when did everything start to show up?

[eastlake]

Maybe this seems like a foolish question but when did all of the different colored palys and zoas start flooding into the market? When I was working at a LFS I remember getting the what are now called radioactive dragon eyes and brown buttons. Then one day I overheard a couple of people talking about fire and ice zoas and it kind of all rolled on from there. That may have been 9 years ago, I never got out of the hobby and still kept current on the new coral fads but it seemed like out of nowhere the last few years there have been more than I can count of these corals on the market to satisfy even the most jaded of colorful coral collectors. Not complaining at all, I love em, just want to satisfy my curiosity itch.

 

[blasterman789]

Trend started to take off in the mid 2000's as I recall. Internet probably fuels 90% of the trade.

Used to be reef shops sold SPS for lots of money...now I'm seeing rare Zoanthids sell for 3x the price of a piece of millepora or blue stag or miami orchid

What's even more remarkable is how rapidly zoas can be cultivated, which shows people are over fragging colonies for profit too small rather than let them grow out.

Local guy I bought from a few years ago had an efficient frag operation in his basement selling nothing but the rarer varities he cultivated in shallow kiddy swimming pools. He started with small frags like everybody else, but was patient and let the mother colonies grow big and healthy and didn't get greedy by over fragging. He told me he made enough money on a weekend selling rare frags to pay his mortgage. Smart guy....

 

[eastlake]

Holy cats! That's a fun way to pay the mortgage. I hear you on the price, funny you mention miami orchid I got a 4" frag/colony for $10 from a LFS but just paid $30 for two pink zipper polyps. I have no will power

 

[blasterman789]

I remember the first time I saw large head of 100 or so purple hornets in the flesh - talk about shock and awe. There was actually a line of people pointing fingers at it, but the reef shop owner wasn't selling or fragging. Hell, he could have sold tickets just to look at it.

I used to 'give away' fat clusters of gobstoppers for $5.00 because I had so many of them in my tank and when established they grow like xenia but are 10x as hardy . Last week I saw a high end reef shop selling them for $50 for a single polyp and I couldn't stop laughing. The retail guys make the diamond cartel look like a 501c

Granted, I can see the slower growing exotics palys and zoas (hornets ,etc) commanding high prices, but when I see gobstoppers, green implosions, etc. commanding three digit prices it's a bit of a joke.

 

[eastlake]

For $50 a polyp that thing better be able to do my taxes for me! As gullible as I may be I don't know that I could pay that for a single polyp, and I do understand that singles of others go for a lot more than that like the emperor or krakatoa. I think the first big colony of nice zoas I saw was eagle eyes in 2008? Size of a dinner plate and I'm pretty sure it went for something on the order of $32.99 plus tax