Obscure/uncommon fish

[Gumbies R Us]

The peppermint angel. It's a pretty well-known "obscure fish". However, the price point of one and the few times it's available for sale make it uncommon for the vast majority of people.

 

[Paul B]

Dragon Faced Pipefish. My favorite fish :)

 

[VintageReefer]

Used to be common and now it’s been on the ban list and I almost never see them in peoples tank (Vetteguy has one I think)

Potters angelfish

Ora has started captive breeding them but last I checked it was over $500

When I had one years ago it was a 80$ fish regularly in the stores

 

[Üter]

What are some lesser known fish in the hobby? Not necessarily crazy expensive, just something you dont see everyday. Maybe something that would be happy in my 50 gal

razor shrimp-fish

Vertical Shrimp Fish

Striped Shrimp Fish also known as Vertical Razor Fish (Aeoliscus strigatus, 2.5-3.5”) Introduce a touch of the extraordinary to your marine aquarium with the Striped Razor Shrimp Fish (Aeoliscus strigatus). These captivating fish are renowned for their unique vertical swimming posture and...

coralsanonymous.com

 

[Gumbies R Us]

razor shrimp-fish

Vertical Shrimp Fish

Striped Shrimp Fish also known as Vertical Razor Fish (Aeoliscus strigatus, 2.5-3.5”) Introduce a touch of the extraordinary to your marine aquarium with the Striped Razor Shrimp Fish (Aeoliscus strigatus). These captivating fish are renowned for their unique vertical swimming posture and...

coralsanonymous.com

Never heard of those before!

 

[Anna K]

I haven't seen a green Rockmover Wrasse dragon thing yet on the forums. I saw it only once at petco, but never again. Don't know if that's an uncommon fish, but I thought it looked pretty neat.

 

[Shnetts]

Thank you! Looking for and trying to get uncommon but awesome oddities is one of my favourite things to do in this hobby. So its a pleasure to help you.

Acquiring some of these fish can be very difficult and requite a lot of patience (like several years). But not all.

Before I continue, I forgot to mention the Japanese white spot pigmy filefish (Rudarius ercodes available tank bred).

All suggestions I made are suitable for a 50 gallon tank. I have or have kept all suggested genuses. Most also in my previous 55 gallon tank.

Split fin anthias are very difficult to get hold off. You will need a good relation with a good shop. A shop where you can put a special order in and that is open to really make an effort for you. They will need to continuously pester their wholesalers to get them in. If you can, find a shop that transships or imports them selves, they have a more complete insight into stocklists at exporters and may be able to put the request in with them directly.

Regal damsels (Neopomacentrus cyanomos) are being tank bred by Biota and ORA. Biota has named them N. azysron on their website, but that is wrong.

ORA® Regal Demoiselle

The Regal Demoiselle is a damselfish species that loves to school. It has a black-gray body with a beautiful yellow lyre tail that gives it an electric look. This beautiful damselfish is the perfect choice for anyone who wants a school of fish in their aquarium. Purchase size: 1 - 1.25"...

www.algaebarn.com

Lyretail Damselfish

Neopomacentrus azysron - The Lyretail damselfish is a beautiful addition to reef tanks. This species is an exceptionally hardy saltwater fish and makes an excellent beginner fish. They have a black/deep purple body with a bright yellow adorned lyretail. The lyretail can develop long, elegant...

shop.thebiotagroup.com

Getting them wild caught is less of a problem than with the split fins, but still requires special ordering.

the regal damsel is for sure going to be a definite in my new tank,

I do have a pretty good relationship with a shop, im not sure how or who they order from but ill reach out and see if they could help me.

Any other recommendations for some of the other fish you listed?

You've been super helpfull I really apreciate it!!

 

[Shnetts]

Purple tilefish, scorpionfish, true gold spot rabbitfish

the rabbitfish are super cool, no way ones going in a 50 gal tho lol

 

[Shnetts]

I haven't seen a green Rockmover Wrasse dragon thing yet on the forums. I saw it only once at petco, but never again. Don't know if that's an uncommon fish, but I thought it looked pretty neat.

Those are super cool as juveniles, unfortatly they lose all the spikes when they mature

 

[Kasrift]

Thank you! Looking for and trying to get uncommon but awesome oddities is one of my favourite things to do in this hobby. So its a pleasure to help you.

Acquiring some of these fish can be very difficult and requite a lot of patience (like several years). But not all.

Before I continue, I forgot to mention the Japanese white spot pigmy filefish (Rudarius ercodes available tank bred).

All suggestions I made are suitable for a 50 gallon tank. I have or have kept all suggested genuses. Most also in my previous 55 gallon tank.

Split fin anthias are very difficult to get hold off. You will need a good relation with a good shop. A shop where you can put a special order in and that is open to really make an effort for you. They will need to continuously pester their wholesalers to get them in. If you can, find a shop that transships or imports them selves, they have a more complete insight into stocklists at exporters and may be able to put the request in with them directly.

Regal damsels (Neopomacentrus cyanomos) are being tank bred by Biota and ORA. Biota has named them N. azysron on their website, but that is wrong.

ORA® Regal Demoiselle

The Regal Demoiselle is a damselfish species that loves to school. It has a black-gray body with a beautiful yellow lyre tail that gives it an electric look. This beautiful damselfish is the perfect choice for anyone who wants a school of fish in their aquarium. Purchase size: 1 - 1.25"...

www.algaebarn.com

Lyretail Damselfish

Neopomacentrus azysron - The Lyretail damselfish is a beautiful addition to reef tanks. This species is an exceptionally hardy saltwater fish and makes an excellent beginner fish. They have a black/deep purple body with a bright yellow adorned lyretail. The lyretail can develop long, elegant...

shop.thebiotagroup.com

Getting them wild caught is less of a problem than with the split fins, but still requires special ordering.

