Just yesterday we reported about the pair of Interruptus Angelfish (Centropyge interrupta) that was posted for sale in the LiveAquaria Diver’s Den. As if those two rare beauties wasn’t enough, the Wisconsin-based livestock dealers also listed the very rare Earlei’s Fairy Wrasse (Cirrhilabrus earlei) on the same day. This beautiful little wrasse measures around 2 1/4″ in length and sports a vibrant pink body with purple pinstripes. It also carries with it a $1500 price tag, which begs the question “why is C. earlei such a rare and expensive fish?”. Well, besides the fact that they are so beautiful, these wrasse are found in extraordinarily deep waters around a very tight geographic region. They have been collected over 300 feet down, which means more equipment and advanced diving techniques are required. Most C. earlei are caught around Palaua, but this particular individual was caught in the Marshall Islands according to its associated descriptions.
It should be noted that a few individuals have been imported into the US recently and this isn’t the first time LiveAquaria has had one for sale.
