Golden Reef Solomon Islands L.T.D has collected not one but two aberrant Bicolor angelfish, and what’s more, they’re a pair!
Bicolor angelfish, Centropyge bicolor, are widespread throughout the Indo-Pacific, from East Africa to the Samoan and Phoenix Islands, north to southern Japan, south to New Caledonia; and throughout Micronesia. They are common in the hobby too, one of the longer, larger Dwarf angelfish species with stunning, contrasting yellow and navy blue coloration which offers a lot of bang for your buck in terms of coloration.
We’ve kept two in the past twenty-five years and admit having a soft spot for them, despite them nibbling at some corals. But we’ve only seen three with aberrations even remotely as pleasing as these, in 2008, 2014, and 2020, and we’ve never seen one that’s missing its dark blue head stripe, an aberrant female, or a pair. Aberrations like these were previously only thought to occur in mature males.
About the Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands is a chain of almost 1000 islands located in the South Pacific, North East of Australia. Its beautiful waters and variety of habitats make it a popular dive destination. Logistically the Solomon Islands has always been a challenge for aquarium exporters and limited freight options and increasing prices eventually drove past exporters out from there. But as more international flights have become available, and freight prices have become more reasonable there’s been a unique opportunity for reopening of the country and re-establishment of reliable export of its stunning corals and fish.
The Solomon Islands is famous for its exceptional coral diversity owing to its location in the bioregion of Oceania, which is surrounded by multiple seas. But not many people are quite so aware of its melting pot of fish diversity.
Previous Golden Reef Solomon Islands fish of note include endemic black Dogface Puffers, Arothron nigropunctatus var., and an abundance of beautifully patterned aberrant Regal Angelfish, Pygoplites diacanthus, one of which has made its way to Andrew Sandler of Polo Reef only this last few days. The Solomons also has an abundance of some sought-after, previously rare species of fairy wrasse.
This pair of aberrant bicolor angelfish are some of the most extreme to ever enter the trade, according to its collectors, and their best find so far. They gave us some invaluable catch information:
“They were found approximately 5000 meters from shore West of Nughu island in around 10-12 meters depth of water.
“What was most noticeable and unusual about this finding is that they appeared to be interacting as a true pair and very attentive to each other without being competitive,” GRSI told Reef Builders.
“Most of the time it is large single male specimens of Centropyge bicolor that exhibit this kind of aberration and they tend to be very sporadic in location. Smaller individuals exhibiting some degree of aberrance are known but much rarer.”
“Notably abundant species swimming alongside this pair on the reef included normally patterned Bicolor Angelfish, Flagfin Angelfish, Apolemichthys trimaculatus, and Regal/Blue/Hippo tangs, Paracanthurus hepatus. The pair were collected in a combined effort between Roque T. Dagatan, Gilbert Gaylan, and Elmer Gaylan – three expert net-trained divers who have considerable experience in the collection and handling of fish.”
“Spots that produce aberrant angelfish like these tend to produce more over time, so whilst this was perhaps not a regularly repeatable find, the odd one may turn up over time.”
This Bicolor Angelfish pair will be making their way to Vibrant Corals in Texas, U.S.A. where they will be available to retailers and their customers across the country. The Solomon Islands is already turning out some super interesting fish and corals, and we can’t wait to see what this Melanesian Island country produces in the future.
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