Don't blame yourself for not asking. I recently made a purchase from a pretty well known smaller coral provider who had been recommended to me as being very "ethical". They had two types of coral on their site, one white, one green. I'd been recently burned on a purchase from another large scale seller (who did make it right though) so I made it a POINT to ask them specifically if the corals were that color because of the light. I was told, "they don't look that color the ARE that color."
Guess what, when they arrived they were no where NEAR that color. One was pink the other purple with a frosted white texture to the trunk, but obviously not a white coral. And when I messaged them and asked I was told I needed to have the right lighting cause my white light (20K t-5) turns corals brown so if I wanted color I had to have blues. I'm sorry, I've been in this too long for that level of crap. So I put them under blue just to see (I also have kessils) and guess what, still no green or white. I said something and was then told I had to have a specific BRAND of light set at the presets for LPS coral (and this wasn't an LPS).
So no. Even when you ask, way too many vendors will lie and then use the light excuse.
While others may not agree with with what I'm about to say, I will stand by it; if it takes UV lighting to make a coral a particular color, then its not that color. It fluoresces that color, but it isn't white, green, blue, yellow, unless those colors show under 20K lighting or something close too it.
And yes, I am fully aware that corals grown under blue light will develop morphology. But again, these are not conditions in a well lighted tank and the sellers KNOW once that coral is moved into different conditions those colors will fade, because guess what, they aren't normal and they aren't natural. And that needs to be divulged as well rather than letting people believe otherwise.
If the fluorescing color (or artificially manufactured color) is fine by the buyer, great, but *** don't lie to them. Just say it, "X coral will only show these colors when fluorescing under X lighting and house in these conditions." And if it's under X at a specific setting, include that info. Then show a picture under white 20K light just so there is no misunderstanding. Trust me, that one 150.00-350.00 sale isn't worth losing a possible life time client who will spend thousands with you over the years.
And for those itching to say "white light pictures will hurt sales" or "People need to do their own research instead of expecting to be told" then you're the a part of the problem.
Honesty is a requirement of good business.
One day, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next week, one of these vendors will screw over the wrong person who has the resources to take them to court for false/misleading advertisement and devastate them with court costs, bad press, and the vender could then face state and federal charges for false and misleading advertisement on top of that that chocolate dipped, rocky road disaster.
And yeah, go ahead and chuckle... But if a clothing company can wind up with millions in fines over a 1 cent button don't think for a moment any dishonest seller is untouchable.
Eventually it will happen, then EVERYONE even the honest sellers, will be stuck facing the backlash, which is completely unfair to the honest sellers.
www.tidalgardens.com
