The most expensive fish, hunted by everyone from hobby enthusiasts to millionaire celebrities, can command astronomical prices to match their beauty and rarity.
Here are the top 10 most expensive aquarium fish in the world, for which collectors are willing to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars.
10. Ironforged Butterflyfish (Chaetodon daedalma) - $2700
This small fish (up to 15 cm in length) lives in the Pacific Ocean and is most often found off the coast of Japan. It got its name from its black metallic coloring, with bright yellow stripes on the dorsal and caudal fins.
Iron-forged butterflyfish usually move in pairs in their natural habitat. However, they sometimes form a school of hundreds of fish.
Fish farmers and collectors can pay more than $2,700 (164,000 rubles) if they want to add the iron butterflyfish to their collection. Such a high price is explained by restrictions on the distribution of Chaetodon daedalma outside Japan, as well as increased export costs due to its inclusion on the Red List of endangered species.
9. Australian flathead perch (Rainfordia opercularis) - $5000
Catching the Australian flathead bass in the wild is not easy, as it tends to disappear into caves before divers can find it. Its small size makes escape even easier.
Like the iron-forged butterflyfish, the Australian flathead can grow up to 15 centimeters, making it a suitable choice for collectors with relatively small aquariums.
8. Golden Alligator Gar, also known as Mississippi Gar (Atractosteus spatula) - $7000
Although this brightly colored predator usually prefers large rivers and lakes, it also tolerates seawater conditions well.
As the name suggests, these fish are bright golden in color, with a long, sleek body that helps them glide easily through the water.
Potential alligator gar owners should ensure that their aquarium is suitable for the fish, which can grow up to 10 feet tall and weigh up to 280 pounds.
The value of golden alligator gar is due to the rarity of their coloring. Only one in 10,000 alligator gar is golden.
7. Platinum Alligator Gar (Atractosteus spatula) - $7000
Another expensive aquarium fish, which is valued for its rare coloring. Due to its somewhat prehistoric appearance, the platinum alligator gar is often called a "living fossil." And it's not surprising, because the ancestors of the Mississippi gar appeared in the Eocene, which began 56 million years ago and ended 33.9 million years ago.
The snout of this fish is short but wide, and the body is covered with white, enamel-like ganoid scales in the form of rhombic hard plates.
With proper care, the platinum alligator gar can live up to 50 years.
6. Neptune's Sea Bass (Cephalopholis igarashiensis) - $7000
A beautiful combination of orange and white stripes, accented by a plump body and spiny dorsal fin, the Neptune Grouper is a stunning addition to any marine aquarium.
Although owning one of the world's rarest fish will cost collectors at least $7,000 (426 thousand rubles), Neptune groupers have difficulty adapting to the surface due to changes in water pressure.
This is because the Neptune grouper usually lives at depths of about 200 meters, making it very difficult to bring to the surface alive. Special decompression procedures are required.
If you prefer to eat rather than own Neptune bass, you can buy it at food markets in Japan for as little as $50 (3,045 rubles).
5. Bladefyn Basslet (Jeboehlkia gladifer) - $10000
This small creature usually reaches only 3 cm in length, and its body is decorated with bright white and red markings. Its tiny size, combined with its preferred habitat depth (243 meters), makes the basslet one of the most expensive aquarium fish in the world.
The Bladefyn Basslet is a good-natured fish, so if you are lucky enough to have one, you won't have to worry about it eating other tank mates.
4. Masked Angelfish (Genicanthus Personatus) - $30,000
An extremely rare deep-sea fish, they are commonly found on coral reefs around the Hawaiian Islands and are protected from commercial fishing, so they are usually bred in captivity.
As protogynous hermaphrodites, masked angelfish begin life as females and eventually transform into males, a transition that involves subtle changes in the coloration around their eyes. Only females have the distinctive black mask. Males only have black on their tails.
3. Peppermint Angelfish (Paracentropyge boylei) - $30,000
This fish is like a brightly colored toy, but its price is far from toy-like.
Found in the South Pacific Ocean, the peppermint angelfish lives at depths of up to 120 meters in caves and reefs, feeding primarily on worms, sponges and other detritus.
Only experienced divers can reach their habitat, and bringing peppermint angelfish to the surface is a delicate process, as the fish must be decompressed to safely leave the deep waters.
In 2012, the Waikiki Aquarium purchased a peppermint angelfish for $30,000.
2. Leopoldi stingray (Potamotrygon leopoldi) – $100,000
The freshwater pea ray, also known as Potamotrygon leopoldi, is an incredibly rare fish. It was named after King Leopold III of Belgium, who sponsored various studies at the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences.
Hunting for a Leopoldi Ray in the wild can be extremely challenging, as these beautiful creatures spend most of their time buried in the sand. However, captive-bred rays are also available for collectors.
1. Platinum Asian Arowana (Scleropages formosus) - $450,000
The most expensive fish for aquarium breeding by a significant margin is the platinum arowana, the price of which reaches $450,000 (27.4 million rubles).
Its value is explained by its extremely rare color, as well as the fact that in some Asian cultures, the arowana is a symbol of prosperity, strength and power. There is even a belief that this fish can save its owner from death, at the cost of its own life.
The scales of this slender and graceful fish resemble those of a dragon, and have a metallic shimmer when the arowana glides through the water.
Arowanas are voracious eaters, eating everything from other fish and crustaceans to frogs and crickets, and will even jump out of their tanks to get their prey, earning them the nickname "monkey fish."
As you might expect, the world's most expensive fish is listed as an endangered species, with only a few aquariums housing the Platinum Arowana in captivity.
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