by AquaNerd | Sep 23, 2014 | Corals, Science
MORE: ReefKoi Corals Has the Most Amazing Rainbow Plate Coral... by AquaNerd | Aug 15, 2014 | Fish, Photography, Science
For this installment of the AquaNerd Picture of the Week, we’re digging up a blast from the past. We’re showing off an image we took years ago of a dragonface pipefish, which is probably one of the first images we took with a macro lens as we started our foray into aquarium photography. While the image may not be technically perfect, meaning the lighting isn’t correct and the camera settings may not be right, we still love what we were able to capture. For those familiar with this particular pipefish, you know how hard they can be to photograph. They are quite small, move about quickly, and are often shy in the presence of people (especially those holding cameras). by AquaNerd | Aug 13, 2014 | Corals, Science
Setting faces to stunned! We always love sharing hot new corals, and this one is absolutely unbelievable. Arguably one of the best releases of the year, this unnamed favia comes to us via Exclusive Corals, an online retailer who recently shared the image on their Reef2Reef page. The coral sports a deep red hue, reminiscent of the war corals that found intense popularity in years past, and it is accented with the yellow, purple and neon green colors make up the coral’s “eyes”. While the details of this coral have yet to be finalized (e.g. name and price), two decent sized frags have been cut for a future availability. They both appear to have five or more mouths, which is nice considering how fragging usually goes in this hobby these days. If you’re as in love with this piece as we are, be sure to snatch up one of the limited release frags in a hurry, because we all know they won’t last long. And for the record, we’d be tickled to death if this coral went without a designer name and designer price tag. We understand corals of this caliber command a high price, but we’d love to see a shift in the status quo of coral naming back to a more old school approach…that being no fancy names for colorful corals by AquaNerd | Aug 8, 2014 | Corals, Science
We’ve seen some rather creative ways to mount fresh cut coral frags, but this one takes the cake. Where most aquarists would use a frag plug or even a magnetic frag plug, the crew at FX Charity Corals decided to use a dinosaur fossil…and not just any fossil, but the tooth of the greatest predator to ever roam the ocean, the Megalodon shark. Over on their Reef2Reef page they shared these images of their chalice, which they’ve named Megalodon Bubble Gum Monster Chalice, along with the humorous tag line “feast your eyes on this…” While the image above could easily pass for a frag encrusted over a piece of branching live rock, flipping the coral over reveals the epic awesomeness of this piece. You can see the tooth in full detail, with coral tissue encroaching on all sides. The chalice has been priced at $500 shipped, which is considerably affordable if you take the size of the coral and the Megalodon tooth into account. We aren’t sure if the tooth is legit or if it is a replica, but either way it is a very cool and unique way to grow out a piece of coral. by AquaNerd | Aug 6, 2014 | Fish, Science, Tanks
Gracing the AquaNerd Picture of the Week this time around is the beautiful, yet not so reef friendly, Pakistan butterflyfish (Chaetodon collare). While we don’t have any personal experience with this fish, we have crossed its path several times at public aquariums all over the globe. It is a beautiful fish, no doubt, but its diet of SPS polyps and notoriously finicky nature make it a surprising choice for most public exhibits. In all of the displays we’ve seen the fish, none were in Acropora-ridden tanks, which means the caretakers must be providing them with superb attention and the perfect diet. The butterfly is known for its dark body that is highlighted with lighter colored scales. It’s boldly colored red tail and stand out sharply against the darker background, as does the fish’s vertical white stripes on its face.
