Advice for Mariculture colonies

[akitareefer]

Nitrates seem a bit high, I try to stay 0-5. My first time dealing with Mari's I killed a bunch. The only difference from my previous tank are lower nitrates and lowered alk to 8.

I know people suggest low light and high flow for incoming pieces, I don't follow that. I just float, Bayer dip(current tank water) and throw them anywhere not in front of the power heads. If a colony shows rtn within 24 hours there's a large chance it cannot be saved by fragging, dipping or gluing. I lose around 5%. I haven't had any issues cutting off the bases same day, most of the time they stay until a fragging day.

As pointed out, hand pick and be very selective about mariculture sps. Look for slight to full polyp extension. If the LFS tanks are not great for sps pick it up within 2-5 days of arrival. Do not buy anything with rtn/stn/dead patches. Inspect bases for bite marks. Any unhealthy acro will not transfer tanks well. Most mariculture brown out in the first couple weeks and take a couple moths to recover.

 

[luke33]

To me Mariculture corals are pretty tough coral as they have a long process to the end tank. Picked out of ocean and put into holding facility - shipped to US - Wholesaler sells and ships to dealer - dealer sells to end customer. Thats 4 tanks and probably 4-5 days of travel vs aquacultured one day of travel max and two tanks. So its no wonder people have issue's with them. If you can cut out one of the stops you are likely to cut out more of the mortality rate's.

 

[that Reef Guy]

My Advice.

Don't buy them Ever.

Simple as that.

Their Survival Rate is Terrible.

I have never had one Live.

Buy Acros that were Raised in peoples Tanks.

Yes, they cost more but at least they live.

Avoid Mariculture like the Plague.

Buy Aquaculture Only.

 

[reefwiser]

My interest is in why. What would be reasons for this low success rate with Mariculture corals?

 

[dodgerblew]

My Advice.

Don't buy them Ever.

Simple as that.

Their Survival Rate is Terrible.

I have never had one Live.

Buy Acros that were Raised in peoples Tanks.

Yes, they cost more but at least they live.

Avoid Mariculture like the Plague.

Buy Aquaculture Only.

I guess I'm in the minority and/or very fortunate. I have 5 Bali mariculture in my tank and all are doing quite well after 6 months. As mentioned by Akida above, they do lose color and takes various amounts of time for them to return to their coloration and one of mine has gotten better color than when I received it. Have I lost mariculture, yes; I've lost two. I have also lost frags from aquacultured pieces. I think what it really comes down to is husbandry and stability and good fortune. That's just my opinion and I'm not flaming you (I respect your opinion) I just think it's not all that black and white nor simple as that. I do 100% agree that it's much higher risk. Here's a several pics

 

[vanpire]

I guess I'm in the minority and/or very fortunate. I have 5 Bali mariculture in my tank and all are doing quite well after 6 months. As mentioned by Akida above, they do lose color and takes various amounts of time for them to return to their coloration and one of mine has gotten better color than when I received it. Have I lost mariculture, yes; I've lost two. I have also lost frags from aquacultured pieces. I think what it really comes down to is husbandry and stability and good fortune. That's just my opinion and I'm not flaming you (I respect your opinion) I just think it's not all that black and white nor simple as that. I do 100% agree that it's much higher risk. Here's a several pics

Nice job. I just got three mariculture colonies about 4 weeks ago. They all lost color, but they seem very healthy with good polyp extension. Knock on wood that they continue to be healthy. I am hoping that mine looks line yours. Really like how they turned out.

How long did it take before the colors came back?

 

[dodgerblew]

Nice job. I just got three mariculture colonies about 4 weeks ago. They all lost color, but they seem very healthy with good polyp extension. Knock on wood that they continue to be healthy. I am hoping that mine looks line yours. Really like how they turned out.

How long did it take before the colors came back?

roundabout guess, a few months. I have one I didn't get photographed that's really stating to look good but I could only get a pic with my ipad

 

[Graffiti Spot]

I understand why people say to others "don't buy them because they will for sure die!" But people should realize what's behind this statement before shying away from wilds.
I would say buying maricultures is more for experienced people. I buy them when I see a nice one because I know it's a little harder than buying a frag from someone's tank that everyone else probably already has. I get more out of growing wild corals.
It takes a good eye and someone who knows how to detect when a coral is stressed, sick, dying or unhappy and make changes (or not) to make the coral pull through a stressful time. It's very rewarding when a piece colors up really well and grows.
One of the hardest parts is finding the best place to buy from. I don't see many local fish stores prepared to care for maricultures for any period of time. Buying from places like this is a huge crapshoot. That's why I always buy from the shipping bag or after its been sitting for a while. If it's nice enough I will also buy if it's been there for a short period of time.

