Meet 6 of the corals that are in danger of becoming illegal

The petition to list over 80 species of stony corals as endangered led to a ruling that 20 of the proposed corals were deemed threatened, and warrant protection under the Endangered Species Act. Of those 20 corals, five are Caribbean…

Rare Acropora robusta sighted in extreme flow environment

Acropora robusta is an interesting, thick branching staghorn coral which also happens to grow crazy fast in a high energy reef tank, especially when it is provided with “maximal” speeds for an aquarium. Often confused for Acropora abrotanoides, the main feature which…

Announcing the Fluval Sea Flores Expedition

We are proud to finally be able to share with you the announcement of the Fluval Sea Flores Expedition, a very special project that we’ve been planning for the better part of a year. Blogging from aquarium events, about happenings,…

‘Hidden Gardens’ is a sneak peek at one of MACNA’s high profile presentations

MACNA is still eight months away yet already a new movie from Wallacea Films is stoking our need to see one of MACNA’s most exciting new speakers. As if Sabine Penisson’s visit to Bali Aquarium‘s coral farm and the announcement…

Palauastrea ramosa coming to aquarists in the future

Palauastrea ramosa is an interesting small polyp stony coral which despite having a broad geographic distribution is all but unknown in the aquarium. Looking somewhat like a cross between a Montipora digitata and a thick branched bird nest coral, Palauastrea is actually related to Seriatopora, Pocillopora and…

Pavona clavus is the World’s Largest Coral Colony

News has spread like wildfire of the discovery of the world’s largest living coral colony. It was discovered last month in the Solomon Islands by National Geographic Pristine Seas team member and underwater cinematographer Manu San Félix, who dove down…

Deciphering the mysteries of Centropyge woodheadi

The marine angelfish family Pomacanthidae is, generally speaking, a very well-understood group. These are some of the most colorful and charismatic fishes found in reef ecosystems, and so they have naturally attracted more than their fair share of taxonomic attention.…

First Photos of a Rare Indonesian Cup Coral, Trochocyathus cooperi

Cup corals are a fascinating group, but one that is almost never available in the aquarium trade. If you’ve ever encountered this common name before, it was likely misapplied to one of the regularly available dendrophylliids, like Tubastraea, Turbinaria, and…

Unusual Gold Parrotfish arrives from Indonesia

A xanthic Scarus psittacus has arrived in the UK, which its importers say is the first of its kind they’ve seen. The 5” fish was caught at Serangan Island just off Bali in the Indian Ocean, in 2-3 meters of…

Cirrhilabrus heterodon: valid species or nah?

Let’s get deep in the weeds with fairy wrasse biogeography, specifically, the Cirrhilabrus cyanopleura group. In 2022, Kai et al enlarged this group with the description of a pair of colorful new species, C. chaliasi and C. aquamarinus, both of…