A couple of hybrid Thalassoma wrasses found in Australia

Hybridised animals never cease to amaze and even the most jaded collector is not immune to their uniqueness  The random combination of DNA thrown together by nature’s genetic dice can often prove more surprising than our wildest imaginations.  If someone…

Blackspot pygmy angelfish found living in Australia, net-caught and MAC certified

This feature of the blackspot pygmy angelfish is a great inaugural post from what will become a regular contribution from various team members of Cairns Marine. Being one of Australia’s largest marine life collectors comes with its perks and when…

Sea Dwelling Creatures brings rare Bodianus paraleucosticticus to America

The five stripe hogfish, Bodianus paraleucosticticus, is an amazing and rare hogfish which very rarely graces American soil. Recently, Cairns Marine out of Australia has been making more regular excursions to the Coral Sea to get exotic reef fish such as the five-striped…

Cirrhilabrus squirei: First specimen caught and shipped to BlueHarbor

“Cirrhilabrus squirei” is a spanking new labrid to be added to the growing list of fairy wrasses species. Collected in the Coral Sea, this ultra gorgeous species pays homage to Cirrhilabrus johnsoni, as well as Cirrhilabrus cf. lanceolatus (The Pintail…

MAC certified Bodianus paraleucosticticus from Holmes Reef is a stunning beauty

Bodianus paraleucosticticus is a rare and highly sought after hogfish that doesn’t doesn’t get much airtime in the aquarium scene. The five-striped hogfish has a large range which spans from PNG, Bali, Palau, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, and the Cook Islands. This…

OMG! Stunning Rainfordia opercularis appears at Blue Harbor

The Rainfordia opercularis is one of the most uncommon reef fish we know about and its not to often this rare specimen available in the market. We don’t know too much about this specific specimen except it’s in the hands of…

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…

TRITON’s New X-PAND and N-FUSE Improve Coral Feeding Efficiency

TRITON has announced the launch of two innovative new products: X-PAND and N-FUSE. Inspired by natural processes observed and researched on the Great Barrier Reef in Cairns, Australia, these innovative solutions are aimed at improving the efficiency of coral feeding…

Three Interesting Inverts for Your Reef Aquarium

Curating an NPS-biotope aquarium in your home opens the unique opportunity to keep filter-feeding and NPS-coral-associated invertebrates that might otherwise do poorly in your typical reef aquarium setup. In today’s article, I highlight three strangely beautiful inverts not commonly kept…

What does the Future Hold for Reefkeeping?

For many of us, 2023 was a rough year. But as I typically do during a tough year I start looking at the future and hopefully better times. 2024 will mark the fortieth year I have been in reefkeeping. The…