Many hobbyists may be willing to pay thousands of dollars just to have these rare saltwater fish species in their aquariums. Although, some just do it for profit, I know many just do it for the beauty. Their beautiful and unique patterns are truly incredible to look at, and it makes you wonder how many types of fish species are yet to be discovered in the deep waters of our world.
Before we get to the list, it’s true that saltwater fish are sometimes not recommended for beginners, but that is especially true of the fish on this list. One should have the experience and specialized knowledge on how to run such an expensive and high maintenance aquarium to prevent your new fish from being uncomfortable in their new environment, or even dying.
Reasons Why Saltwater Fish Are Expensive
- They live in deep waters,
- Are often difficult to catch,
- Hide in small caves, holes, and coral reefs,
- Have beautiful colorings and are generally beautiful,
- Can be quite rare,
- Have special nutritional needs,
- Can be difficult to breed,
- Require a large space to swim.
Here is a list of the five most expensive saltwater pet fish. Please enjoy their beauty and serenity!
Peppermint Angelfish
The Peppermint Angelfish is scientifically known as Centropyge boylei. As its name speculates, the fish is absolutely angelic. It’s short, with a bright orange body and thick white vertical stripes. It is 3 inches long.Â
This is a very shy fish and tends to hide in the coral reefs and rocks. It lives in the deep waters of about 60m-130m. All of which makes it very difficult to catch. To top it all off, these little guys require a big aquarium to accommodate it and tons of water.Â
It is easy to feed this fish as it eats a normal diet. Since this kind of fish is very rare in the aquatic industry, they go as high as 30,000 dollars.
Masked Angelfish
Masked Angelfish is scientifically known as Genicanthus personatus. It has a magnificent white body with striking offset black and blue. Its large face is masked with bluish-white lips. The fish’s appearance changes throughout the different stages of its growth and development.Â
It starts with a black patch over its face and ends with a black tail. It’s 8 inches in length, hence requires a big aquarium. It lives in the deep waters (around 150m-175m), which makes them super hard to catch.Â
It prefers a darker environment and feeds on coral reefs and macroalgae as the main diet. Masked Angelfish does not travel well, so they need specialized equipment to help them adjust from their usual lower depths to the tank life. The average price tag for the beautiful masked angelfish is 20,000 dollars!
Bladefinn Basslet
Jeboehlkia gladifer is its scientific name. It is a tiny fish that is approximately 1.5 inches long. It lives in deep waters too (around 150m deep), meaning it too is difficult to catch. It’s a gorgeous kind of fish species with blade-like red fins and a lovely white color over the rest of its body.Â
In the rare cases where they’re caught, many will die in transit unfortunately. This contributes to making the survivors very valuable, with a price tag of up to 10,000 dollars.
Peacekeeper Maroon Clownfish
Now this one is a little different. It’s a rare type of captive-bred species: a new strain of Premnas biaculeatusm from a fish breeding company in Israel. It is large and has deep dark red base coloration. And it can quickly grow to twice the adult size of other captive-bred species.Â
It grows to approximately 4 inches. It feeds on crabs, snails, and sea plants to reach its nutritional demands. Since it is unavailable in the common aqua industry market, it has an incredibly high price of 8,900 dollars.
Australian Flathead Perch
From its name, it comes from an area within the reefs of Eastern Australia. Rainfordia opecularis or Rainfordia Perch grows to around 6-7 inches, and it is speculated to live for 5-7 years. It has a flat head of course, with beautiful orange and blue shades on the rest of its body.Â
An adult is kept in a 120-gallon aquarium with rocks, snails, crabs, sand-sifted sea stars, and sea cucumbers. They are fed three times each day to keep up with their nutritional needs. Its average cost is 5,000 dollars.
It isn’t easy…
With an expensive saltwater fish like the ones on this list, you need to take very good care of it. And that begins with providing it with the best aquarium environment you can, not just in terms of quality, but one that’s dialed right in to provide exactly what these little fishy friends need. Depending which fish you go for, this may mean you need an aquarium that’s:
- The right size,
- Could require additional pieces of equipment to simulate their preferred environment, or acclimate them to the new environment,
- Probably requires more work during water changes,
- May require special lighting,
- With high quality feed,
- And plants and décor that mimics their environment in the ocean.
Owning an aquarium with this kind of beautiful marine life is not an easy task. It may cost an arm and a leg to produce such fantastic little habitat for them in your home. But, if you are willing to do what it takes, it’s definitely worth it and incredibly fulfilling.