Have any of you guys ever tried to import a fish (or several) into the United States? To the best of my understanding if the species in question isn't on a short list of "injurious animals" defined by the Lacey Act, and if you're not importing them for commercial use (generally assumed to mean a quantity of fewer than 10 individuals), this only requires the approval of the US Fish and Wildlife Service and their approval amounts to checking to make sure that the fish are what you say they are and that they're not diseased. There are several dozen species of carp that are on the injurious animals list, and a few other obvious ones (snakeheads).
https://www.fws.gov/node/266035You do have to fly these into a particular port (not all have a USFW office), and there is a fee that (unless it runs into overtime) amounts to about $100. The things I read suggest that you should contact fish and wildlife several days in advance of the arrival of the fish.
The fish I'm interested in are any of several species of freshwater anchovies. There is a species in Australia (T. scratchleyi), but also several in South America. How could these even survive a trip on a plane (or more likely, several)? How would I go about finding someone willing to obtain specimens and ship them? Would a South American species be easier to ship to the US?
