Red Acan Maxima for CHEAP!!!

[All Delight]

I hope so

[Corn]

i think that you will be way over there min. for shipping.

[chrisstie]

Hah I was looking on a cool id website I use (meerwasser) to see if they had an example of an actual acan maxima to look at and compare to this one

Guess what? the same picture is used as acan maxima

Looks like a scolymia or weird type of lobo or something to me.

How DO you tell for sure what one is versus the other.. is there a way besides examining the coralites?

[SupraRacer]

Here is Acan Maxima

[BOKER420]

that looks like a macro shot of a blasto merletti

[RandyO]

Acanthastrea maxima info from whelk.Aims.gov.au

Characters: Colonies are cerioid with corallites up to 50 millimetres diameter. Septa are coarsely toothed. Polyps have a fleshy mantle up to 100 millimetres diameter and with a Lobophyllia–like texture. Colour: Green, grey or brown. Similar species: Symphyllia wilsoni. The fleshy mantles are more extensive than those of any other Acanthastrea. Acanthastrea ishigakiensis has slightly smaller polyps. Habitat: Known only from moderately deep, turbid water. Abundance: Rare

Notice the color Red is not on that list.









Distribution- only found in Oman waters where there are no corals collected for the Aquarium trade.


Source reference: Veron (2000). Taxonomic reference: Sheppard and Salm (1988). Identification guides: Sheppard and Sheppard (1991), Coles (1996), Carpenter et al. (1997).




Distinguishing Characteristics
Like the starry cup coral, heavy septal spines are the dominant characteristic of this species. However, the diameters of its calyces are much larger, up to 5 cm, and polyps may expand to twice this diameter. This species is endemic to Oman, meaning that it has been encountered in only Oman waters, having been described from a specimen first found off Ras al Hamra.

Habitat
Thus far, fleshy artichoke coral is very uncommon and has only been collected from the ridge area lying between Ras al Hamra and Al Fahl Island in the Muscat area, and in the nearshore waters at Sahd, Dhofar. It appears to be favored by relatively low light and high turbidity conditions that are present over sandy bottoms where most other coral species are not abundant.

[BOKER420]

That information is from the Veron books. I have many corals that are of different colors than what is listed in those books. Our lighting is man-made, our tank parameters differ from a true wild reef. Color, growth rate and shape variation are not suprising. The Acan maxima was discovered only 19 years ago. Thats a pretty new addition. Is it impossible that these corals could be in other parts of the world where they might slightly differ in color and size? The coral I bought on EBAY is as close to a maxima than it is to anything else. So I guess it's just left to personal opinion.

[RandyO]

Originally posted by BOKER420
Is it impossible that these corals could be in other parts of the world where they might slightly differ in color and size?

Chances are if they differ in color and size they are a different species.

Have you ever heard of the term Occam's razor?

Occam's razor (sometimes spelled Ockham's razor) is a principle attributed to the 14th-century English logician and Franciscan friar William of Ockham. The principle states that the explanation of any phenomenon should make as few assumptions as possible, eliminating, or "shaving off," those that make no difference in the observable predictions of the explanatory hypothesis or theory.


Or in simple terms.

"All things being equal, the simplest solution tends to be the best one."

In other words, when multiple competing theories are equal in other respects, the principle recommends selecting the theory that introduces the fewest assumptions and postulates the fewest hypothetical entities. It is in this sense that Occam's razor is usually understood.



What sounds like the simplest solution? That a coral found only in Oman waters, described as a dull green, brown or grey color with polyps inflating to twice the diameter of the skeleton made it's way to Indonesia, turned brightly colored, and shrunk in size?

Or that these colorful corals are just a different speciesl or Genus?

[chrisstie]

Looking at those pictures they look so similar to some of the scolymia vitensis and lobos that I can't see why people would make such a fuss with inflated prices over them - unless it was really very costly to import them...

But even then.. I mean when you look at exotic LPS like say, a rhizo, that you can at least tell the difference between other sorta similar corals.

