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I’ve written a lot about corals that have great legacies, are super popular, that no reefer should be without, etc. Regardless, even I get a bit bored by convention, so let's work on another one of those "Best" lists...However, it's up to us as reefers to invent the categories. I'm always interested to hear what you have to say. As usual, I have a few opinions to fire for the opening volley, then you can have at it.
Tear up my selections, agree, disagree...just say something, and then add your own, okay? Here we go:
Best coral for covering lots of real estate in your reef: We all have that bare spot on our reef- you know, the aquatic equivalent of the Great Plains- seemingly endless space, which doesn't necessarily need a big “specimen†coral. It needs something to just fill some of that barren rock with some life. Hmm…you have a bunch of choices, but let’s be honest, you want something that spreads fairly fast, is not too obnoxious, and adds a splash of color. In my humble opinion, it’s pretty hard to beat the old standby, the Zoanthid. With all of the colors and varieties to choose from, and the ease of care, the toughest part about using them will be deciding which morph you’re gonna use!
Best Acropora for the beginner: Ohh, that could be a tough one…NOT! In my opinion, hands down, it Acropora valida. Think about it…The coral is about as undemanding as an Acro can be, tolerating a variety of lighting conditions, ranging from “moderate†to “intenseâ€, displays a variety of colors (“Purple†and “Tricolor†are a couple that come to mind), is quite forgiving in regards to flow, and flat-out looks good. As an added plus, it’s one of the most easily propagated “SPS†corals, recovering very well from imposed propagation techniques (ie; fragmentation), and it grows quickly when conditions are to its liking. Oh, and you even have a “legacy†variety (The “GARF Bonsai†) that is relatively easy to obtain and gives its owner instant “reef cred!â€
You, sir, are a classic.
Best soft coral that you won’t be upset to be stuck with if no one wants to trade: Hah! You can say what you want, but you know darn well that when you bring any softy to the club frag swap, there is a decent chance that you’re gonna take most of it home. Why is this? Probably because many reefers won’t admit it, but they have a bit of snobbery when it comes to corals, and their ego couldn’t handle the unfair “stigma†of adding a soft coral to their expensive reef system, no matter how cool it is. Crazy, right? My choice is Purple Cespitularia. Yep, this is the “Ferrari of Xeniidsâ€, with exotic coloration and sharply contrasting polyps. It’s truly about as sexy as a softy can get. Added to the fact that even some advanced reefers have trouble keeping Xeniids at times, and you’ve got a coral that is captivating, undeniable attractive, and surprisingly well-behaved. Yeah, you wouldn’t be too upset if you have to cart a bunch home from the swap, trust me.
"You're so nice to come home to..."
Best morph to start your Chalice Collection with: How could you go wrong with the old school “Miami Hurricane†chalice? It’s a total classic, with awesome contrasting colors and surprisingly quick growth for a chalice. Add to the fact that it’s been around for a long time, but is still just scarce enough to be super cool, and you’ve got a winner! Believe me, even with all of the crazy chalices that we see in the trade, this is one that you can always count on. Everyone wants it. It’s always attractive, relatively easy to care for, and is great “trade bait†at a frag swap! Add to the fact that it’s super easy for even the neophyte chalice fan to ID, with well agreed-upon appearance, and you’ve got a great coral that keeps us honest. There’s no mistaking the ‘cane!
It may be "old school", but it's a cool one!
Best Acro to frag and sell to make cash to buy more stuff for your reef: Hmm, it’s a tie here, and I’d have to give it to two popular species, both with ridiculous common names- The “Strawberry Shortcake†(Acropora microclados) and the “Tierra del Fuego†(Acropora sp.). Either one of these brought to a club event will virtually guarantee that you’ll have fellow reefers tripping over themselves to snag a frag. Funny, but true! Okay, so their are a bunch of different corals that people call the “Shortcakeâ€, and the fact is, no one ever seems to want to take a stab at ID’ing the “TDF†at a species level, but it’s still cool to have two corals that you can virtually guarantee to excite fuzzy stick lovers! Even though I’m a vendor, I am a hobbyist first, and I understand the value of having pieces that you can sell to cover some of your hobby expenses, so it’s nice to know that there are a couple of species out there that you can count on to help out!
Whatever species it is...the "TDF" is undeniably hot.
Best coral to abuse with photoshop and charge obscene prices for: Without a doubt, besides the ubiquitous Chalices, this distinction HAS to go to the Acanthastrea lordhowensis! Yeah, these babies are colorful enough, yet some vendors still feel the need to do some “work†on them, as we say here in SoCal. SERIOUSLY? Yep. If you ask me, these fleshy alternatives to Acros are some of the most ‘photo-abused†corals around, and, even without “enhancementâ€, will amaze and inspire some foolish reefers to pay near-extortion prices for single polyps. Acan collectors are among the most passionate of reefers, and they’re pretty good at smelling a rat, but for some reason, certain vendors just can’t resist the allure of the Photoshop “Saturation bar.†You’ll see these addicted reefers flat-out asking vendors if the coral in question has been photo-enahanced…and the vendor will often stay silent. You can’t fool a hardcore collector. What would you? I have monitored these threads, trust me. It happens. Amazing.
"You're amazing just the way you are." as Bruno Mars would say.
Okay, so there you have a start to my latest “Best†list, with my own little opinionated spin on things (imagine THAT?)…Now, it’s YOUR turn to add to this list. Let yourself not be bound by conventional categories…go to town..make up your won…tell us why you think your selection belongs on this lofty list.
