Another new $$$ rare Anthias

[ZANYMASTER]

My ugly blotched Anthias as Dean said is thriving and doing well and I bought it from Live Aquaria.

 

[jhale]

Holy sh** WES thats 3 times in 2 days!

hey ZZ nice to see you posting again

 

[ZZROCOOL]

I'll tell you what really drives me nuts, even more then the price complaints about this fish is that nobody has even bothered to comment on the unique care requirements this fish has lit the temp or the fact that they really need to live in large groups 20+ (that isn't even mentioned by DFS), and the fact that many of the deep water anthias have an extremely short life span so even in the wild may only live a few months. How would one even gauge the success of keeping this fish if it died in 2 months? It would be a success if it only lives for 3 in the wild!
Interesting!

 

[ZZROCOOL]

hey ZZ nice to see you posting again

missed u 2

and I have been behaving and trying to contribute to the greater good!

 

[marrone]

What you’re saying is obvious!
My point is the general negative reaction people have to the high price is largely unfounded.
The people who buy things because they are rare do because they don't want a tank filled with the same 12 fish everybody else has and if being unique carries a larger price tag and they are ok with that then great.

I think people negative reactions to high prices isn't unfounded. I think it's good that people here react to fish and corals that are price very high. In some case it may warranty the high price, but in a lot of case it doesn't. Myself personal I find the items in the Driver Den to be over priced, regardless of the care they give them. They do discount things quickly though, sometimes bring the price down to a good range.

A lot of people get caught up in "rare" things, whether the fish is better than the same 12 fish that everyone has. You'll also find that some people could care less what it look like or even if it's hard to keep, they just want it because it rare. These are the people were money isn't an issue and all they want is something good swimming around their tank. These are the "suckers", as Rich called them, who will buy the high priced fish in the Driver Den, more often than not.

Additionally just because things show up at your LFS doesn't make them the same quality as what somebody else gets. There are many many wholesalers and some have better quality then others.

Most of the fish are coming from the same distributors, what you see showing up at Live Aquaria, or other on-line places, are coming from the same sources that you see at your LFS. To see this just look at the sales that each place is running, you'll see it usually the same fish that are on sale. The quality is the same it's the shop and how they handle the fish that makes the difference. What you're not seeing at Live Aquaria, or other on-line places, are all the fish that die or are sick. And by the way not all fish or corals from Live Aquaria's Drive Den are disease free or don't die. I give them credit for Qt their fish but so do other on-line places. It's also nice that they list how they handle their fish, it's a good selling point for them.

Borbonius Anthias were expensive 18 months ago and still are! because of some major factors, they are only collected in 1 place and only for 2 months a year. They are also tough shippers and don't always acclimate well. In the case of divers den specimens they are held for a period of time and established as "healthy" (no guaranty but certainly better then many LFS) that level of care comes with a premium.

That fine but it comes down to what is the premium Live Aquaria is going to charge for that service. Regardless whether they get the fish to you in better condition, as compared to LFS, there still is a price were it would be considered over priced.

Additionally only the best specimens DFS gets end up on divers den, the majority is offered at normal average LFS prices.

Is this writing some where? The fish/corals that are sold in the Driver Den are held at their facilities in Wisconsin, all the other fish that that sell are shipped directly from wholesalers. As for being the best, well I've seen some fish that are pretty common and not in the best condition listed. I've also purchased some fish off of their web site and the fish I received was in better condition than the one that they had listed in the Driver Den.

I equate the criticism of Divers Den prices to the same kind of criticism consistent with some of the LFS's in the area who don't discount for MR members or charge more then a discount LFS.

I don't see this, not even close. You're comparing people complaining about not getting a discount, or LFS charging more than on-line places, vs a place that lists fish for a lot higher than normal, and in some case off the scale.

If people don't want to pay for the quality that Divers Den or a high end LFS offer's that doesn't make them overpriced! It makes them higher end then one can afford.

And in some case it makes them overpriced.

This site should not become a place for complaining about paying a premium for quality but one that helps to discern the differences between what is offered.

There is a difference between paying for quality and over paying. Once again just because some thing is expensive doesn't mean that it is equal in quality.

The Driver Den is a WYSISYG thing were Live Aquaria has found out they can charge more for corals & fish then they regularly do. You'll find a number of other places have also started to do this too.