What a shame. Those are all very pretty regardless, though, and any would be welcome to live in my tank

[RandyO]

Originally posted by chrisstie
Looking at those pictures they look so similar to some of the scolymia vitensis and lobos that I can't see why people would make such a fuss with inflated prices over them - unless it was really very costly to import them...

But even then.. I mean when you look at exotic LPS like say, a rhizo, that you can at least tell the difference between other sorta similar corals.

What a shame. Those are all very pretty regardless, though, and any would be welcome to live in my tank

Your right that they look similar to Scolys and Lobos. And with the bland colors they are found in, if one did ever come into a LFS, people would pass it by.

These other colorful corals people call Acan Maxima are much nicer looking than any of the True Maximas I've seen.

[gosaints]

finally a voice of reason thanks randyo

[SupraRacer]

Sorry this is not a Blasto Merleti

[gosaints]

definately not a blasto merleti and it is very nice but i dont think it is a maxima either. just my opinion

[chrisstie]

Supraracer - in the first pic you posted I think I saw much tinier polyps growing near\on the sides of these guys? In that pic just above you can maybe make out one or two on the left of the top polyp? I see something that is maroon and green and saw it in the other picture too.

Those don't quite seem like the acan maximas in the description above but I think you'd almost need just the skeleton to examine to be sure afterwards. They *almost* remind me of deflated cynarinas in that pic... would love to see a rock with like.. 20 of those growing on it though oh my gosh that would be stunning !!!!

[ranran]

my unknown lps

[ReefDoctorMicromussas]

I just love listening to Randy speak I always feel smarter afterward

[BOKER420]

RandyO-- If your saying that a coral with minor differences in coloration , shape and location is most likely a different species then what are your thoughts on the Aussie acans that are from a different location, different colorations and also smaller than their indo cousins but still they are called Acanthastrea lords? You could talk for days on the differing growth patterns and colors of specific species of Acropora in multiple locations.

[RandyO]

Originally posted by BOKER420
RandyO-- If your saying that a coral with minor differences in coloration , shape and location is most likely a different species then what are your thoughts on the Aussie acans that are from a different location, different colorations and also smaller than their indo cousins but still they are called Acanthastrea lords? You could talk for days on the differing growth patterns and colors of specific species of Acropora in multiple locations.

I'm not an expert on coral identification. But I have seen and handled my fair share of corals people refer to as Acanthastrea lordhowensis.
After getting my hands on some Aussie Acans, I actually had some doubts to whether they are the same species of corals as the corals we call Acanthastrea lordhowensis from Indonesia.
I ran a few of them through the tile saw and noticed some differences. For one thing, out of the 4 or 5 I fragged up, not a single one of them had the same corallite structure. One had very small polyps, and with the polyps closed I could feel a perfect circle of costa/teeth. One's skeleton looked and felt more like an A.echinata than a lordhowensis. And the different colonies all had different corallite sizes.

So do I think it's possible the corals in Australia are different species than the corals found in Indonesia, Yes.

But when I see these bright red corals that barely inflate 20% larger than the skeleton, they just don't look anything like the pictures that describe the species Acanthastrea maxima.

Until a skeletal examination is performed, no one will know for sure.

[jaugermeister]

wow never seen anything like that before, very cool looking clams...

[BOKER420]

RandyO I was actually talking about the coral I bought on EBAY, not the reefermadness one. And I was just trying to point out that there are variations of a lot of different corals.

[water hazzard]

So you are the one who got it....(Monkeygirlzrule) Thought I had it..

[BOKER420]

At the last minute I changed my mind on my high bid. I was only going to put 420.00 then you would have won it. Sorry

[jaugermeister]

you guys have some serious cash laying around to drop that amount on one piece.

[BOKER420]

I wish. That just about took me to the bank.

[jaugermeister]

when I hit the lotto jackpot I will hook you up then... wish me luck...