February 15: Goldfish under ice

[neverspent]

I frequently check on the goldfish in the fountain pool outside my office, always with a tiny bit of trepidation after the weather has been wild. On Friday when the campus was briefly open after the snow, I saw that the whole pool had frozen over. The ice was cloudy, almost white, as if it was composed of slush that piled up on the surface of the water, then froze overnight. Someone had broken out a corner of the ice, and through the chunks I could see... blotches of bright orange. They were fine. There are at least nine still there now, with the ice all melted and the water warmed up in the springlike weather that followed. I salute your hardiness, goldfish!

Comments

[shinsetsu]

I wonder if fish could go into cryonic type suspension and then come out of it alive.

[neverspent]

I wonder! I imagine if any animals can, goldfish are more likely than many others to be able to survive a well-controlled or short term freezing.