There are not many of these fish left in the swamp.
There are plenty opulent delights available for $300,000. A rare exotic fish called the Asian arowana, on the other hand, is a pricey treat that may surprise some people. This prestige symbol may price up to $300,000 – however some young can fetch as little as $300, and rare white albinos can fetch as much as $70,000.
But why is this fish so valuable?
This fish has a sinuous body and big gleaming scales and is also known as “dragon fish.” When fully grown, these fish may reach 0.6 to 0.9 meters (2 to 3 feet) in length and have whiskers on their chin. Because they resemble the paper dragons in a Chinese New Year parade, they are supposed to bring good luck and wealth.
There have also been reports of arowana sacrificing their life to jump out of tanks in order to alert owners of hazards and also disastrous business endeavors – therefore these fish should certainly go on Dragons Den instead of a fish tank.
What’s amazing is that these fish didn’t always have such a prestigious status and came from far humbler origins. For generations, they were sought as the star of a wonderful dinner from Southeast Asia’s blackwater rivers and wetlands.
Everything changed in 1975.
When Southeast Asia’s wetlands began to diminish, so did the fish. As a result, they were prohibited from international commerce and cannot be lawfully imported into the United States since they are protected under the Endangered Species Act.
According to Emily Voigt, author of The Dragon Behind the Glass, this safeguard backfired.
“That certified rarity stamp really backfired,” Voigt tells The Hustle. “It literally transformed the fish into this limited-edition premium item.”
And today, because of the scarcity of the stamp and its perceived value as a luxury item, there is a booming illicit market, which has resulted in an increase in violence.
In Singapore, four arowana robberies occurred in a single week, and one of these thefts resulted in an old woman being assaulted as the thief carted her fish away in a bucket. In another case, an aquarium owner was stabbed to death and nearly decapitated for these precious fish.
Shawn Lee was pulled over by special agents in Los Angeles County in 2017 with a white-plastic “Coco” bag between his knees containing eight bags of the sought-after Asian arowanas.
These fish are so valuable that some owners are willing to do plastic surgery on them, with some charging $60 for a chin operation and $90 for an eyelift. There are even fish beauty pageants, and the fish are so valuable that armed guards are frequently recruited to accompany them.
The prohibitions were relaxed in the 1980s, allowing the trading of farm-bred Arowana whose parents were captive-born. However, demand remains high, and some of these fish are now raised in extremely secure facilities in Southeast Asia and implanted with traceable microchips. These farms are heavily fortified, with guard dogs, watchtowers, and nesting walls to deter would-be burglars.
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