Hawaiin Flame Angel
- Thread starter vanmle
- Start date
One of my good friends in Oahu, a famous diver John P. Hoover once told me that the Hawaiian population is the same with those from other localities, but some exceptions are really deep red. He states that many are similar to those Pacific populations and he rarely encounters such a bright red fish in the Hawaiian Islands. We can see similarly colored specimens often shipped from Christmas Island (Line Islands). A high-priced Flame Angelfish that is said to have been collected in Hawaii could be a specimen from Christmas Island !
AJF
New member
Hi..
I suppose the difference is the Colors, in liveaquaria:
''There are slight differences in both coloration and markings of this species based on the location of collection. Flames from the Marshall Islands are more red in color, with thicker black bars running vertically down the body. Flames from the Cook Islands are more orange in coloration with either small black bars, or only a few thin bars running vertically down the body. Christmas Island Flames are normally a red/orange coloration with thin black bars running vertically down the body. Flames from Tahiti are blood red and contain very little to no yellow.''
I suppose the difference is the Colors, in liveaquaria:
''There are slight differences in both coloration and markings of this species based on the location of collection. Flames from the Marshall Islands are more red in color, with thicker black bars running vertically down the body. Flames from the Cook Islands are more orange in coloration with either small black bars, or only a few thin bars running vertically down the body. Christmas Island Flames are normally a red/orange coloration with thin black bars running vertically down the body. Flames from Tahiti are blood red and contain very little to no yellow.''
copps
Premium Member
Keep in mind that the VAST majority of "Hawaiian flame angels" in the market are actually from Christmas Island shipped through Hawaii. I travel to Hawaii regularly and at the wholesalers Christmas Island flames come in by the planefull at low prices...
The truth is for those who have dove in Hawaii that true Hawaiian flames are rare, and the steady supply of Christmas Island flames combined with this has the collectors concentrating on other species... like yellow tangs where the opposite is true... much more common in Hawaii than other Pacific locales...
There is talk that true Hawaiian flames are a deeper red, but quite honestly I haven't seen it... that's not to say it isn't there...
To get a true Hawaiian flame you'd have to get in touch with a trusted Hawaiian diver that could put the effort to collect them, as opposed to shipping one of the thousands of Christmas Island ones that hit Hawaii... There are holes were they are more common on Oahu, but one can go on dozens of dives without seeing them...
The truth is for those who have dove in Hawaii that true Hawaiian flames are rare, and the steady supply of Christmas Island flames combined with this has the collectors concentrating on other species... like yellow tangs where the opposite is true... much more common in Hawaii than other Pacific locales...
There is talk that true Hawaiian flames are a deeper red, but quite honestly I haven't seen it... that's not to say it isn't there...
To get a true Hawaiian flame you'd have to get in touch with a trusted Hawaiian diver that could put the effort to collect them, as opposed to shipping one of the thousands of Christmas Island ones that hit Hawaii... There are holes were they are more common on Oahu, but one can go on dozens of dives without seeing them...
