including the tail)!
Crazy, right?
Their large size potential also makes them a popular choice for goldfish ponds.
That said:
Like other goldfish, they have the ability to regulate their size in a smaller environment by producing the growth-inhibiting hormone somatostatin.
If access to fresh water is limited, they might not get much larger than 3-5″.
How to Take Care of Your Fish Properly
Lifespan
The typical lifespan of a Shubunkin is 10-15 years… a good bit more than a fancy goldfish.
Image Credit: KoiQuestion, Flickr
Their greater resistance to disease and more natural long-bodied structure enables them to keep on swimming longer than you might think.
When allowed to go through seasonal winter hibernation, this can greatly add to their lifespan.
Housing
Shubunkins need to be provided with clean water to stay healthy.
To that end, it’s a good idea to make sure your fish’s home has some kind of filter to keep the ammonia and nitrites down between water changes.
This also applies if you keep your fish in a pond (though your filter will likely need to be much larger!).
Shubunkins are athletic fish and should also be provided with sufficient swimming space to prevent muscle atrophy.
Water Temperature
These fish aren’t very demanding in terms of water temperature and can be quite flexible.
As hardy fish, Shubbies can tolerate water that is on the colder side – 65-70 degrees F is ideal for the warmer months.
In the wintertime, they can even survive temps well below 50 degrees F as they go into hibernation.
They breed readily when things warm up in the spring, laying thousands of eggs!
Are Fantail Goldfish Good Tank Mates?
Shubunkin goldfish do fantastic with other athletic breeds of goldfish, especially Commons and Comets.
Some people even keep theirs outside with their Koi!
What to Feed Your Shubunkin Goldfish
Shubunkins aren’t super picky fish and do well on a diet of Omega One pellets and plant matter foraging (lettuce is a good one).
Goldfish kept in a pond have access to natural foraging material like insects, rotting plants, and algae.
The occasional earthworm is greatly appreciated as well.
Read more about feeding here.
Final Thoughts
Shubunkins make an excellent, hardy pet fish. Do you own one (or have you ever owned one)? If so, I’d love to hear about yours! Or maybe you learned something new. Either way, do leave your comment below – I love hearing from you!
Featured Image: slowmotiongli, Shutterstock
Nice, thanks for the details
It helps me to learn and breed Shubunkins
Glad you liked the post, Yudi!
Hi thanks for the info. One of my Shubs has bits of its tails missing since I’ve added danios and another shub. Any ideas to what it might be. Thanks in advance
I got a sky blue shubunkin and it’s getting bigger before He used to fit in he space but now I understand tha I took my pet Mitch as a baby I changed the fishbowl two times and now I new a new one he still little but it keeps growing ?
They can grow to be huge in the right conditions!
Just bought 5 shubunkins, I’ve put in my pond with clean water. There is 3 depths to my pond 1ft,2ft and 3ft.
The shubunkins went straight down to the deepest part and I haven’t seen them for 3 days. Is this normal or do they swim up to the surface. I’ve been putting goldfish pellets, but their not coming to the surface.
Can I put solar pond lights in?
I Love Your Details….I have 3 Shubunkins that I,ve had for 5 Years now. I am Hoping to put Them Outside in a Pond this Year….
Really Interesting Reading
Thanks for your kind words, Jackie! Shubunkins do great in a pond.
Thank you for the information on the type of fish. My Shubunkins servied there first winter in a 125 Gallon pond I started last year in July on Long Island. I’m looking forward to a good year with the Fish. Thank You
Thanks for stopping by, Michael!
Thank you for the information. This year I mated a female shubunkin with 2 male shubunkins and a male lemon, producing quite a number of metallics, some of which are changing colour with the most incredible copper tonings coming through. What colour shubunkins would these be? What is the best colour to mate a shubunkin to produce shubunkins?
Can you post a pic on imgur? I believe a percentage of the offspring with shubunkins will always be metallic.
Hi
Thank you for all the information. Really interesting.
We have a communal pond in housing estate. It’s natural and been there long before the houses were built.
It’s about 20 metres in diameter and has a large fountain in the middle.
12 feet deep in the middle.
Lots of natural reeds and plant growth around the edges and banking.
