Sold as a step up from the plain gold, this line is graded on how densely red speckling covers the flanks and unpaired fins. Young fish show little of it, so a tank of juveniles tells you almost nothing about how they will finish. Spot density varies a lot between suppliers, and siblings out of one spawn rarely match.
In the wild
The red spotted form was worked up from the gold severum by selecting for red pigment, not collected anywhere. No breeder, country or decade is documented for the line, so treat it as a hobby selection of uncertain origin. Wild severums are green with dark bars and carry no spotting like this.
Good to know
The base is the same xanthic gold fish, with red pigment cells gathered into spots instead of spread evenly. It is a selected look rather than one documented mutation, so spawns come out uneven. Breeders grade every generation to hold the density, and two fish sold under the same name can differ sharply.
Did you know
Severum color deepens for a long time after the fish leaves the farm. A red spotted juvenile can pass for a plain gold for months before the spots fill in. That is why shop tanks so often look nothing like the photo on the tag.
Weekly picks
Tank mates
Red spotted severum is a mostly peaceful, social species that keeps to the middle. These picks share a community profile with it, are safe together in both directions, and overlap on water type, temperature and pH.
11.8 in (30 cm)58 gal (220 L)72–84°F (22–29°C)
7.9 in (20 cm)106 gal (400 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
7.9 in (20 cm)75 gal (285 L)79–86°F (26–30°C)
11.8 in (30 cm)119 gal (450 L)77–86°F (25–30°C)
11.8 in (30 cm)74 gal (280 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)
11 in (28 cm)92 gal (350 L)75–82°F (24–28°C)