The Spanish Flag, Gonioplectrus hispanus is one of those rare deepwater reef fish that is so uncommonly seen or collected that very few pictures of it even exist. It was very exciting to hear that AquaTouch in Phoenix AZ will soon be receiving the rare Spanish Flag in the photo. The photo may not do justice to the amazing colors of this fish but trust us, the last time a fish so rare was available it was the $6K Neptune Grouper.
All the fish photos came from Curacao. The Spanish Flag was collected at 185′ relatively shallow since they normally are found at 200′-300′ on 45 degree angel rubble zones with sandy slopes. He is 1.75″, a small specimen. Also known to be one of the most hardy of the deep water Atlantic species. He will sell for $1499 [. . .] Hopefully it will be available next week, (we are) waiting to hear if it goes to Japan
At only $1500 it seems like AquaTouch is handling this fish for fun or bragging right, we can think of much more available fish selling for way more than that. Perhaps the small size of the specimen keeps the shipping cost to a minimum. It also sounds like it’s possible that the fish will be offered to 
American reefers but if they don’t act fast we bet some Asian buyers would start a bidding war to have this exclusive rare fish specimen. We have our hearts set on seeing this fish stay in the states so we can follow the growth of this fish in the future. Any takers?
On a related note, Phoenix’s finest fish flingers also received nearly a biotope’s worth of other deepwater treasures from Curacao. For just about $5000 you too can recreate a deepwater reef scene from the lesser antilles. Tim Morrissey tells us all about the individual species in detail after the break.
Aquatouch does it again! This time they are offering Lipogramma klayi, Lipogramma evides, Bullisichthys caribbaeus, and the Sabre Goby which is a new species. These are some crazy rare fish that someone in the US should take advantage of. If no one inquires soon about these fish they will be shipped to Asia, where I am sure there is a line of people waiting for them. These fish were collected using rebreathers in the 200-350 foot range! Their deep habitat has a lot to do with the rarity and price, because they are so hard to get to. L. klayi islisted at $1299, L. evides $1849, B. caribbaeus $899, and the Sabre Goby $1399. We also mentioned a similar round of fish a few months back when L.klayi was also for sale at Blue Harbor in Japan.
