What crazy things would you do if you were an eccentric gazillionaire?
A lot of people would have sharks with lasers à la Dr. Evil, or just sharks under the living room floor like Vector from "Despicable Me". After a couple of weeks at the beach, I know what I would do:
I want a reef-sized "aquarium" with lots of Triggerfish. Some sharks would be cool, too, but I really want Triggerfish. They're not only beautiful, but highly intelligent and seeming to have distinct personalities.
I'd have lots of the cute little blue scaredy-cat Red-Toothed Triggerfish that hide in mini caves....
;)
;)
Red-Toothed Triggerfish
...more Red-Toothed Triggerfish (one of the four has already slid into a hole to hide)...
;)
....adorable little Picasso Triggerfish....
;)
Picasso Triggerfish
...brightly painted Clown Triggerfish.....
;)
Clown Triggerfish...interestingly colored Orange-lined Triggerfish....
;)
Orange-lined Triggerfish
....and of course, the big smart Titans that root around everywhere and just look squeezable. Wouldn't he be an entertaining pet?
I took this video while snorkeling through the reef just off our room's beach. He also has an Orange-lined friend there to catch his scraps.
Also there will be rays that I can raise from babies to know me and feed in the morning. And Herr J wants a pet octopi or two.
;)
Ray hiding in the sandHowever, this requires lots of space and diverse terrain. Triggerfish need space because they don't play well together (putting it nicely). The Red-Toothed ones need deeper water and walls with lots holes to hide in, while the Picasso are happy with a small coral formation shallow water. And the rays need a nice shallow sandy area to hang out.
More importantly, as I learned from watching one last week, Triggerfish eat hermit crabs, and hermit crabs are kinda cute. And of course I want to keep both of them. This is where both the "eccentric" and the "gazillionaire" part are important, because the only solution I see is to get custom manufactured military grade ceramic shells for the hermit crabs to protect them from the Triggerfish. In a wide range of sizes to allow for growth, of course.
(All of the above pictures are ones I took diving or snorkeling in the Maldives)
I think for now I'll keep diving and will see about Umbra's cool stackable fish condos, but I'm curious to know all of your eccentric gazillionaire dreams.
;)