Price per 1 polyp
Ricordea florida, a type of corallimorph, is a popular and hardy "false coral" known for its bright colors and ease of care in saltwater aquariums. They are characterized by a small, disc-like body with short, bubble-like tentacles and come in various shades of purple, orange, green, blue, and yellow. While they are not true corals, they are still considered a popular addition to many reef tanks.
Key characteristics of Ricordea florida:
Appearance: They have a disc-like body with a smooth, sometimes ruffled edge, and a central oral disk where the mouth and tentacles are located.
Tentacles: Short, rounded tentacles cover the body, and these can be various colors, including the mouth.
Coloration: They exhibit a wide range of colors, including purple, orange, green, blue, and yellow.
Ease of Care: Ricordea florida is known for being easy to care for, making it suitable for beginners.
Habitat: They are native to the Caribbean and are found in shallow, turbid waters.
Feeding: They are primarily suspension feeders and can also photosynthesize, making them relatively easy to maintain.
Growth and Reproduction: They can grow quickly and often reproduce by splitting or budding.
Water Conditions: They prefer a moderate water current and light.
Bubble-tip anemones, scientifically named Entacmaea quadricolor, are sea anemones known for their distinctive, bulbous tentacle tips. These anemones display a range of colors, including greens, tans, browns, and maroons. They have a sticky foot called a "basal disc" that they use to attach to surfaces, and their bodies consist of a cylindrical stalk topped with an oral disc surrounded by tentacles.
Key features of Bubble-tip Anemones:
Bulbous Tentacles:
The most prominent feature is the bubble-like or pear-shaped tips on their tentacles, which give them their common name.
Color Variation:
They can be found in various colors, including green, tan, brown, and maroon.
Sticky Foot:
They have a basal disc (or pedal disk) that helps them anchor to surfaces.
Symbiotic Relationship:
Bubble-tip anemones can host clownfish and other anemonefish, forming a beneficial symbiotic relationship.
Growth:
They can grow up to a foot in diameter, but typically remain smaller in aquariums.
Location:
They are found in oceans around the world, including the Indo-Pacific area and the Red Sea.
In essence, the Bubble-tip Anemone is a vibrant, adaptable creature with unique characteristics, making it a popular choice for marine aquariums
Sarcophyton is a genus of soft corals, commonly known as toadstool or mushroom leather corals, belonging to the family Alcyoniidae. They are popular in reef aquariums and are known for their fleshy, soft, and often ruffled appearance, resembling toadstools or mushrooms.
Here's a more detailed description:
Appearance:
Sarcophyton corals typically have a stalk and a flat, often ruffled or folded cap (capitulum). They come in various colors, including brown, white, and gold.
Soft Coral:
Unlike stony corals, Sarcophyton corals lack a hard, stony skeleton. They are made of soft tissues and do not contribute to reef building.
Habitat:
They are found in various reef environments, particularly in the Indo-Pacific and tropical to subtropical climates.
Care:
They are generally considered easy to care for and can thrive in a wide range of conditions, including moderate to strong water flow and light, and can tolerate some fluctuations in water parameters.
Symbiotic Relationships:
They host symbiotic algae (zooxanthellae) that provide them with nutrients, contributing to their growth and coloration.
Growth:
Sarcophyton corals can grow rapidly, sometimes shedding some of their outer skin as they mature
The Ciliopagurus strigatus, commonly known as the Halloween hermit crab, is a brightly colored hermit crab with a vibrant orange and black striped appearance. They are popular in marine aquariums due to their distinctive colors and usefulness as algae eaters and scavengers.
Key features and characteristics:
Appearance:
The Halloween hermit crab is easily recognizable by its bright orange and red striped "stockings". They also have a small claw on the left side.
Habitat:
They are found in the Central Pacific region, and are often associated with reef environments.
Diet:
They are omnivores, feeding on algae, detritus, leftover food, and sometimes other small creatures.
