Indonesian Acropora tenuis has been renamed Acropora bifaria

A team of 11 coral researchers has used phylogenomic techniques to resolve the taxonomy of the genus Acropora. Historically, coral taxonomy was based almost exclusively on skeletal morphology, resulting in the description of some 400 species of Acropora, with two-thirds…

Watermelon Chalice is a stunning coral

While diving in North Sulawesi, we came across a fantastic small colony of Oxypora lacera, the Watermelon Chalice. While this color morph is quite common in Australia, it’s quite rare in Indonesia. The perfect red colony color, with a green…

Are Goni gardens the next big thing from Indonesia?

When you see three coral suppliers all showing off the same thing in the same week it’s safe to say they are about to trend in the hobby. That has been the case this week for Goniopora gardens from Indonesia,…

Millies and Spaths found hand in hand in Indonesia!

These two iconic Acropora are so closely related that for many years A. spathulata were thought to be thick versions of Acropora millepora on the top and exposed reef. Acropora spathulata was even called A. millepora by the most eminent…

Grafted Pikachu Acropora anthocercis is a rare sight

It’s the spawning season, and like every year, we spend many nights for months, doing night dives, and observing different spawning species. With coral spawning, there are many missed nights, where nothing is happening. Going from coral to coral, checking…

Acropora awi is another deepwater beauty!

Acropora awi is a deep water Acropora that has been grown in Indonesian mariculture farms for quite a while. Nevertheless, it has never had the credit it deserves, probably due to misidentification, and its dull natural coloration. But after cooking…

The Mimic Anemone strikes again, this time pretending to be algae!

It’s not the first time we’ve written about the insane anemone, Phyllodiscus semoni, and its crazy ability to disguise itself in its environment, mimicking different species of corals such as Acropora, Porites, Tubipora, Sinularia, Algae, and even other anemones. And…

Stony coral ID guide launched at CITES CoP 19

A guide named “Identification of CITES-listed live stony corals in the aquarium trade” has been formally launched at the CITES CoP 19 meeting in Panama. The guide is the product of a research project led by the Centre for Environment,…

Colonial tunicates are cool but should be avoided

While scanning the Acro tank in our LFS we noticed this overgrowing the base of a colony. It’s an ascidian, a colonial tunicate, possibly Botrylloides leachii, which has spread over this Indonesian maricultured Acropora in a matter of just weeks.…

Acropora walindii, another deep water SPS jewel

Over the years, as you probably noticed, we have a thing for deep water Acros. Our love for them has never stopped growing mainly because they are just the best Aquarium Acropora because they just bloom and thrive in reef…