Have fun, be civilized..
..And Stay Wet.
Have a good weekend!
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
Tear up my selections, agree, disagree...just say something, and then add your own, okay? Here we go:
Best coral for covering lots of real estate in your reef: We all have that bare spot on our reef- you know, the aquatic equivalent of the Great Plains- seemingly endless space, which doesn't necessarily need a big “specimen†coral. It needs something to just fill some of that barren rock with some life. Hmm…you have a bunch of choices, but let’s be honest, you want something that spreads fairly fast, is not too obnoxious, and adds a splash of color. In my humble opinion, it’s pretty hard to beat the old standby, the Zoanthid. With all of the colors and varieties to choose from, and the ease of care, the toughest part about using them will be deciding which morph you’re gonna use!
Best Acropora for the beginner: Ohh, that could be a tough one…NOT! In my opinion, hands down, it Acropora valida. Think about it…The coral is about as undemanding as an Acro can be, tolerating a variety of lighting conditions, ranging from “moderate†to “intenseâ€, displays a variety of colors (“Purple†and “Tricolor†are a couple that come to mind), is quite forgiving in regards to flow, and flat-out looks good. As an added plus, it’s one of the most easily propagated “SPS†corals, recovering very well from imposed propagation techniques (ie; fragmentation), and it grows quickly when conditions are to its liking. Oh, and you even have a “legacy†variety (The “GARF Bonsai†) that is relatively easy to obtain and gives its owner instant “reef cred!â€
You, sir, are a classic.
Best soft coral that you won’t be upset to be stuck with if no one wants to trade: Hah! You can say what you want, but you know darn well that when you bring any softy to the club frag swap, there is a decent chance that you’re gonna take most of it home. Why is this? Probably because many reefers won’t admit it, but they have a bit of snobbery when it comes to corals, and their ego couldn’t handle the unfair “stigma†of adding a soft coral to their expensive reef system, no matter how cool it is. Crazy, right? My choice is Purple Cespitularia. Yep, this is the “Ferrari of Xeniidsâ€, with exotic coloration and sharply contrasting polyps. It’s truly about as sexy as a softy can get. Added to the fact that even some advanced reefers have trouble keeping Xeniids at times, and you’ve got a coral that is captivating, undeniable attractive, and surprisingly well-behaved. Yeah, you wouldn’t be too upset if you have to cart a bunch home from the swap, trust me.
"You're so nice to come home to..."
Best morph to start your Chalice Collection with: How could you go wrong with the old school “Miami Hurricane†chalice? It’s a total classic, with awesome contrasting colors and surprisingly quick growth for a chalice. Add to the fact that it’s been around for a long time, but is still just scarce enough to be super cool, and you’ve got a winner! Believe me, even with all of the crazy chalices that we see in the trade, this is one that you can always count on. Everyone wants it. It’s always attractive, relatively easy to care for, and is great “trade bait†at a frag swap! Add to the fact that it’s super easy for even the neophyte chalice fan to ID, with well agreed-upon appearance, and you’ve got a great coral that keeps us honest. There’s no mistaking the ‘cane!
It may be "old school", but it's a cool one!
Best Acro to frag and sell to make cash to buy more stuff for your reef: Hmm, it’s a tie here, and I’d have to give it to two popular species, both with ridiculous common names- The “Strawberry Shortcake†(Acropora microclados) and the “Tierra del Fuego†(Acropora sp.). Either one of these brought to a club event will virtually guarantee that you’ll have fellow reefers tripping over themselves to snag a frag. Funny, but true! Okay, so their are a bunch of different corals that people call the “Shortcakeâ€, and the fact is, no one ever seems to want to take a stab at ID’ing the “TDF†at a species level, but it’s still cool to have two corals that you can virtually guarantee to excite fuzzy stick lovers! Even though I’m a vendor, I am a hobbyist first, and I understand the value of having pieces that you can sell to cover some of your hobby expenses, so it’s nice to know that there are a couple of species out there that you can count on to help out!
Whatever species it is...the "TDF" is undeniably hot.
Best coral to abuse with photoshop and charge obscene prices for: Without a doubt, besides the ubiquitous Chalices, this distinction HAS to go to the Acanthastrea lordhowensis! Yeah, these babies are colorful enough, yet some vendors still feel the need to do some “work†on them, as we say here in SoCal. SERIOUSLY? Yep. If you ask me, these fleshy alternatives to Acros are some of the most ‘photo-abused†corals around, and, even without “enhancementâ€, will amaze and inspire some foolish reefers to pay near-extortion prices for single polyps. Acan collectors are among the most passionate of reefers, and they’re pretty good at smelling a rat, but for some reason, certain vendors just can’t resist the allure of the Photoshop “Saturation bar.†You’ll see these addicted reefers flat-out asking vendors if the coral in question has been photo-enahanced…and the vendor will often stay silent. You can’t fool a hardcore collector. What would you? I have monitored these threads, trust me. It happens. Amazing.
"You're amazing just the way you are." as Bruno Mars would say.
Okay, so there you have a start to my latest “Best†list, with my own little opinionated spin on things (imagine THAT?)…Now, it’s YOUR turn to add to this list. Let yourself not be bound by conventional categories…go to town..make up your won…tell us why you think your selection belongs on this lofty list.
Have fun, be civilized..
..And Stay Wet.
Have a good weekend!
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
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