Split fin anthias are for sale from WWC. They aren't very hardy. I ordered 5, two didn't survive the night. The other two lasted about 30 days in QT.

 

[Shnetts]

The peppermint angel. It's a pretty well-known "obscure fish". However, the price point of one and the few times it's available for sale make it uncommon for the vast majority of people.

if only I had a spare $2,000

 

[Shnetts]

Split fin anthias are for sale from WWC. They aren't very hardy. I ordered 5, two didn't survive the night. The other two lasted about 30 days in QT.

is that the purple pygmy that they have?

 

[Happy Fish KC]

What are some lesser known fish in the hobby? Not necessarily crazy expensive, just something you dont see everyday. Maybe something that would be happy in my 50 gal

Hey there! We have some pretty neat stuff in our tanks that I don't see too often. Some inverts are Kuekenthal Shrimp which we recently learned about, and they're a very voracious shrimp that also eats Aiptasia! Also on inverts we have Pitho crabs, which are really active little guys. Lastly, for actual fish we've got lyretail mollies that are in saltwater, which is something that I rarely see people do. For a lot of setups, I might lean away from mollies purely because they usually stick near the top of the water, and don't enjoy higher flow.

I'd love to see whatever cool guy you put in your tank! Have a great day!
-Carl

 

[OrchidMiss]

Catalina goby. They're beautiful, and while theoretically they can be acclimated to warmer temperatures, they are native to the waters of California and are therefore better suited to a cold tank. I would absolutely love to set up a species tank for one or two someday.

@TangerineSpeedo

 

[Common Blevil]

Segmented lawnmower blenny (Salarias segmentatus). The same as lawnmower, just smaller (4 inches instead of 6), more colourful. They are shyer at first but then are almost not afraid of you at all. I heard that you can keep multiple, but wouldn't recommend, because I've read they ate solitary when adults. If i had a bigger volume i would try keeping more

 

[OrchidMiss]

I haven't seen a green Rockmover Wrasse dragon thing yet on the forums. I saw it only once at petco, but never again. Don't know if that's an uncommon fish, but I thought it looked pretty neat.

@Slocke

 

[Kasrift]

Some great suggestions so far. I'll make a list and where to get them.

Skilletfish https://shop.thebiotagroup.com/collections/cultured-fish/products/clingfish

Yellow or blue Ora Assessor. https://www.bulkreefsupply.com/ora-yellow-assessor-ora.html. You can get them from Algaebarn or Saltwateraquarium.com which is where I got mine.

Pink streaked wrasse
Tanaka possum wrasse or any possum wrasse
Chaoti wrasse

Curious wormfish/worm goby
Yellow striped clingfish/urchin goby
Both are seen intermittently on saltwaterfish.com

griessingeri goby
Whitecap goby
Dracula goby

Starcki Damsel
Madagascar damsel
Blue Chromis
Reef Chromis

Scribbled Rabbitfish
Splitfin Anthias https://worldwidecorals.com/collections/anthias/products/purple-pygmy-anthias-fiji

Hybrids by their very nature are rare:
Hybrid powder blue tang
Hybrid Achilles tang
Hybrid orange shoulder tang

Color variations are also uncommon:
Yellow bellied Blue Hippo Tang
Blue Midas blennies
Black mcCosker wrasse https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/maldives-mccoskers-wrasse-3883312

Then there are oddballs like:
Spotted/splendid garden eels
Mimic puffer fish
Spotted drumfish
Kelpfish

 

[Kasrift]

is that the purple pygmy that they have?

Yes.

 

[ReneReef]

the regal damsel is for sure going to be a definite in my new tank,

I do have a pretty good relationship with a shop, im not sure how or who they order from but ill reach out and see if they could help me.

Any other recommendations for some of the other fish you listed?

You've been super helpfull I really apreciate it!!

Go to your shop on a quiet moment and ask them where they get what from.
What sources they have good experiences with. Tell them what you are looking for and if they are willing to help you to get those fish.

I always discuss with the shop how they suggest to get a fish I ask for. Over time I have developed some preferences of myself as well. Certain more sensitive fish I rather get from a specific wholesaler or have them transshipped from a certain area and quarantined at the fish store.

The fish that I mention as tank bred, you can just look up at Biota of ORA. Order from them or through your LFS.
All fish I mentioned are hardy fish in my experience and reasonably regularly offered in the trade (a few times a year). But in small numbers so you (or your LFS) need to be on top of it. Here in Europe (The Netherlands) I regularly check the stock of wholesalers myself. De Jong Marine Life and Tropical Marine Centre (TMC) have made their stock list publicly accessible.

I know what day of the week my LFS gets orders in from the wholesalers, so if there is something I want that I had not ordered already I let them know and they bring it in for me. Depending on the fish I let the shop do quarantine or I pick-up the fish in the bag of the wholesaler.

When I feel it is important that a wholesaler doesn't just pick any fish, I know some retailers that regularly go there and hand pick. Then I ask one of them to go and see if one of the fish meets my expectations. In the case of TMC (located in Lisbon, Portugal), they send videos of fish to shop owners on request. Then I can pick a fish from the video.

Split fin anthias are for sale from WWC. They aren't very hardy. I ordered 5, two didn't survive the night. The other two lasted about 30 days in QT.

I have had Luzonichthys whitleyi. They were very hardy and easy to care for.
They are very active fish and really need a place to dart away when they feel threatened.

Even the hardiest of fish can come in bad.
So based on your experience alone I would not deem an group of fish as not hardy.

 

[Anna K]

Those are super cool as juveniles, unfortatly they lose all the spikes when they mature

Maybe I have seen them on the forum then, and just didn't know it!