Behavior:
They are scavengers, sifting through the substrate to clean up detritus and algae. They also help aerate the substrate by moving the sand.
Reef-safe:
Generally considered reef-safe, they do not pose a threat to reef corals or other reef inhabitants.
Shells:
They live in borrowed shells, usually abandoned snail shells, and may even attack and consume snails to obtain a shell.
Maintenance:
In aquariums, they should be provided with a variety of shells to choose from, and their diet may need to be supplemented with algae and other food items if necessary.
In short, the Halloween hermit crab is a visually appealing and useful addition to a marine aquarium, known for its vibrant colors, algae-eating habits, and cleaning skills
Sabellastarte spectabilis, commonly known as the Indian feather duster worm or feather duster worm, is a tubicolous marine polychaete worm. These worms are characterized by their beautiful, feathery tentacles, which they use to filter feed and breathe. They live in leathery tubes, often covered with mud, and are found in tropical and subtropical waters.
Appearance:
Color: Vibrant colors can range from reds, oranges, to purples.
Tentacles (radioles): The tentacles are feathery and arranged in a fan-like structure, creating a striking display when the worm is active. They are striped in dark and pale brown bands.
Tube: The worms secrete a leathery tube that protects them.
Size: Can reach up to 80 millimeters in length and 10-12 millimeters in width.
Habitat and Behavior:
Location: Native to tropical waters of the Indo-Pacific but have spread to other regions.
Tube: The tubes are typically buried in the sediment.
Filter Feeding: They use their tentacles to capture small particles of organic matter from the water.
Sedentary Lifestyle: They primarily live within their tubes and do not move much.
Reproduction and Other Characteristics:
Asexual Reproduction: They can reproduce asexually by fragmentation.
Regeneration: They can regenerate body parts if damaged.
Aquarium Popularity: They are popular in aquariums due to their beauty and helpfulness in removing organic particles from the water.
Briareum is a genus of soft corals in the family Briareidae.The coral is cultivated by aquarium owners (under the common name "green star polyp" or GSP) for its fluorescing polyps, which reveal themselves under actinic light. The genus is in need of extensive examination, as many specimens sold by marketers display unique and similar characteristics, but are often labeled as one species, Pachyclavularia violacea.
Nardoa novaecaledoniae, also known as the Goldtip Starfish, Yellow Mesh Sea Star, or Peach Tip Mesh Sea Star, is a species of sea star in the family Ophidiasteridae. These starfish are found in the Indo-Pacific region, including areas like Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
Key features of Nardoa novaecaledoniae:
Appearance: They are characterized by their vibrant coloration, often with a tan to brown body and golden or peach-colored tips on their arms. The arms can also have white spots on the central disc that get smaller as they move towards the arm tips.
Size: Nardoa novaecaledoniae can grow up to 10 inches (25 cm) in diameter.
Habitat: They typically inhabit shallow, rocky reefs.
Diet: They are omnivores, feeding on algae, small fish, and mussel flesh.
Care: They are not commonly seen in the home aquarium trade and can be sensitive to sudden changes in salinity.
Range: They are found in the Western Pacific Ocean.
The Flame Hawkfish, Neocirrhites armatus, is a vibrant, small to medium-sized hawkfish known for its bright red body and black markings, particularly along the dorsal fin and around the eyes. It's a solitary, territorial species, often seen perching on corals and rocks, observing its environment.
Key characteristics:
Appearance: Bright red with dark markings, especially along the dorsal fin and around the eyes.
Size: Reaches a maximum length of about 9 cm (3.5 inches).
Habitat: Native to the Indo-Pacific region, found near coral reefs with currents.
Behavior: Solitary and territorial, preferring to perch and observe from a vantage point rather than actively swim.
Diet: Carnivorous, feeding on small crustaceans.
Care: Requires a well-oxygenated water environment and can be finicky eaters at first.
Lifespan: Can live for 5 years or more in captivity with proper care.