I really believe a lot of people have low success rates because they...
-Don't know what to look for when choosing healthy acros
-Don't have a stable or correct setup to keep the acros
-Kill them from over stressing with harsh dips in fear of pests
-Buy from stores that have overstressed the acros before they even sell them.

There are probably more but off the top of my head these are the top three.

 

[nicknguyen]

Some of my favorite and best Acros are maricultured. I run a zeovit system and keep my alk at 7.5. I think that the maricultured coming strait from the ocean do better in a lower alk enviroment. Lost less than 5 percent do so.

 

[that Reef Guy]

My interest is in why. What would be reasons for this low success rate with Mariculture corals?

It is because they are pulled out of the Ocean.

Then they Travel Long Distances to get to us.

They are very stressed because of this.

The Ocean is totally different from an Aquarium too.

No Matter How Hard we Try to Replicate it you can't.

Aquaculture is Raised in an Aquarium and used to Aquarium Life and not taken from the Ocean.

So going from One Tank to Another Tank Rather than Ocean to Tank is a much easier Adjustment for the Coral.

Plus they are known to carry many many Pests that you do not want in your Tank anyways (Possibly Pests we do not even know about yet too). They say more is known about the Moon than the Ocean!

Saying they do Live for you they usually Loose Color (Often Going from Beautiful to Brown).

Aquaculture will Grow Faster too since Once Again the Aquacultured Corals are more used to Aquarium Life than Maricultured Corals.

 

[McMullen]

@nicknguyen, you fragging those? :D

 

[Triggerjay]

Could the low success rate have any tie to the fact you can buy a colony for a very cheap price so they are more attractive at a price-point for newbies? I feel they fall into the hands of inexperienced reefers far too often.

 

[McMullen]

Could the low success rate have any tie to the fact you can buy a colony for a very cheap price so they are more attractive at a price-point for newbies? I feel they fall into the hands of inexperienced reefers far too often.

Yes!

 

[HM3105]

Nitrates seem a bit high, I try to stay 0-5. My first time dealing with Mari's I killed a bunch. The only difference from my previous tank are lower nitrates and lowered alk to 8.

I know people suggest low light and high flow for incoming pieces, I don't follow that. I just float, Bayer dip(current tank water) and throw them anywhere not in front of the power heads. If a colony shows rtn within 24 hours there's a large chance it cannot be saved by fragging, dipping or gluing. I lose around 5%. I haven't had any issues cutting off the bases same day, most of the time they stay until a fragging day.

As pointed out, hand pick and be very selective about mariculture sps. Look for slight to full polyp extension. If the LFS tanks are not great for sps pick it up within 2-5 days of arrival. Do not buy anything with rtn/stn/dead patches. Inspect bases for bite marks. Any unhealthy acro will not transfer tanks well. Most mariculture brown out in the first couple weeks and take a couple moths to recover.

Yup, I was also concerned with the nitrates and alk. I'm going to test both again and I think reduce my dosers a bit to help bring down my alk.

Great points from everyone!

So I believe the current colony I have has browned out. But I am taking it as a good sign that the acro is settling in. The edges are still fluorescing under the blues and I'm starting to see more PE. Hopefully its a waiting game at this point.

 

[nicknguyen]

brown out is stil alive. bring water chemistry back in order and keep that alk stable. they will come back.

 

[HM3105]

brown out is stil alive. bring water chemistry back in order and keep that alk stable. they will come back.

Exactly! Just need to bring my nitrates down...I'm going to test them again real quick..

 

[nicknguyen]

just a few more maricultured pieces that have blossom into spectacular. don't be scared of them.. all these colonies were purchased for less than most frags.

 

[nicknguyen]

@nicknguyen, you fragging those? :D

Not Yet.

 

[McMullen]

@nicknguyen, I'm just a state away so keep me in mind!!! Some awesome maricultured!!!!

 

[HM3105]

I'm not scared of them, I just don't like killing things while I'm trying to figure it out...

Nitrates are 12 now so going in the right direction...I reduced feeding since I took the last test so I'm going to stay the course. I may drop down to once or twice a week and see how things respond. I'm still not seeing very much algae growth and that does concern me a bit.