- 25th
- February
- 2011
There was recently a question on a local board about the difference between mirror and common carp. I tried to give a brief explanantion and I decided to share it here.
Mirror carp are a normal variation of common carp. Meaning that Mirror carp are just one possible variation of scale patterns. The majority of common carp are fully scaled with symmetrical scales.
Other variations include fully scaled mirrors (odd sized scales like the above but covering the whole body) leather carp (no scales whatsoever) and muddlers (unsymetrical scales).
Carp represented the major food source for much of europe because they could be grown relatively quickly in relatively small areas. The genetic variation is partly natural and partly the result of selective breeding by European monks attempting to minimize the number of scales in order to make an easier fish to clean.
