Blue Angelfish Found in Orleans, MA

Blue Angelfish, photo/New England Aquarium 2024

The blue angelfish rescued in Little Pleasant Bay. Photo/Danielle Orcutt

A juvenile blue angelfish—a tropical species—was discovered in a Little Pleasant Bay oyster farm in Orleans, MA, on September 25. It represents the northernmost sighting of a blue angelfish in the U.S.

The iridescent fish measured less than an inch long, and was probably carried north by the Gulf Stream and deposited along Cape Cod by inshore currents. The angelfish was initially given to Wild Care Inc., a wildlife rehabilitation and education organization based in Eastham, MA, before being transferred to the New England Aquarium.

The tiny angelfish isn’t the only unusual exotic visitor to southern New England this season. Others have included a pair of large tarpon caught by recreational fishermen off Rhode Island and Martha’s Vineyard, plus a red drum taken off Chatham, MA.