Golden shiner

About Golden shiner

This entry summarises what UK government and ornamental trade guidance establish about the golden shiner (Notemigonus crysoleucas) and what remains undocumented on those official sites. The species is identified in Ornamental Aquatic Trade Association / FHI material and in GB susceptible/vector species lists used for aquatic animal‑health policy. Because of that listing, trade guidance explicitly flags golden shiner as not permitted under the Import of Live Fish Act (ILFA) arrangements used by the ornamental trade and as relevant to import and health‑control checks. Authoritative UK technical reports include the species in laboratory toxicology and environmental assessment tables (for example, 96‑hour LC50 entries and associated test temperatures). A UK government experimental report also records juvenile sample mean lengths (example cohorts with mean lengths about 71–79 mm), but does not provide a clear adult maximum size. Importantly, the published experimental/test temperatures and toxicology endpoints are regulatory test conditions and should not be read as husbandry or natural thermal‑limit guidance. On the domains surveyed (gov.uk, ornamentalfish.org and related UK bodies), routine husbandry details commonly sought by pond owners—adult maximum size, minimum pond volume or depth, temperature tolerance range, diet, temperament, stocking rates, overwintering or oxygen requirements—are not established. Compatibility with other pond wildlife and care difficulty are also not documented in those sources. Practical legal note for UK pond owners: do not release non‑native fish (including golden shiner) into the wild or open watercourses. If you are considering obtaining, moving or already keeping non‑native fish, consult GOV.UK guidance on invasive non‑native animal rules and the specific licensing routes and follow the Ornamental Aquatic Trade / FHI advice regarding ILFA and disease‑susceptible/vector listings. If you want, further research can be carried out from wider husbandry and ecological literature (outside the six domains surveyed) to fill gaps on care and pond suitability.