Koji Wada Pink Nephthea?

[Sam7]

Is this a cool coral or all hype? I mean does it look like the pictures online in person or are they just over saturated like some live sales pic's seem to be? I have never seen one in person so was wondering if someone had one that could comment. Does anybody have a photo of there own.

 

[mcarroll]

I think in life if something seems to good to be true, it usually is. ;)

also...

"Trust half of what you see and none of what you hear." --Poe

 

[BonnieB]

Mine didn’t look anything like the photos…it looks exactly like my Kenya tree when open. Only difference in mine is the stems of each when closed are completely different colors. I, personally, was disappointed.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

In my white light tank they looked great, but failed to thrive and shriveled away. No idea why. I got them from a reefer here who farmed them in his system, so they should have been OK.

 

[edsbeaker]

I think they are beautiful, but priced ridiculously high. Like most corals I think the hype is created to sell the product. They are said to be very slow growers, but mine grows quickly. This is a photo of mine under whites. I think it is a good representation of what it really looks like. It’s a bit hard to tell in this photo, but the stalk is more purple and the polyps are pink.

If it looks like a Kenya tree it’s not a stereonepthya. The Koji Wada has sclerites all over its stalks, and the polyps are actually very stiff and bristle like.

 

[Sam7]

Mine didn’t look anything like the photos…it looks exactly like my Kenya tree when open. Only difference in mine is the stems of each when closed are completely different colors. I, personally, was disappointed.

Thankyou....kind of what i was thinking, about it maybe looking like a kenya tree

 

[Sam7]

In my white light tank they looked great, but failed to thrive and shriveled away. No idea why. I got them from a reefer here who farmed them in his system, so they should have been OK.

Thanks

 

[Sam7]

I think they are beautiful, but priced ridiculously high. Like most corals I think the hype is created to sell the product. They are said to be very slow growers, but mine grows quickly. This is a photo of mine under whites. I think it is a good representation of what it really looks like. It’s a bit hard to tell in this photo, but the stalk is more purple and the polyps are pink.

If it looks like a Kenya tree it’s not a stereonepthea. The Koji Wada has sclerites all over its stalks, and the polyps are actually very stiff and bristle like.

That looks very nice. Thanks for posting the photo

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Here's what one of one looked like when I first got it:

 

[Sam7]

I am always looking for that coral thats odd or less common. I have Been reefing a long time so most corals i have seen or had are just blah to me now. Still they are pretty. I have had large tanks and smaller nano's over the years but now im just running a 40 breeder with a mix of mostly common things.

 

[Sam7]

Here's what one of one looked like when I first got it:

Oh cool thanks....I might have to go for it. I like trying things that might be hard to get to thrive. Are these the same or related to what some sellers call carnation coral?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Oh cool thanks....I might have to go for it. I like trying things that might be hard to get to thrive. Are these the same or related to what some sellers call carnation coral?

No. Carnation coral usually refers to dendronepthea, which is not photosynthetic and needs specific feeding.

The koji wada is photosynthetic.

 

[edsbeaker]

Here’s another stereonepthya that you may not have seen. I had it for about 3 weeks before it detached from its plug and went floating off…never to be seen again. I think it was my favorite coral ever because of its beautiful yellow stalk. I was devastated because I’ve only seen it available the one time I bought it.

 

[Sam7]

Here’s another stereonepthya that you may not have seen. I had it for about 3 weeks before it detached from its plug and went floating off…never to be seen again. I think it was my favorite coral ever because of its beautiful yellow stalk. I was devastated because I’ve only seen it available the one time I bought it.

That is beautiful....thats a shame it came loose

 

[Sam7]

No. Carnation coral usually refers to dendronepthea, which is not photosynthetic and needs specific feeding.

The koji wada is photosynthetic.

Thanks for the information. I have seen the carnation coral years ago and it had a bad repution for not surviving. I hear some are having better luck with those non photosynthetics with the rioght setup. I only have one non photosynthetic, a fat head dendro which is doing amazing so far. It went from one head to around 7 now. I suppose they are easier than most other that type.

 

[areefer01]

I think they are beautiful, but priced ridiculously high. Like most corals I think the hype is created to sell the product. They are said to be very slow growers, but mine grows quickly. This is a photo of mine under whites. I think it is a good representation of what it really looks like. It’s a bit hard to tell in this photo, but the stalk is more purple and the polyps are pink.

If it looks like a Kenya tree it’s not a stereonepthya. The Koji Wada has sclerites all over its stalks, and the polyps are actually very stiff and bristle like.

Regarding price - I feel they are reasonable compared to named Acropora but I understand hobbyist have different thresholds. Yours looks really good. Thank you for sharing.

It is sort of a hidden gem in our hobby but one that must be seen in person to appreciate. Social media photos do not do it justice in my opinion. I'll put it up there the Mulberry (Stereonephthya) that Marine Farmers has.

 

[Sam7]

Regarding price - I feel they are reasonable compared to named Acropora but I understand hobbyist have different thresholds. Yours looks really good. Thank you for sharing.

It is sort of a hidden gem in our hobby but one that must be seen in person to appreciate. Social media photos do not do it justice in my opinion. I'll put it up there the Mulberry (Stereonephthya) that Marine Farmers has.

I have seen them ebay today for $400 ....pretty crazy. Tidal garden has one for 97 and change. Do you have any for sale

 

[areefer01]

I have seen them ebay today for $400 ....pretty crazy. Tidal garden has one for 97 and change. Do you have any for sale

No, I do not. It is of my opinion that the Koji Wada Pink Nephthea is akin to the ORA Pearlberry. It can be a challenge if one is looking for true lineage as there are many misnamed and/or identified.

I do not want to push a vendor but if you are looking for a Japanese Pink Nepthea I would reach out to Marine Farmers. They have a pretty colony that they take from and have a good reputation. Price point is similar to Tidal Gardens - no disrespect to Than - so maybe reach out to both and see which you prefer.

 

[edsbeaker]

Regarding price - I feel they are reasonable compared to named Acropora but I understand hobbyist have different thresholds. Yours looks really good. Thank you for sharing.

It is sort of a hidden gem in our hobby but one that must be seen in person to appreciate. Social media photos do not do it justice in my opinion. I'll put it up there the Mulberry (Stereonephthya) that Marine Farmers has.

I agree! I have purchased a few frags from Pablo at Marine Farmers. They are healthy, but know that they will be quite small. I’ve been waiting a long time to get the Mulberry from him.

I do have one complaint with Marine Farmers, and it’s a very minor one. I feel that they send softie frags out before they are completely attached to the rubble. I have had issues with 3 out of 5 corals that have detached from plugs. Sadly, my stereo with the yellow stalk pictured above, that is lost somewhere in my tank was one of them. The other ones I was able to find and it just took a couple of weeks in an enclosed basket until they attached securely to rubble.

 

[fandaga]

I’ve been trying to get this coral for a while. I haven’t seen it any LFS in NJ or NY though and haven’t had luck ordering online so far.