Captive coral spawning is a big deal right now and represents the cutting edge of decades of trial and error when we learned first how to keep them alive, then how to frag them, and now, most importantly, how to…
Coral
Flashback Friday: Jake’s Green ‘Grafted’ Turbinaria heronensis
The current Reef Builders team are big fans of Turbinaria heronensis, and that’s due in no small part to the love, affection, and numerous column inches dedicated to them by Jake Adams. A green heronensis is one thing, but a…
Flashback Friday: Jake’s love for Anacropora
Those who knew Jake Adams knew his passion spanned all Scleractinians, but there is one lesser known, lesser kept genus that he was particularly passionate about and even got to collect them in the wild – Anacropora. So we thought…
Crazy Ludicrous Chalice in the wild!
Once in a while, you come across a coral during a dive, and you can’t not share it with everyone. This was the case during an exploration dive in the south of Sumba. Exposed, high swell, cold up-wellings, everyone was…
The Orange Tree Gorgonian is a Rare, Deepwater Treat
The wonderful Swiftia exserta, also known as the Orange Tree Gorgonian, is a treat for all those reef hobbyists who enjoy oddball marine life. Their striking color and shape have them highly sought after in the non-photosynthetic side of the…
Rare Soft Coral Surfaces at QGI Aquatics
We have all seen our fair share of soft and azooxanthellate corals in the hobby, but this one is definitely different. Not much is known about Chromonephthea as they rarely make it into the hobby. The specimens pictured were imported…
Malaysia’s Largest Inland Coral Farm Uses Radio Frequency ID Tags
Earlier this year I was invited to speak at The Garden and Aquatic Show in Singapore. This show also featured quite a few highlights of interest for reefkeeping enthusiasts. One of those was a marine aquascaping contest. All participants started…
Study Reveals How Corals Gain N and P in Darwin’s Paradox
An article published in the Journal Nature has found that photosynthetic corals not only host their symbiotic algae, they feed directly on it too, and importantly, it is how they uptake Nitrogen and Phosphorus. The paper titled “Reef-building corals farm…
NOAA designates 6,500 square miles of Critical Habitat to protect Caribbean Corals
NOAA Fisheries has published a final rule to designate critical habitat for five species of Caribbean coral under the US Endangered Species Act. Effective from September 8, 2023, 28 mostly overlapping areas in US waters will be designated Critical Habitat,…
The Five Best SPS Corals For Beginners
Small Polyp Stony Corals are some of the most popular aquarium corals, and the most populous on natural reefs, famed for their spiky branches, flat tables, or swirling plates. Not all SPS corals are the same, however, or as easy…