Bubba's SPS Journey

[CoralWealth]

BQ Bubbalicious

I always wondered it on BC's pictures. What is the pink/purple algae on the tile?

 

[bubbaque]

Is this a smooth skin piece?

I believe so but if you look at this pic my branches don't get very long so it's hard to tell.

I always wondered it on BC's pictures. What is the pink/purple algae on the tile?

At least for me it's just dark coralline. If you look at this pic you can see the dark stuff on the outside of the tile and the normal pink stuff near the inside.

 

[drawman]

BQ Bubbalicious

Gorgeous piece Bubba! Almost looks like a darker version of the WWC French Tickler.

 

[Battlecorals Verified Sponsor]

Is this how we get all the beautiful named corals? Someone gets a wild or maricultured piece and brings it inside and sees what happens? Do some not change much, and some change drastically? I have assumed this is what has been going on, but never confirmed. I find this cool, but makes we wonder why more people don't just go for wild or mari, guess they are harder to get and harder to domesticate.

Yes this is exactly how 95% of my BC collection has been built. The trick (or burden rather) is, i have spent thousands over the years on coral colonies that crashed on me fast, or others never really rounded the corner It's a frustrating marathon believe me., and a bottomless spending pat as well lol. Not even to mention pests...

Not complaining though. It's the way I have been able to amass the collection i have. wild colonies are a super gamble, but the reward can be very satisfying.

 

[Bpb]

Is this how we get all the beautiful named corals? Someone gets a wild or maricultured piece and brings it inside and sees what happens? Do some not change much, and some change drastically? I have assumed this is what has been going on, but never confirmed. I find this cool, but makes we wonder why more people don't just go for wild or mari, guess they are harder to get and harder to domesticate.

It’s easier to forget this fact, and I know we can laugh and say “well duh”, but on a long enough timeline, every single coral with a name was plucked from the ocean. They’re all wild collects given silly names. To me that is a more honest method than buying someone else’s named piece and renaming it something your own

 

[Lostreefin]

Yes this is exactly how 95% of my BC collection has been built. The trick (or burden rather) is, i have spent thousands over the years on coral colonies that crashed on me fast, or others never really rounded the corner It's a frustrating marathon believe me., and a bottomless spending pat as well lol. Not even to mention pests...

Not complaining though. It's the way I have been able to amass the collection i have. wild colonies are a super gamble, but the reward can be very satisfying.

Thanks for the response! I don't want to steal too many secrets, but what are the main factors in getting them to turn into the amazing stuff you share with all of us? Do you think genetics is the biggest driver? Or is it time, intense light, spectrum, and precise control of nutrients, etc? This is really super fascinating to me!

 

[Battlecorals Verified Sponsor]

Thanks for the response! I don't want to steal too many secrets, but what are the main factors in getting them to turn into the amazing stuff you share with all of us? Do you think genetics is the biggest driver? Or is it time, intense light, spectrum, and precise control of nutrients, etc? This is really super fascinating to me!

Really all of the above. I mean I've had pieces like the cem party which is great example, that will take a drastic turn. I think that our lighting can promote coloration different from when they were wild. Sometimes it's a strike, and sometime it's a total gutter ball lol. But I am still very much fascinated watching this process. It's one of my driving forces actually. In fact, something I have been wanting to do a long time now is start documenting better, the entire transition from battered and pale wild hunk, to captive beauty. And thenoffer this info on the site for reference as well.

But to answer your question, I think genetics plays the most part. A pretty coral has potential to be pretty in captivity. The same can not be said about a coral with less flattering coloration in the wild. I'm sure there are always exceptions but generally this is pretty true.

Sorry for the thread derailment lol

 

[hatfielj]

Good to hear from the pros! As Adam pointed out, the effort it takes to bring in wild colonies and get them to grow in captivity is more than most reefers realize. You need multiple systems running to properly quarantine new arrivals and excellent, consistent water conditions in each tank. And, despite all your good efforts, a good amount of them won't survive no matter what you do. That's why nice corals cost what they cost. I actually think it's better that we don't all buy wild colonies ourselves. It would be much more wasteful if hobbyists were buying up boxes of wild colonies and bringing them home. It's better to let some seasoned pros do it and share the good stuff once they find it. I'd rather spend $200 on a single nice frag of bubblebath for instance, then have to go buy a box of wild colonies and wait a year or more for maybe one out of a dozen to actually turn into something nice. Sure, there's potential to make money there if you find a gem, but the up front cost of getting there is a lot and it's risky.

 

[Lostreefin]

Thanks for letting us hijack Bubba! Waiting for some more gorgeous pics!

 

[hatfielj]

I'm still waiting for those updated FTS

 

[bubbaque]

I'm still waiting for those updated FTS

It's still basically the same. It's only been slightly over 3 months since the last FTS pic. I will probably do them once every 6 months or so.

 

[marco fish]

BQ Bubbalicious

WOW !!!! A+ in all of your skills bro, my hats off to you sir!!!!!

 

[bubbaque]

WOW !!!! A+ in all of your skills bro, my hats off to you sir!!!!!

Thank you sir!

 

[Millimylilly]

Beautiful corals, following along here!

 

[Ert]

ALLL BEAUTIFUL!!! Any updates on NO3 and PO4? Been struggling to keeping NO3 detectable to the point where I'm dosing KNO3 now. I feed 8 cubes/daily in my 85g but the chaeto sucks it all up!

 

[bubbaque]

ALLL BEAUTIFUL!!! Any updates on NO3 and PO4? Been struggling to keeping NO3 detectable to the point where I'm dosing KNO3 now. I feed 8 cubes/daily in my 85g but the chaeto sucks it all up!

Thank you!

I personally wouldn't worry about your po4 and no3 if your corals are not pale. Most of the time my no3 and po4 are undetectable or real close to it but my corals looked great so I didn't do anything about it.

Right now my nutrients are slightly higher than I would like as my po4 is .09 and no3 around 5 - 7 ppm

 

[bubbaque]

WWC All star is starting to grow a little faster.

Pic is under radions set to 14k

 

[cboltsd01]

WWC All star is starting to grow a little faster.

Pic is under radions set to 14k

Any noticable differences between this piece and the ARC Firework or BKCHEM Wetdream?

 

[SeaDweller]

Any noticable differences between this piece and the ARC Firework or BKCHEM Wetdream?

They do look very similar huh?

 

[bubbaque]

They do look very similar huh?

Any noticable differences between this piece and the ARC Firework or BKCHEM Wetdream?

I think the Fireworks looks pretty different and isn't too great of a coral IMO, at least mine isn't. The all star on the other hand looks pretty similar to the wetdream.