Acropora palmata

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

Hello,
was wondering if anyone out there has had(long term) sucsess with palmata(in a closed system).
I have never heard of anyone being able to keep it alive for more than 365 days in a tank.
Anyone?

 

[Hormigaquatica]

It is Very difficult to keep in captivity, largely due to the massive amounts of flow it requires from what I understand. That being said, I am unaware of any legal A. palmata in the hobby- it is a protected species whose collection and distribution in the US is prohibited.

 

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

Yeah,
But i noticed a few "marine biologists" listed on this site and was looking for someone who is working with this coral....with all the right permits in place.

 

[ediaz]

I kept it for more than 2 years with a friend who was doing research back in the 80s, grew it from frags.My favorite coral.


Hormiga acuatica thats a funny name

Ed

 

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

Do you have any pictures,or growth sequense photos with dates?.....you see i have talked with allot of folks that have made simular claims..and if you did(in the 80'S)it would have been a world record..... i have done EXTENSIVE searches on this subject,and have not seen any data over 9 months.
I'm quite positive i hold the world record(to date) and before we puplished i just wanted to ask/post on a hobbiest forum.
If you don't have dated growth sequenses...with witnesses..well.....it dosen't count.

 

[stony_corals]

As of May 2005, it is illegal to own, sell, or transport this unless you're with a scientific institution. It is now on the endangered species list. One of my favs to, I was keeping it back in the 90s too.

 

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

And how long do you claim to have kept it...any pictures?
And by the way i am posting from a marine lab.work for NOAA and have ALL propper permits in place.

 

[ediaz]

Well i did not know it was for the guinnes book lol

I might add beleive me or not, don't have anything to prove, we kept it under sunlight and they received daily water changes with fresh seawater since I was raised by them, I lived by the beach in PR, I could see them exposed during low tide from my home.

I been thinking of requesting from the goverment permits wich I can get easily since I worked for the departemnt of natural resources back in PR and can write a proposal, to have some frags not only of that one but cervicornis and prolifera to a proven and serious farm to culture them and maybe when they are gone , that I beleive they will be soon, someone might have capive bred specimens.

Keep up the good work and let us know when you publish, regardless of a record or not working for the preservation of a specie like that must be recognized.

Ed

 

[Conky]

Acropora palmata

Check out www.secore.org. If you PM your email, I can send you an article on last year's activities...the file's too big to to send on RC.

Along with some of the Florida Aquariums (which take fragments from damaged reefs and nurse them back to health for "replanting"), these are the only "legal" specimens I'm aware of. I thought I read something about NOAA sponsoring a similar project in the Dry Tortugas last August as well. But since you work for NOAA, you'd know more about that than me.

Not at 365 days yet, but last I heard, things looked pretty good. I'm pretty sure that Moody Gardens, Omaha Zoo, Baltimore Aquarium and Pittsburg have the tiles, along with others. I believe Eric Borneman has had long-term success with this coral (mature specimens) as well.

P.S. I didn't know that NOAA employed musicians...j/k

 

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

NO Mr.Bormeman does not......he had a peice in his tank when it crashed but has never kept it more than 6-9 months( he has a big desire to keep it though).....the Sescore project are settlements from last summer(only 8 months old)
Does anyone Know of a colony over three years old(as mine are).

 

[Conky]

Care to share some pictures of your 3 year old colonies?

 

[musty baby]

Not sure what the point of posting on a hobbiest forum would be, if the hobbiests that probably CAN keep it successfully can't acquire it.

 

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

Because some of us work as professional coral culture biologists,then have reef tanks at home....if you can't understand how there could exist a cross-over/overlap of information there,.......well i can't help you.

 

[Conky]

I'd try posting on the Coral ListServ

 

[SIZZLA KALONJI]

I already did ...but it's been over a year ...i'll try again,.Thanks Conky-Sizzla

 

[stony_corals]

This was about 10 years ago. But I was able to keep them for a couple of years. The key was, due to the fast growth, pruning constantly to maintain the overall colony health.