ORA Pearlberry back in production

Kappaquariums · Apr 10, 2019

While browsing liveaquaria reading the care guides for corals. I stumbled onto what appears to be ORA Pearlberry Acropora frags right from the source. Didn't ORA stop producing these a long time ago?

https://www.liveaquaria.com/product...aquacultured-ora?pcatid=2805&c=3352+6697+2805

Naturalreef · Apr 10, 2019

One of my favorite acros of all time!

scchase · Apr 10, 2019

Dang I gotta raise my prices on them.

jda · Apr 10, 2019

They always had them in limited supply. You had to buy a lot to have access to them.

ngoodermuth · Apr 10, 2019

Woof, I thought $80 was rough for my little frag...

cperry7467 · Apr 10, 2019

I was at a shop in Ohio last week and they wanted $250 for a frag of it. I was in shock.

jda · Apr 10, 2019

There are a lot of fakes out there. The real deal is not cheap.

DesertReefT4r · Apr 10, 2019

I never saw ORA Pearlberry for more than $80 locally. And that was on ORA frag plugs from ORA. $250 is crazy.

JaimeAdams · Apr 10, 2019

Liveaquaria has never been cheap for coral.

NeverlosT · Apr 10, 2019

dude. Pearlberry is a $50 frag. 250 is just gouging. That coral has been around for ages, there are a bunch that are similar and arguably better looking. Anyone paying two-fiddy for that coral is not looking hard enough for hobbyist aquacultured frags imo

OnPointCorals · Apr 10, 2019

NeverlosT said:
dude. Pearlberry is a $50 frag. 250 is just gouging. That coral has been around for ages, there are a bunch that are similar and arguably better looking. Anyone paying two-fiddy for that coral is not looking hard enough for hobbyist aquacultured frags imo

I think the value is in knowing it is the real deal straight from ORA. Although it says it is a new release, are we sure this is the original PB or just a similar looking new release.

hatfielj · Apr 10, 2019

addictreef said:
I think the value is in knowing it is the real deal straight from ORA. Although it says it is a new release, are we sure this is the original PB or just a similar looking new release.

I totally agree with you, but again, as has been discussed elsewhere recently...all of these corals came from the same place...the ocean. So, you can get a piece of "wild pearlberry" that is actually the exact same coral as the ORA one. The nice thing about ORA though is that their corals are already adapted to captivity, so they are generally pretty hardy for us

AdamNC · Apr 10, 2019

Ouch $200. I picked up a chunky frag a few weeks ago for $36.00.

rockskimmerflow · Apr 10, 2019

I won't say what ORA is asking for them, but let's just say a 200.00 retail price is not unreasonable given how much they want at wholesale before shipping etc is figured into it....

That said they are available straight from ORA currently and have been for a month or so. As others have said, not cheap

Reefpuck · Apr 10, 2019

Got mine local for $50. They're obviously gonna be higher though...got to cover the "free" shipping somehow.

Hemmdog · Apr 10, 2019

hatfielj said:
I totally agree with you, but again, as has been discussed elsewhere recently...all of these corals came from the same place...the ocean. So, you can get a piece of "wild pearlberry" that is actually the exact same coral as the ORA one. The nice thing about ORA though is that their corals are already adapted to captivity, so they are generally pretty hardy for us

+1, so glad you made this point.

authentic · Apr 10, 2019

so I met a reefer at my local frag swap who had a colony of the original pearlbery from ORA...he said that ORA lost its colony and came back to him for a piece to regrow...this was awhile back ....i got a frag from him on a nice trade.just started to grow it out..nice read on the site as to placement and flow.i think ill move it higher in my tank!!!!

jda · Apr 10, 2019

If you got a real deal Pearlberry for $50, then you did well. We had a multi-page thread last year and more than half of the corals were not true ORA Pearlberry, but fakes or knockoffs. Probably 2 of every 3 that I see for sale online are questionable...even from reputable vendors.

Pearlberry is one piece from ORA that is a bit more difficult than most. It can really suffer if conditions are not ideal, but it is also quick to grow in good conditions.

Bouncingsoul39 · Apr 10, 2019

They were $149 on LA, then they raised the price last week to $199. I bought one for $149 (was not DD) and it came in partially bleached from ORA and is now totally bleached with hints of brown in the tips. LA refunded me, but I am having real trouble with my orders coming direct from ORA farm. Sucks cuz I can't get a replacement now for the same price I paid. Anyway, make sure that you buy a DD one so you know what you're getting. ORA is shipping out some suspect frags to people, it seems like the people pulling and packing don't care about the quality of what they are sending.