And again for the record I can't afford that fish!

On the record, I can afford that fish but I wouldn't buy it because I'm not into collecting things just because they're rare, and I do find it over priced too.

 

[artie1209]

I could not disagree more. Go to house of fins and buy a acan compare those prices to Live Aquaria. How about the frag sites which offer 3 polyps for 80-90 dollars. I am not saying they are cheap but lets be fair their quality is very good and on most items they are competitive. You all know you can find less expensive but can you always find consistent quality at discount prices. Besides it is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it. No buyers either the price drops or they don't stock it. let me be absolutely clear. I would never purchase a fish at that price, and i think that the price is outrageous. But you can't impugn the entire site for a few outrageous oddities.

 

[marrone]

Just because someone has very good quality doesn't mean that they're still not overpriced. Just because one place has higher prices than another doesn't mean that both of those places aren't overpriced.

Also it has nothing to do with finding things at discount prices, it has to do with whether an item is overpriced or not.

 

[artie1209]

All I am trying to say is their prices seem (to me in my limited exposure to higher end corals) to be quite competitive. I hate to pay what seems to be top dollar and then add $40 shipping too. I have not found too many places in the Westchester area that even sell a blasto never the less a colorful one for under a $100 that has not been fraged to tiny pieces. Thanks to this forum I see there are a few places around that actually sell a blasto or acan that is not brown. And if their prices are competitive my hard earned dollar will go there. IMO the live aquaria site is not the least expensive but at least I know I am getting a healthy specimen. Isn't that worth what you pay for it. And of course $800 for an anthias is outrageous.

 

[lunner]

How can you guys call Blotched Anthias ugly? I love their look. Zanymaster, yours is still small?, their colors get a bit more richer when older. They look very cute and cartoony. And more unique then these Privitera Anthias. :theyareon

 

[ZANYMASTER]

No,it's a Mature one like on the Cover of Dr.F&S.I posted a pic of it a week ago.

 

[lunner]

Hmm my small one looks a bit lighter in color then the bigger one from the first day I got them. Anyway. I don't think they are ugly :inlove:

 

[Deanos]

I said these look better than Blotchys. I never used the term ugly.

 

[jhale]

After the recent high of the $400 Blotched Anthias. Another new Anthias is claiming the new heavy weight title. Does it worth their asking price? You be the judge.

Yes the price is entirely justified by the difficulty in collecting them. I am not in favor of bringing these fish to market, but that's a whole other discusion.

Take a look at this site http://www.bishopmuseum.org/research/treks/palautz97/index.html
Read about how much fun it is to dive at 280' then ask if the fish is overpriced.
Also take a look at this page see anything familiar? :scratchch Lot's of the fish found at 300' are being sold regularly now.

 

[lunner]

I wonder how much they get paid for diving that deep...

 

[JasonE]

There's a couple of things to be considered here. Short of what's been listed on Liveaquaria, nobody here has the faintest idea what it took to bring these fish to the US. Diving to 280 ft is fraught with danger, requiring ridiculously expensive equipment and skill. These were collected in the Cook Islands, pretty remote, so getting there and back is expensive.
Lets say they get there, have 3 dives and catch 3 fish. Worth $900? Absolutely. There are enough rare fish collectors out there who would happily pay for that. And it doesn't make it overpriced at all. It's worth every penny to the chap that's willing to pay the price. It might be out of your price range, but not overpriced.
However, my one big beef with bringing this fish to market, is the fact that it will probably have a lifespan similar to Ventralis anthias. I don't know many people keeping their reef tanks at 75 these days. Also consider the fact that the price may be high to deter inexperienced/impulsive hobbyists from buying it.

 

[lunner]

So Jason, thinking of get one? You know you want one. :shocked1:

 

[KEVIN MTI]

I Have Had This Fish In My Shop ,we Sold Them To The Stores For Maybe 20$ I Am Going To Look On Old Invoices To See The Name And How Much I Paid For Them ,

 

[Deanos]

Old invoices? I thought these were newly imported

 

[KEVIN MTI]

read carefully it says the first time collected from the cook islands ,these fish have been collected from indo and and northern australia for years

 

[Deanos]

first time collected from the cook islands

Thanks, you just solidified my point