Large polyp stony corals are some of the most highly variable of all species of Scleractinia so it’s always fun to peruse a curated collection in people’s tanks, local fish stores, and especially at large aquarium events. Such a conference…
First Captive Spawning of Homophyllia australis, the Australian ‘Scolie’
For the past ten years my work has been focused on successfully inducing coral spawning events in aquariums, but Homophyllia australis is a species that remained elusive to me despite four years of effort and commitment. The challenge of working…
Japan’s CoralMonster is Flexing a Ton of Great Scolies
CoralMonster is a coral dealer in Japan with a knack for scoring some high profile livestock and today we want to take a minute to appreciate their recent haul of Homophyllia australis. Better known as Scolies or Australian scolymia, this group…
Fragging a Nice Orange Bowerbanki at Aquatic Art Inc.
It’s no secret that LPS corals enjoy a strong following with a wide cross section of the reef aquarium community, and one of the corals leading the charge has long been Homophyllia bowerbanki. We’ve documented the various color forms of this large,…
New Rainbow Scolymia Defies the Limits of Color
There have been a large number of Australian Scolies that have been described as ‘Rainbow’ but perhaps none have been more deserving of that description than this one. This Homophyllia australis was recently acquired by ACI Aquaculture from an Australian supplier…
We’ve Been Hunting a ‘Tonga-Mussa’ for Over Five Years!
Tonga-Mussa is a name we came up with sometime before 2015 to describe a unique LPS coral that we’ve only seen imported from Tonga. At first glance this coral looks like a slight variation of the beloved Homophyllia bowerbanki from…
Blue Fireworks Scolymia Starts Blooming in Japan
Between the bleeding apples and warpaint scolies, the UFOs and the masters, there’s a lot of room for variability in the coloration and appearance of Australian scolies, Homophyllia australis. Whether they are solid green, solid red, shades of orange with irregular spotting…
Australian Scolie Sells For A Record $6000!!!
A new incredible Australian Scolie has sold for the jaw-dropping price of ¥645,840 which currently exchanges to $5,840! It’s no surprise that some aquarium corals, especially in the U.S., can sell for truly eye popping figures but this time the record…
Homophyllia bowerbanki, a reintroduction to ‘Bankies’ and ‘Hillae’
It’s been nearly a year now since the familiar Australian ‘Scolymia’ and Bowerbankis were removed from Acanthastrea and placed into their own new genus Homophyllia. Unsurprisingly, most reefers still call them ‘Acans’ by convention, but there is a lot that we…