[MikeM]

I've been under the impression that Kumonryu is a doitsu Matsukawabake. The October issue of Nichirin suggests otherwise. It was derived from a crossing of a Karasugoi (black koi) and a Shusui, but the Karasugoi is not said to be a Matsukawabake. Rather, it was a Karasugoi that appeared among the offspring of a cross of a doitsu Nezu Ogon and a Shusui. So, the original Kumonryu was three-quarters Shusui. .... Of course, the Sumi changes as in Matsukawabake, and perhaps the Sumi also changed with the seasons on the Karasugoi parent? It seems to me that the Sumi patterning on Matsukawabake usually rises from below the lateral line toward the dorsal, with the abdomen nearly always black... with a white face and a crest of white along the back in its prettiest color phase. The Sumi in Kumonryu, on the other hand, is usually in long flank markings running above the lateral line, like the Hi pattern on the flanks of Shusui. I've not seen enough of either variety to draw a conclusion, but the Nichirin article brought to mind the different appearance of the two goes beyond one having scales and the other not.

Thoughts? Comments?