Koi varieties: Asagi and Shusui

An Asagi is a scaled koi (wagoi) with a white (shiroji) base color, which has a blue (indigo) color above the lateral line and ideally a red pattern below the lateral line. The red pattern sometimes extends above the lateral line and onto the head. This is not a negative aspect of the assessment. In fact, it can make the fish more attractive. The blue-indigo color is caused by the scales (matsuba), and since these are embedded in a white background, the white base color forms a beautiful netting pattern around them. This netting pattern is an important factor in assessing this variety.

Ancestor

Asagi is the first true carp kept for ornamental purposes. This makes Asagi the progenitor of the koi. The Asagi originated as a color variation of the Magoi (the original carp, bred for consumption by rice farmers in the Niigata Mountains). The somewhat bluish specimens were retained and bred further. This is where Asagi ultimately gets its name, as Asagi literally means "indigo," a specific term for a particular shade of blue.

Popularity.

Because the Asagi is genetically so close to the original carp, it's often a somewhat skittish fish that panics easily and is therefore difficult to catch. Partly because of this, but also because some people consider the fish boring, the popularity of this variety has waned over the years. Nevertheless, beautiful specimens are available for sale, though they are rare. The lighter varieties (Narumi Asagi) are particularly sought after. Over the decades, several additional varieties of Asagi have emerged, the most striking of which is the Yuki Asagi. Yuki is Japanese for snow. In this variety, the indigo color has disappeared and been replaced by a white, ideally as white as fresh snow. It's remarkable that this variety has retained the name Asagi, as the indigo color has completely disappeared.

Shusui

Many beginning hobbyists don't realize that Shusui is the Doitsu (scale-poor) variant of Asagi. At first glance, these fish are quite different. The introduction of Doitsu (developed through the breeding of mirror carp and leatherback carp) into existing koi varieties began with Shusui. Shusui was the first Doitsu variant within the koi family to see the light of day. For a long time, it was also the only Doitsu variant. Shusui is characterized by a white base with a row of blue to black scales on either side of the dorsal fin and a red pattern that extends at least below the lateral line, but sometimes also above it and over the head. Because Shusui was the only Doitsu in the entire koi range for the first decades, it was classified in the show class Asagie, which was subsequently called "Asagi and Shusui." To this day, this is still the case, with the result that Shusui is the only Doitsu variant that is not classified into one of the Doitsu classes at koi shows.