Golden Orfe

The golden orfe is the bright orange-gold ornamental form of the orfe (ide), a fish that lives in the rivers and lakes of Europe and northern Asia. There is also a silvery-bluish "blue orfe" form. It swims in schools close to the surface and leaps to catch flies, which makes it much more visible and active than koi in ornamental ponds. Adults reach 40–50 cm, and more in the wild.

• A long pond with a large surface area of at least 4000 liters for a school; it is not suitable for an aquarium.
• 12–22°C is ideal; it tolerates cold winters but is very sensitive to warm, low-oxygen water. Aeration or a waterfall is essential in summer.
• Powerful filtration and clean water; open swimming space.
• It can leap from the surface and land outside the pond; the edges should be kept high.

Omnivorous. It feeds on floating pond pellets, insects, worms and frozen foods. Adults hunt small fish and fry.

A peaceful, fast and social schooling fish. Kept singly or in pairs it becomes skittish; in a group of 5 or more it behaves naturally.

Good companions: in a pond, koi, tench, rudd and long-bodied goldfish types (those too large to fit in its mouth).

Avoid: small pond fish and fry, tropical fish, small ponds with poor oxygen levels.