The rarest fish in Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Animal Crossing: New Horizons is loaded with bugs and fish for players to collect, sell, or add to their museum.

In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, there are a total of 80 fish that can be caught. These can be found in rivers, ponds, and the ocean. They also vary depending on the time of day, the weather, and the season of the year.

While some fish will be encountered more often than desired, others are extremely rare. The rarest fish is available all year long, but only actually appears a handful of times in the life cycle of an Animal Crossing game.

---

What is the rarest fish in Animal Crossing: New Horizons?

Image via Nintendo

The rarest fish in Animal Crossing: New Horizons is the rarest fish from every Animal Crossing game prior. Since the start, the Coelacanth has been the toughest aquatic animal to find in the series.

Considered a five star ultra rare fish, the Coelacanth only appears in the ocean while it is raining with its very huge shadow. In previous games, it would appear with snow, but that was changed for Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Finally caught a Coelacanth in Animal Crossing! 🎣This game is so accurate & educational, I love it! pic.twitter.com/6hsGITKHj8

— Emma Markham 🧬 (@GeneticCuckoo) June 18, 2021

This means, while it can appear all year round, the winter may be a tough time to find one as the cold will make it snow instead of rain. There is no time constraints on its appearance either, like in past games. It can be caught at any time of the day.

Rarity of the coelacanth

Image via Wikipedia

Coelacanths are rare in real life, just as they are in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. The species was thought to have been extinct over 66 million years before it was discovered, only to reappear.

84 specimen were caught and recorded between 1938 and 1975. They were found off the coasts of locations such as Kenya, Mozambique, and Tanzania. One of the more recent sightings of a live coelacanth was in 2019 near South Africa.

Wooo, I caught another rare fish in Animal Crossing! This one is a coelacanth!! pic.twitter.com/TPozJu6I8i

— Aliz (@AlizTheHax0r) May 22, 2021

The entire existence of the Coelacanth and its inclusion in Animal Crossing: New Horizons just goes to show how spectacular of a simulation game it is. It ensures the rarity of the fish outside and inside of the game.