Time for one of those introspective moments.
I was talking with a fellow reefer/industry type the other day, and we were talking about some of the issues affecting our hobby- the possible collecting ban in Hawaii, the potential listing of several coral species as endangered, and other trends within the hobby. These are all important things. We also talked about behavior of hobbyists and industry people when you attempt to breach certain topics. We felt like there were certain things that you simply couldn't talk about without getting people really riled up.
One of the things we discussed that sort of got us going was an issue related to coral prices and relative rarity. We recently received what is known as a “Masterpiece Scolymia” or “Master Scoly” from one of our top suppliers in Australia. A really top notch organization. It’s a truly amazing piece that stands out the minute you see it. These corals fetch very good money.
The "Real Deal" ?
Also the "Real Deal?"
The “Master Scoly” is one of the most sought after and difficult to find morphs of Scolymia on the market. Ask any coral vendor…the “real deal” ones are very few and far in between. When it comes to this morph, if we see one a year- that’s impressive. We’ve seen 2 within the past year after not receiving a single one for over 18 months previously. Why is this? Are we using the wrong suppliers? Are we just not cool enough? I digress…
The reality of the matter is that these corals are collected somewhat semi-regularly in Australia, but the vast majority go to…Asia.
Why is this?
Well, when we pressed further, we found out the simple reasoning: Because the Asian market will but a lot of “average” Scolys, making them a more attractive market to send the real crazy high-end stuff to. Simply put, they get the good stuff more often because they buy more of the average stuff. vendors want to keep these people happy. And they pay an arm and a leg for them. We buy a few a month, as do probably many U.S. coral vendors- but that’s typically not enough to warrant the collectors to send us the rarest of the rare. I see their logic. So it’s rare, for sure, but what makes the “Master” REALLY rare is the fact that most go to Asia instead of the “softer” (for Solys) U.S. market. When a real-deal “Master” Makes it here, it’s because someone paid for it- a lot…and brought the collector a lot of business.
Yup, I get it. This is the reason why these corals are rare. And expensive. There are not many collected in general, and even fewer of those collected ever make it to the U.S. So, like it or not, that’s why the “real deal” “Masterpiece” Scolys are pricy. No real controversy there. And we’re not talking about the relative ethics of keeping them here. The controversial part is that, because the industry has no real “grading standards” for corals, vendors can call any really nice Scoly a “Master Scoly” and charge a small fortune for it.
Not the "Real Deal"...according to whom?
If you’ll ask the Aussies who collect them, they’ll tell you that “by definition”, to be called a “Master”, the coral must have at least 4 or 5 different colors, etc. Who “regulates” this stuff? Does a vendor calling just a really nice Scoly the coveted “Master” and charging for it do the hobby/industry a disservice? Who defines this? Who has the right to question this? Should anyone care? Should they? It's Capitalism, right? Is there a disconnect between the collectors and the people who sell the corals, because , for the most part, there is no “standardization” of coral morphs or grades…It’s a total free market thing- the Wild West. We sort of self-regulate, but in an unwritten sense. It’s weird, really, but also kind of cool, but fraught with opinion, hyperbole…and yeah, controversy. Or is it? Why even question it? We should be allowed to charge whatever the consumer wants to pay. Right? We don't need a "watchdog." Or do we? Or...?
It’s not really discussed a lot in the open, so it’s an excellent example of one of those topics that can ruffle feathers when it gets pulled out.
Back to my point: Why IS it that discussions of certain subjects in the reef world just seem to bring up a lot of emotion, rancor, and even flat-out hatred? I know that, whenever I write about certain subjects in a forum, emotions run hot, and accusations and insults run hot and heavy. It goes something like this:
I (or another writer/hobbyist, of course) write a little rant about something like why I think that Photoshop Abuse is a problem, or why goofy coral names may lead to confusion for consumers and even the misrepresentation of the value of some corals, or why chop-shop tactics are still so pervasive, etc. I question a practice like why certain relatively common corals are somehow hyped via the internet, and fetch extraordinary prices when, in actuality, they are available almost everywhere quite inexpensively…and often even propagated regularly, etc., etc.. Basically, I question practices that seem a bit…well, “off” to me, but seem to be tacitly approved by the hobby/industry on the whole.
Then what happens is that I get a bunch of PMs from certain hobbyists or other vendors who tell me, “Who are YOU and Unique Corals to dictate what is what and how things should get priced?” or “What, Unique Corals is up on it’s high horse trying to dictate how everyone should do business? You think that you’re the only ethical people in the trade? Ha!” Or, “You’re so arrogant and full of yourselves. I’ve been in this business before you even kept a reef tank (probably not true, btw) and I’ve seen 8 million more pieces of coral and have forgotten more about it than you’ll ever know ( that part probably is true, btw), and you don’t know what the real “Smoking Gun Nuclear Blue Acro” is!” OR, “You’re just a sore loser because you can’t hype up an Acroproa tennus with a goofy name and sell it at $300 for a 1/2” piece!” Or, “I know for a fact that you sell Scleronepthia and other non-sustainable stuff, so stop hyping how sustainable YOUR company is” OR, "Do you have so little confidence in yourselves that you must trash talk the industry?”
