We just got word that 40 clipperton angelfish, Holacanthus limbaughi, have been seized by USFWS because they were being illegally imported ‘from’ Mexico. The Clipperton angelfish is a very rare fish in the marine aquarium trade because it only comes from tiny Clipperton Atoll, an administrative territory of France which is roughly halfway between the Galapagos and the Revillagigedos. Needless to say, there is no way this fish was collected in Mexico. Details are sparse on this case but if the fish were seized because of improper permitting then these fish will be distributed through public institutions and they will not be released into the wider marine aquarium market. We’ll be on this story like white on rice so stay tuned.
