It’s really a shame that America is the largest consumer of marine ornamentals and although we spend a lot of energy acquiring the most exotic reef animals from around the world, yet the reef fish of our own backyards go mostly overlooked. Case in point is this amazing Hemianthus vivanus with a crest of elongated dorsal fin spines so exaggerated that we’re naturally referring to it as the “Cockatoo Anthias”. This Hemianthus vivanus was recently collected along with Anthias tenuis on a deepwater wreck south of Florida at a depth of 230 feet. At this depth divers must use complicated and dangerous Tri-Mix diving equipment and then the fishes 
must be carefully decompressed for hours before being brought up to the surface. The Hemianthus and A. tenuis were acquired by Aquatouch and they are being sold as a “biotopic” pair so that someone may be able to recreate a unique deepwater habitat with other shy or cryptic fish. The Anthias tenuis specimen is currently a modest looker but with care it could turn into an absolutely amazing torpedo of color as illusrated in this NOAA image. The biotopic pair of deepwater Caribbean anthias have been conditioned and quarantined for over three weeks and the are priced at a cool $1299. These may be niche collectors fish but we think they’d be awesome display animals for a public institution wishing to do an educational exhibit of deepwater habitats or how the BP geyser threatens deepwater communities of the Gulf.