Blah, blah, blah…Trash talk.
Rarely a constructive suggestion or point by these kinds of people…Just…attacks.
Why is trying to have a dialogue about something perhaps controversial that confuses me and others seen by some as “giving the industry a black eye?” We’re on the verge of being legislated out of existence because we DON’T look in the mirror and ask the tough questions nearly often enough. Yet, when someone tries to voice an opinion on a topic that is somewhat uncomfortable, or perhaps a topic that makes the hobby/industry not look so good, and get people to discuss it, some people react badly. It’s like there’s this unwritten law in our hobby/industry that “insiders” are not supposed to discuss things publicly that make us look bad. Far better to sweep stuff under the carpet and let it fester in darkness than to engage in any kind of dialogue, I suppose. Better to let “For The Fishes” and “Snorkel Bob” talk about stuff.
Better to have THIS guy bring up the heavy stuff?
It just gets mean. It’s like there is no comfortable way to breach a tough subject. There is simply no way NOT to insult someone; to tick someone off. People get so self-righteous and mean (of course, I guarantee I’ll be called “self-righteous” for even bringing this subject up!). They launch attacks just because. People will point out various corals that we sell that are, in their opinion, overpriced, or that we screwed up an order for someone or mis-ID’d something, or that I’m not being scientific, etc.
Whatever. It’s just…interesting. And predictable.
This is my opinion, okay? My opinion? And I’m asking you-my hobbyist friends- for you thoughts. The fact that I’m even questioning this stuff may offend some of you and your sensibilities. It comes off as smarmy or self-righteous. Perhaps I’m way off base. I’m sure that you have dozens of examples of why I’m wrong and hypocritical. Nonetheless, this is a piece I’m writing in the Unique Corals forum, based totally on my opinion. You can write your viewpoint in this forum, or in another forum. You can trash talk me and my company if you somehow feel that it's constructive or pertinent to the conversation, I suppose. That’s okay in a free market and a democracy.
The question I ask is, why do some hobby subjects create such divisiveness? Why are we not “supposed” to discuss them? Or am I just not sleeping well these days and making a mountain out of a mole hill with this topic?
I’m curious. Discuss…or attack…But I’d like to hear your thoughts.
Stay clean. Stay on topic.
And stay wet.
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
I was talking with a fellow reefer/industry type the other day, and we were talking about some of the issues affecting our hobby- the possible collecting ban in Hawaii, the potential listing of several coral species as endangered, and other trends within the hobby. These are all important things. We also talked about behavior of hobbyists and industry people when you attempt to breach certain topics. We felt like there were certain things that you simply couldn't talk about without getting people really riled up.
One of the things we discussed that sort of got us going was an issue related to coral prices and relative rarity. We recently received what is known as a “Masterpiece Scolymia” or “Master Scoly” from one of our top suppliers in Australia. A really top notch organization. It’s a truly amazing piece that stands out the minute you see it. These corals fetch very good money.
The "Real Deal" ?
Also the "Real Deal?"
The “Master Scoly” is one of the most sought after and difficult to find morphs of Scolymia on the market. Ask any coral vendor…the “real deal” ones are very few and far in between. When it comes to this morph, if we see one a year- that’s impressive. We’ve seen 2 within the past year after not receiving a single one for over 18 months previously. Why is this? Are we using the wrong suppliers? Are we just not cool enough? I digress…
The reality of the matter is that these corals are collected somewhat semi-regularly in Australia, but the vast majority go to…Asia.
Why is this?
Well, when we pressed further, we found out the simple reasoning: Because the Asian market will but a lot of “average” Scolys, making them a more attractive market to send the real crazy high-end stuff to. Simply put, they get the good stuff more often because they buy more of the average stuff. vendors want to keep these people happy. And they pay an arm and a leg for them. We buy a few a month, as do probably many U.S. coral vendors- but that’s typically not enough to warrant the collectors to send us the rarest of the rare. I see their logic. So it’s rare, for sure, but what makes the “Master” REALLY rare is the fact that most go to Asia instead of the “softer” (for Solys) U.S. market. When a real-deal “Master” Makes it here, it’s because someone paid for it- a lot…and brought the collector a lot of business.
Yup, I get it. This is the reason why these corals are rare. And expensive. There are not many collected in general, and even fewer of those collected ever make it to the U.S. So, like it or not, that’s why the “real deal” “Masterpiece” Scolys are pricy. No real controversy there. And we’re not talking about the relative ethics of keeping them here. The controversial part is that, because the industry has no real “grading standards” for corals, vendors can call any really nice Scoly a “Master Scoly” and charge a small fortune for it.
Not the "Real Deal"...according to whom?
