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So, just out of curiosity, what is the rarest fish that you've ever kept? I've kept some pretty obscure stuff but the rarest would probably be Piabarcus analis, a tetra from South America. I had ordered Iguanadectes spilurus, a not common tetra anyway, but he was out and asked if he could substitute this other fish. They are so rare it's hard to even get a picture of them! Next would be Allondichthys hubbsi, a goodied. I don't remember where I got me group but when I was breeding them it was my understanding I was the only one in the US breeding them!
Runners up would be Katria katria, a cichlids from Madagascar that I have heard isn't even in the hobby anymore, at least I the US. Pungu maclareni and Konia eisentrauti from Lake Baromi-mbo wrap up my list of pretty dang uncommon.
Okay, let's hear your stories!

Rasbora axelrodi in 2003, when they were wild caught and no one really knew much about them. Otherwise I keep relatively easy fish.

Well, none of the ones I mentioned were particularly hard to keep! The hubbsi were the ones I spawned though.

Only counting fish that I kept at home, as opposed to fish that I stocked in my former stores, I would say that Brachyrhamdia imitator is probably the rarest fish I kept. I'm not sure how rare these are in the wild, but they are certainly very rare in the hobby. B. imitator is a pimelodid catfish that mimics Corydoras melanistius. When young, they swim with schools of cories and blend right in. I happened to be looking over a tank of cories and noticed that one had very long whiskers-- extending toward the tail. I looked closer and realized that also had a much larger adipose fin than any cory cat. As it grows, Brachyrhamdia imitator looks less like a cory cat, taking on the shape of a pimelodid catfish. The pattern fades a bit, too.

Anyway, it was a cool fish that I had for many years. Over the years, I have seen less than a half dozen of these. I found a dealer who had managed to find three over the years, but he wouldn't sell them. There are also other Brachyrhamdia species that mimic other cories.

That would be a cool one!

I've kept and bred Coptodon bythobates, which is on the Red List of endangered species.

A long time ago I found some Nannochromis dimidiatus, which laid eggs several times, but I was never able to get them to hatch. Water hardness was probably the reason.

I've had Pelvicachromis humulis, but was never able to get a spawn, unless they spawned in a cave, and I never saw the eggs. If they had spawned, they probably didn't hatch again because of the water hardness.

Denny

I once kept Pseudobarbus phlegethon also the fiery red fin. It is an African fresh water fish. Not sure it is still endangered but it was about five years ago.

Pretty cool! Hadn't even heard of that one.

I think there is so much in terms of variety out there, hard to exhaust. This is an interesting thread, also learning of some i'd never heard of before.

I'm not sure how rare it is, but I just got a pair of Parazyprichromis nigripinnis (Tanganykan mid-water) today. Based on price, it may be pretty rare. I may have to look for more to get a school going. We'll see how these do in my tank first. Denny

Did you buy the ones at Whole Pet?

2 of them.

Hope you have good luck with them. Those were pricey!

Surprisingly, Gail was the one who talked me into getting them. That doesn't happen very often. They are both alive with erect fins today, so I didn't kill them outright. They are supposed to be sort of sensitive. I may have to look at Dave's Rare Fish to see about getting more of them. Denny

Just googled them, beautiful!