The difference between Wild and aquacultured sps?

[Salty_Box_Reef]

So as I transition my tank to primarily sps's and start venturing into the world of high end frags I am wondering what sets these extremely colorful specimens apart from the wild colonies your average LFS is getting in and selling for $60-$100?

I have never seen wild corals with the extreme colors that BattleCorals, ReefRaft etc have, so I am wondering if it's just what these corals have morphed into over time in a captive setting?

 

[happyhourhero]

I believe the aquacultured are more desirable because they have maintained good growth and coloration over time in a variety of systems. This is where your ORA varieties and other staples in the SPS community fall.

In the next bracket you have pieces that are sold as aquacultured that have insane colors and trendy names. A good number of these are cherry picked maricultured or wild colonies that look similar to a hot named piece and are sold as the named piece. These may or may not hold up over time.

The wild pieces are touchy. They may or may not lose color. They are prone to rtn for a variety of reasons. You can potentially find a real gem here though. Its a grab bag.

I personally like to mix both. I like my staple sps frags but I take great pride in coloring up a no name and having it outshine the others.

 

[Salty_Box_Reef]

I get that part, but what I don't get is the actual colors that some corals are producing are far more vibrant etc than anything you would get from the ocean. Is that just time in a home system or is it just that those colors are far more pronounced under artificial lighting?

 

[zchauvin]

I get that part, but what I don't get is the actual colors that some corals are producing are far more vibrant etc than anything you would get from the ocean. Is that just time in a home system or is it just that those colors are far more pronounced under artificial lighting?

Artificial lighting, photoshop ect. I saw a vendor get in a maricultured / wild piece, let it color up under what was more than likely tons of blue light, then sell it for $599 per frag. Like seriously, those maricultured colonies cost $45 and the wilds depending on size are 80-150 normally. It amazes me what this hobby is turning into. I'm not half the age of most people around here and even I remember how it used to be compared to now.


Whatever you do, don't get caught up in the whole named coral thing. In two years that Walt Disney will sell for $50 just as others that come and go.

 

[Graffiti Spot]

I get that part, but what I don't get is the actual colors that some corals are producing are far more vibrant etc than anything you would get from the ocean. Is that just time in a home system or is it just that those colors are far more pronounced under artificial lighting?

They all came from the ocean at one point. I have not had trouble getting vibrant colors on any wild or maricultured acros once they are aclimated and growing. Some take more time than others but eventually they all color up into something nice. Nothing stays brown forever.