I bought 6 shubunkins last year and introduced them. I’ve never seen them since but we now have lots of smaller fish. Is it likely the original ones are in the reeds and depths?
Last week I bought another 20 of 3 inch in length and put them in. Again. Not seen them since. When will they start showing? Will this new batch breed this year. How many could I realistically expect 17 will grow into next year?
Is it necessary to add cleaner water once a year? It’s full of rain water presently from over the years.
It was partially drained a few years ago to remove the silt and re filled.
Should I feed them or let them find natural food?
I bought a dozen
You should feed them, but they don’t need you to give them foraging just the staple diet. You might also have predators picking off the fish and only leaving the babies.
I have a 50 gallon preforned pond with 4 very healthy happy shubs. We are in Missouri and can have cold temps sometimes into the teens with upper 20’s and 30’s as a norm. The deepest (and largest area) of our pond is 2 feet deep. Right now i have a small found running and thata it. Its not exactly a filter, it doesnt move alot of water. I purchased an air bar and a submersible heater. Is this sufficient???? I do not want to lose my fish and would love some advice / opinions. All 4 fish are about 3.5″s right now, if that matters.
I’ve always heard 3′ deep minimum to avoid freezing solid. Since you’re going to have to rely on the heater, I’d keep a very close eye on the temperature in the water. Make sure it doesn’t freeze solid.
I have 4 Shubunkins in a 350 gallon outdoor pond. They have a cave where they spend much of their time as they are new to the pond. I have seen them swimming around at night but only occasional glimpses during the day so far. My question is how much and how often do I feed them.? If I don’t see them do I still put food in the pond.? I would like to try to feed them at the same time every day so they will get used to me feeding them but if I don’t see them..?♀️ I have read on the back of the food packages you recommend to feed them 2-3 times a day then remove what they haven’t eaten which is impossible since I don’t see them eat…totally confused here. Any help will be appreciated.
You might enjoy this article on how much/often to feed them.
Thank you so much for the information. I am a children’s librarian and we have an American Shubunkin named Bubbles in the library. We have a “Phone” connected to his tank and the children can come in and read to him all they want. They love him and ask me lots of questions everyday about our sweet fish. He is really growing fast and seems to be thriving in his tank. I was thinking about getting him a larger tank to live in. What size do you recommend?
That’s adorable!
Some people like to use 40 gallon tanks for full size Shubunkins. But it depends on the size of the fish for sure.
Is an outdoor 50 gallon pond enough for 5 Shubs? They are only 3 inches right now and they have plenty of water with the deepest end at about 24″‘s. They seem to enjoy the pond so far and do a lot of chasing around. I worry that they will get too big for the space. I am committed to them and will build another similar pond if necessary. Love these guys!
Sure thing. If they get too big you can always move them.
I’m not sure what kind of Goldfish do I have
Check out this post 🙂
I hade 4 subunkin and I got them from Petsmart 3 days after having them one died and my female is laying at the bottom and not moving much. What do I do to keep her alive.
Please check out this post on quarantine 🙂
I bought 3 Shubunkin Goldfish, They are currently small. I bought them at Petsmart and they said they would grow to be 10”. I’m hoping to get a bigger tank in the summer after my summer job. They are currently in a 3.5 gallon…I’m wondering if I should take them back. I don’t know I feel like a bad fish owner. I was told that the fish tank was fine for a while…they currently have three moss balls in their tank some hiding rocks. There is plenty of room but I want what is best for them. I’ve been looking at website to website. I just need someone with experience to tell me what to do. Summer is in 4 months. Should I take them back? Or is 4-6 months okay? I’m very worried…
My recommendation would be… don’t take them back. Slim-bodied fish have been kept in smaller aquaria for thousands of years. Read up on nano tanks, stunting and tank size with the links above. 🙂
I just put 40 two Inch fish in my pond and notes they have found a dark corning to stay in until I feed in the evening nice to hear about SHUBUNKIN\\\’S not sure what type there are
Shubunkins are typically calico/variegated in color, if yours are like that they probably are Shubunkins.
Hello Meredith.
Is there any difference between the Japanese/American shubunkin and the calico variant of the comet?
Many thanks.
To my knowledge calico comets are considered shubunkins. Shubunkin is a reference to the calico colouring on a comet.