Inked up: Goldfish with tattoos of various symbols are displayed at a tropical trade fair in Hainan, China
As a symbol of wealth and harmony, the goldfish is a popular tattoo.
But in a craze sweeping China, goldfish are themselves being inked with patterns and characters intended to being their owners good fortune.
These ones were being displayed during a tropical products trade fair in Haikou in the Hainan province of China on Wednesday.
Fishy business? The tattoos are created by an injection and take half a year to develop
The tattoos are said to be the result of an injection which takes half a year to form. Other methods use lasers.
Tattooed fish first appeared on the market in 2005 and have become very popular in the past year or two.
The technique is not without its critics, however, who claim it is not only cruel, but against the laws of nature.
Symbolic: Goldfish represent wealth in China, making them extremely popular with the public
Cruel? The tattoos are intended to being their owners good fortune, but critics say it against the laws of nature
Earlier this year, the public reacted angrily when a magic trick with goldfish watched by hundreds of millions of Chinese on TV during the Lunar New Year celebrations was believed to involve abuse including implanted magnets.
Animal rights groups called for the stunt, in which six fish were seen swimming in perfect synchronisation under magician Fu Yandong's direction, to be banned.
source: dailymail