$20,000 Odontanthias rhodopeplus is a Super-Rare Treat from the Twilight Zone

Rare and Deepwater fish vendor Unique Fins is holding a single specimen of the Anthiadinae species Odontanthias rhodopeplus, that it claims is probably the rarest fish to be imported in the 2020s so far. With no english common names, Boro-sakuradai,…

Yellow Gobies are the Best Fish for Nano Reef Tanks  

I want to take a moment to highlight one of the unsung fishy heroes of the nano reefing world, the humble Yellow Goby. Also known as the Yellow Clown Goby or Okinawa Goby, Gobiodon okinawae is a small, bright yellow…

Trimma nubarum is a New Species of Pygmygoby from the Red Sea

A new species of Trimma goby has been described from the Saudi Arabian coast of the Red Sea. Named the Rift Pygmygoby, Trimma nubarum was formerly identified as Trimma taylori, only closer inspection by Winterbottom, Bogorodsky, and Alpermann revealed that…

Flashback Friday: All the Giant Clams of the World (So Far,) by Jake Adams

Those who knew Jake Adams knew that he had a fascination with Tridacna spp. Clams, and spent years seeking out, collecting, and writing about his favorite, beautiful bivalves.  We remember when he messaged us in 2022 after procuring a Devil…

Trimma longispinum is a New Species of Pygmygoby from the Northwestern Tropical Pacific 

A new species of Trimma goby has been described from Tabuaeran and Kirimati Atolls, Kiribati. The Long-Spined Pygmygoby, Trimma longispinum, is a tiny goby just one inch long or smaller (24.8mm Holotype,) and was collected from a coral reef near…

Three Super Rare Saltwater Fish Available Right Now

Over the years many of us have fawned over the amazing Twilight Zone fishes shared on Reef Builders, but few of us have seen most of these in person, let alone had the opportunity to purchase them. These animals are…

Convict blennies are the closest thing to cichlids in the sea

Think of cichlid-like saltwater fish and you’ll probably think of damselfish or angelfish, bass, or groupers maybe, but few aquarists are aware that the marine fish most closely related to freshwater cichlids is the Convict Blenny, Pholidicthys leucotaenia.  Also known…

Chromis abyssus video shows life in Palua’s mesophotic zone

A video of one of the world’s deepest known species of damselfish has been shared by one of the three people who described it. Chromis abyssus was discovered in 2007 and described in 2008 by ichthyological legends Richard L. Pyle,…

Gingerbread Corals’ Unique ‘Holographic’ Acanthophyllia

There is a clear disconnect between corals that are actually rare, such as Palauastraea or branching Echinopora, and the hype corals that get the likes on social media or command the highest price tags. Case in point is an incredible…

Tempestichthys bettyae is a tiny new ocean sleeper from the Coral Sea

A new species of reef-dwelling ocean sleeper has been described from Eastern Australia. Named Tempestichthys bettyae the tiny 12.4mm long fish looks like a goby but is in fact from the sister family of the true gobies, Thalasseleotrididae. The ocean…