Acan subechinata

[Russellaqua]

I collect Acan species and am wondering if anyone has a subechinata they'd be willing to trade or sell. I have over 50 genera of coral so I can offer quite a few things for trade. Please be 100% sure it's a subechinata as it is a very close cousin to echinata and regularis. Thanks.

 

[twon8]

i'm not sure how to tell the difference between the two, got any pointers?

 

[Russellaqua]

I can't really tell the difference between the two. I've never seen a subechinata in person because they're so uncommon in the hobby and pictures are iffy at best for ID. I knew where I could get one for a while but I missed my chance.

 

[msman825]

can you give more info on it

 

[Russellaqua]

They are extremely similar to both A. echinata and A. regularis so they're easily confused. I would consider them a "moderately fleshy" Acan as opposed to something very fleshy like an A. lordhowensis or scaly like an A. rotundoflora. It's also similar to A. hillae. It has a fairly large polyp size and they are fairly uniform in size and distribution.

 

[msman825]

I dont know if i ever saw one. are can remember it

 

[msman825]

is this it http://www.vividaquariums.com/10Expand.asp?ProductCode=09-9034-10

 

[Russellaqua]

That's it. Thanks

 

[msman825]

looks like a rainbow too me.

 

[msman825]

wow sorry about the huge pic

 

[LorenK]

 

[Patwa]

didn't grisha or gflat (or someone else with a name beginning with a 'G', i think) have a pic of an echinata-looking acan that they could not identify??????...only thing was the polyp was huuuge...it did look like an echinata for sure, just the polyp was massive....could it have been a sub-echinata?

or what about this? TCR has a unidentifed acan...they have it as "Maxima"

Zach

 

[Russellaqua]

I could certainly believe that pic is a maxima. Maximas grow extremely large polyps and are quite rare in the hobby, often commanding prices of $100+ per polyp. Since those polyps are heading for an inch across I'm almost positive it's an Acanthastrea maxima. If someone you know has one that they didn't pay much for they were very, very lucky indeed. Mine was $150 for 2 small polyps.

 

[Patwa]

are you sure??...i definitely do not think it's a maxima....in fact, i believe barely anyone in north america beyond, maybe, a few academic institutions or public aquariums have a true, bonafide a. maxima......it's not that it's rare or expensive......it comes from a specific part of the world where export is strictly illegal.

in fact, practically all "maximas" i've seen look like scolymia sp., a. echinatas, a. hillae, a. bowerbanki, lobophyllia sp.

no one will ever be able to tell for sure anyways.....you will need to look at nothing less than a skeleton or a CITES export manifest given the immense amount of pushback you'll get from people when you proudly declare "i have a true a. maxima"

just my $0.02

Zach

 

[Patwa]

I could certainly believe that pic is a maxima. Maximas grow extremely large polyps and are quite rare in the hobby, often commanding prices of $100+ per polyp. Since those polyps are heading for an inch across I'm almost positive it's an Acanthastrea maxima. If someone you know has one that they didn't pay much for they were very, very lucky indeed. Mine was $150 for 2 small polyps.

almost forgot about this thread....

can you PLEASE post a pic of your acan maxima? i neeeeed to see it.....heck, any acan nut would be interested in seeing a maxima, i believe.

Zach

 

[Russellaqua]

Here's a pic of what was sold to me as an A. maxima. Of the corals you mentioned it bears a closest resemblance to A. echinata, but these polyps are much larger than any A. echinata I've come across. This is a pic I stole from the retailers site so it's a "baby" pic of it. The polyps are ~1.5 inches across now. I bought it largely because of the bizarre coloration of the piece and of course it supposedly being an A. maxima. I have an A. bowerbanki and an A. hillae, definitely not those. I'm not 100% sure of what it is. It came from Totally Exotic Corals.

 

[msman825]

Mark you have a piece that color??? i like that

 

[Russellaqua]

That's the exact piece. Red, green, and black all in the same coral. I've never seen anything like it before or since. How often do you ever see black in a coral? It's grown a 3rd head since I've had it (about 6 months) but it's still a baby. I wish they grew faster. I know people would love it.

 

[msman825]

I wish it grew fast for you too. I try getting a piece from you.

 

[Russellaqua]

I'll keep you in mind when it's time to frag it.