Rosy Bitterling (Freshwater Fish Pictorial Book, Series 1, revised release by Yujin)

This figure is the Rosy Bitterling or Baratanago, Rodeus ocellatus, number 09 from the first series (the Yujin paper refers to it as the subspecies R.o. ocellatus but it appears all subspecies may have been collapsed together—there is some discrepancy there). The Rosy bitterling is a cyprinid (carps & minnows) found in two populations, in Japan and mainland China and Taiwan. Or at least it was two populations, although it appears the Chinese version has been introduced into Japan as well, where they hybridize. Like the previous cyprinids, the Rosy Bitterling is frequently found in aquariums, except this time I can personally attest to this, having had them in stock in aquarium stores (back in the day). The Yujin model states that the normal size is 8cm, although sexes and populations vary.

Rosy bitterling prefer to live in ponds, taking advantage of farm ponds and the plankton that they feed on. These ponds are also important for their reproductive behaviour, as the mussels that live there are an important part of the cycle, acting as hosts for the bitterlings (females have a structure for placing eggs on the mussels’ gills).

Since the post was originally posted, it appears that there is more information on the rosy bitterling distribution. It appears that the original population are the east Asian mainland species–the population in Japan was inadvertently introduced with carp from China. The rosy bitterling hybridize with the native Japanese bitterling species, Rhodeus smithii (the Japanese rosy bitterling). While the latter is Critically Endangered, the rosy bitterling is Least Concern and actually appears to be expanding its range and severely outcompeting the Japanese species.

This model is about 4.5 cm long, making the figure roughly 1:2. The figure itself is an adult male with the bright blues the species is known for. It’s a bright little figure, and looks pretty much like it popped right out of an aquarium. The base for this one is the grey gravel with plant; with the plant being plastic, it adds to the fish-tank vibe. I know that I have seen this fish done by Kaiyodo in the Animatales lines, possibly others, but I don’t know if any other company has made them as well.

Starting on the 14th of January, 2024, I migrated my first Yujin Freshwater Fish Pictorial walkaround post from the Animal Toy Forum to this blog, with the intention of moving all species’/figures’ walkarounds here. The initial post contained a lengthy explanation of the series (both the original and updated) that I don’t think should be repeated each time! For those details, the post can be seen at the first post. Then we can just get to the fish. Most of the details and writing will come from the original post, although I may supplement/add where appropriate.

And a comment from the Toy Forum, from member Jetoar: “Color application is awesome”