Shiro Utsuri, Hi Utsuri and Ki Utsuri

Shiro Utsuri is one of the more dramatic and impressive varieties of Koi. Often referred to a Showa that has lost all of its red, Shiro Utsuri are Koi with a white background broken by streaks of black is Showa type striping and clumping. 

A Hi Utsuri by comparison is a Shiro Utsuri but with a red background as opposed to white. A Ki Utsuri is similar but with a yellow background instead of white. The same appreciation for Ki and Hi Utsuri applies as to Shiro Utsuri.

As with Showa, Shiro Utsuri will have black on the head and preferably black in the joints of the pectoral fins (motoguru). The quality of the black on Shiro Utsuri is exceptionally important with a deep ink thick black being the most desirable. Black patterning should not be smudged and the same crisp clean lines favoured with red patterns is equally desirable on Shiro Utsuri.

Of course the white background of the Koi is critical. With a snow white background the black of the Koi is shown off to maximum effect and it makes for a dramatic statement. A good Shiro Utsuri will stand out in any Koi pond like a lighthouse on a stormy night and a great Shiro Utsuri of size is one of those truly wondrous Koi that any of us aspire to one day keeping.

Shiro Utsuri can develop slowly and a good example can cost you plenty. It is not an easy Koi to finish to maximum potential which adds to is allure. When you get it right Shiro Utsuri are rightly often judged as being on par with the Go Sanke varietals.

What to look for when choosing a small Shiro Utsuri.

Remember that when choosing a small Koi we are always looking to the future. We are not generally looking at the Koi on the day as it were, unless we are specifically looking for a Baby Grand Champion. Baby Grand Champions however tend to suffer from the syndrome of winning once and then going downhill from there as rapidly as they rose!

Ideally one wants a Koi to 'finish', or in other words, to show off it's best when it is fully grown. For Japanese Koi these days this is typically when they reach 70cm+ and in the case of a few rare, seriously expensive specimens, when they reach 80cm+. And if you can afford or are insane enough to blow the price of a decent car on it, 90cm+!

So the guessing game is to pick the small Koi that have the potential to become beautiful Koi when they are very much bigger. It's the classic tale of the ugly duckling all over again.

However. And it is a big however. Selecting such a Koi is extremely difficult. There is a tremendous amount left to chance. Your skills as a Koi keeper of course will play a big role in bring about the best that your Koi has to offer. But even then the odds are stacked heavily against you. Of the millions of Koi that are bred, only a few will be good enough to compete for prizes at a Koi show, and fewer still will compete for Champion Status (we call them Supremes in Koi Shows), of which there are only a dozen or so.

It isn't easy. This is why we love this hobby so much - it is challenging and when you do get a Koi that becomes more beautiful with each passing year it produces a sense of personal satisfaction that is almost impossible to beat.

Getting back to Shiro Utsuri. Shiro Utsuri are in fact black Koi with white patterns - some of the more famous lines derived originally from Showa (black Koi with white and red patterns) bloodlines. Some say Shiro Utsuri are just Showa with a rubbish red on them (as in none!) and that some Shiro will develop red at some stage in their development before losing it again and 'finishing'. Some breeders regard this as necessary and vital in fact.

This is open to debate of course and no-one really knows. Speculation is half the fun of course and we have seen many Shiro Utsuri develop red, lose red, lose black, get the black back better than before, you name it.

But in all cases a Shiro Utsuri must have an excellent white. A white skin and white background can be identified even in a young Koi. This is less true on the head where the skin is very thing as the Koi is still young. It can appear quite yellow but in most cases this will turn into a much more vivid white as the Koi grows older and the skin thickens. Certainly, on a young Koi a slightly yellow head is not a concern for us in the slightest.

Generally a good white is important. Some Koi continue to improve their white as they get older, and their skin thickens. It is important to try and pick a Koi with a consistent white across the body, rather than worrying too much about how white it is, or whether the head is slightly yellow.

The other colour on Shrio Utsuri is of course the black. On a young Koi you want to see some evidence of what the Koi is capable of producing, preferably near the tail section. Koi tend to develop black from the rear so a good black here is an encouraging sign. Again with younger Koi one doesn't want to see ALL the black already up. And it's not critical that the black be inkjet thick and lustrous. It helps, but remember that these Koi are still young and some might not yet have this black but will develop it later on. This is part of the gamble.

Black on a young Shiro Utsuri you will see as underlying blue or grey. Again this is an indication of what might come. Sometimes you might get more, sometimes you might get less.

Remember to try and see the Koi with your Big Koi Goggles on. As with Kohaku and their red pattern so with Shiro Utsuri and their black pattern. It doesn't necessarily get bigger with the Koi as it grows, so a small Koi that looks like it has a lot of black on it might look very different as a bigger Koi as the white background 'stretches' relative to the black pattern.

Pattern on the Koi is only important to you. A good Shiro Utsuri will have a typical Showa pattern with some black on the head and face as well. We actually disregard pattern as much as we can, and focus our attention on the rest of the Koi. Good fins, good body, good spine, strong tails - these are the things we look for because most Koi when big will look good if these attributes are maintained.

And if after all this, if you are still in doubt, pick the ugliest Shiro Utsuri and buy that! You might find yourself pleasantly surprised in a few years time as your Koi develops. Certainly the development of Shiro Utsuri in particular is fascinating to watch and great fun.