If you’ll ask the Aussies who collect them, they’ll tell you that “by definition”, to be called a “Master”, the coral must have at least 4 or 5 different colors, etc. Who “regulates” this stuff? Does a vendor calling just a really nice Scoly the coveted “Master” and charging for it do the hobby/industry a disservice? Who defines this? Who has the right to question this? Should anyone care? Should they? It's Capitalism, right? Is there a disconnect between the collectors and the people who sell the corals, because , for the most part, there is no “standardization” of coral morphs or grades…It’s a total free market thing- the Wild West. We sort of self-regulate, but in an unwritten sense. It’s weird, really, but also kind of cool, but fraught with opinion, hyperbole…and yeah, controversy. Or is it? Why even question it? We should be allowed to charge whatever the consumer wants to pay. Right? We don't need a "watchdog." Or do we? Or...?
It’s not really discussed a lot in the open, so it’s an excellent example of one of those topics that can ruffle feathers when it gets pulled out.
Back to my point: Why IS it that discussions of certain subjects in the reef world just seem to bring up a lot of emotion, rancor, and even flat-out hatred? I know that, whenever I write about certain subjects in a forum, emotions run hot, and accusations and insults run hot and heavy. It goes something like this:
I (or another writer/hobbyist, of course) write a little rant about something like why I think that Photoshop Abuse is a problem, or why goofy coral names may lead to confusion for consumers and even the misrepresentation of the value of some corals, or why chop-shop tactics are still so pervasive, etc. I question a practice like why certain relatively common corals are somehow hyped via the internet, and fetch extraordinary prices when, in actuality, they are available almost everywhere quite inexpensively…and often even propagated regularly, etc., etc.. Basically, I question practices that seem a bit…well, “off” to me, but seem to be tacitly approved by the hobby/industry on the whole.
Then what happens is that I get a bunch of PMs from certain hobbyists or other vendors who tell me, “Who are YOU and Unique Corals to dictate what is what and how things should get priced?” or “What, Unique Corals is up on it’s high horse trying to dictate how everyone should do business? You think that you’re the only ethical people in the trade? Ha!” Or, “You’re so arrogant and full of yourselves. I’ve been in this business before you even kept a reef tank (probably not true, btw) and I’ve seen 8 million more pieces of coral and have forgotten more about it than you’ll ever know ( that part probably is true, btw), and you don’t know what the real “Smoking Gun Nuclear Blue Acro” is!” OR, “You’re just a sore loser because you can’t hype up an Acroproa tennus with a goofy name and sell it at $300 for a 1/2” piece!” Or, “I know for a fact that you sell Scleronepthia and other non-sustainable stuff, so stop hyping how sustainable YOUR company is” OR, "Do you have so little confidence in yourselves that you must trash talk the industry?”
Blah, blah, blah…Trash talk.
Rarely a constructive suggestion or point by these kinds of people…Just…attacks.
Why is trying to have a dialogue about something perhaps controversial that confuses me and others seen by some as “giving the industry a black eye?” We’re on the verge of being legislated out of existence because we DON’T look in the mirror and ask the tough questions nearly often enough. Yet, when someone tries to voice an opinion on a topic that is somewhat uncomfortable, or perhaps a topic that makes the hobby/industry not look so good, and get people to discuss it, some people react badly. It’s like there’s this unwritten law in our hobby/industry that “insiders” are not supposed to discuss things publicly that make us look bad. Far better to sweep stuff under the carpet and let it fester in darkness than to engage in any kind of dialogue, I suppose. Better to let “For The Fishes” and “Snorkel Bob” talk about stuff.
Better to have THIS guy bring up the heavy stuff?
It just gets mean. It’s like there is no comfortable way to breach a tough subject. There is simply no way NOT to insult someone; to tick someone off. People get so self-righteous and mean (of course, I guarantee I’ll be called “self-righteous” for even bringing this subject up!). They launch attacks just because. People will point out various corals that we sell that are, in their opinion, overpriced, or that we screwed up an order for someone or mis-ID’d something, or that I’m not being scientific, etc.
Whatever. It’s just…interesting. And predictable.
This is my opinion, okay? My opinion? And I’m asking you-my hobbyist friends- for you thoughts. The fact that I’m even questioning this stuff may offend some of you and your sensibilities. It comes off as smarmy or self-righteous. Perhaps I’m way off base. I’m sure that you have dozens of examples of why I’m wrong and hypocritical. Nonetheless, this is a piece I’m writing in the Unique Corals forum, based totally on my opinion. You can write your viewpoint in this forum, or in another forum. You can trash talk me and my company if you somehow feel that it's constructive or pertinent to the conversation, I suppose. That’s okay in a free market and a democracy.
The question I ask is, why do some hobby subjects create such divisiveness? Why are we not “supposed” to discuss them? Or am I just not sleeping well these days and making a mountain out of a mole hill with this topic?
I’m curious. Discuss…or attack…But I’d like to hear your thoughts.
Stay clean. Stay on topic.
And stay wet.
Scott Fellman
Unique Corals
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