The Turbo fluctuosa, commonly called the Mexican Turbo Snail or Super Turbo Snail, is a marine gastropod mollusk known for its unique, top-shaped shell and its effectiveness at consuming algae. These snails are popular in reef aquariums due to their ability to quickly remove nuisance algae, including hair algae, from live rock and aquarium glass.
Key characteristics:
Shell: The Turbo fluctuosa has a thick, top-shaped shell with an iridescent interior. The shell can be olivaceous, green, brown, or grayish, with white longitudinal stripes or spots.
Diet: It's a herbivore that feeds primarily on algae, including hair algae, cyanobacteria, and diatoms. It is also known to consume Asparagopsis algae, which can be problematic in reef aquariums.
Behavior: These snails are active both day and night and move slowly over surfaces, grazing on algae. They can bulldoze loose rocks in search of food, so aquariums with well-secured rockwork are recommended.
Aquarium Care: Turbo fluctuosa snails thrive in well-established tanks with plenty of live rock and are compatible with most reef aquarium inhabitants. Adequate calcium levels are needed for shell growth, and supplemental feedings with dried seaweed may be necessary if algae levels are low.
Origin: They are native to the Gulf of California, off the coast of Mexico.
Size: They can grow up to 2 inches in diameter
The Trochus histrio, commonly known as the Banded Trochus Snail, is a marine snail with a pale gray, pyramid-shaped shell adorned with maroon bands. It's a popular choice for reef aquariums due to its algae-eating habits and peaceful nature. These snails are reef-safe, coexisting well with most marine species, and are particularly effective at controlling film, diatom, and hair algae.
Here's a more detailed description:
Appearance:
Shell: The shell is pale gray, pyramid-shaped, and often has maroon bands or stripes.
Size: They are relatively small, typically reaching up to 1.5 inches in length.
Foot: The foot is black, and the underside is off-white/tan.
Behavior and Diet:
Algae-eating:
Trochus histrio snails are herbivores, primarily feeding on various types of algae, including brown, green, hair, and filamentous algae.
Cleaning:
They actively forage for algae on live rocks, glass, and other surfaces, helping to maintain a clean aquarium environment.
Peaceful:
They are peaceful snails and coexist well with most reef aquarium inhabitants.
Supplementation:
In aquariums with limited algae, it's beneficial to supplement their diet with algae wafers or nori sheets.
Care and Maintenance:
Water Parameters:
Maintain stable water conditions with temperatures between 72-78°F (23-26°C), pH levels of 8.1-8.4, and salinity around 1.023-1.025.
Acclimation:
Introduce them to the aquarium gradually using a slow drip acclimation process over 1-2 hours.
Tank Size:
They are suitable for nano tanks or larger setups, with a sandy substrate and rockwork for grazing.
Compatibility:
They are reef-safe and generally compatible with most marine species, but should be avoided with predatory creatures like pufferfish, triggerfish, or aggressive wrasses
Tectus snails, often called turban snails or pyrmaid snails, are marine gastropods known for their distinctive, conical shells. They are found in various parts of the Indo-Pacific Ocean and are a common sight in saltwater aquariums.
Here's a more detailed description:
Shell:
Shape: Conical, sometimes with a pyramidal or turreted appearance.
Color: Typically whitish, grayish, or yellowish, often mottled or marbled with green or brown.
Surface: May have fine oblique wrinkles, spiral rows of beads, or radiating tubercles (rounded protuberances).
Base: Flat and often lirate (marked with concentric ridges).
Aperture: Transverse and rhomboidal (diamond-shaped).
Whorls: Can have 9-14 whorls, which are the spirals of the shell.
Size: Varies between 17 mm and 50 mm,
Other features:
Columella:
A short, vertical structure with a spiral fold, which is a thickening of the shell on the inner wall.
Habitat:
Live in the intertidal zone and shallower waters, often found in holes and crevices of reefs.
Diet:
Herbivorous, feeding on algae and biofilms on rocks and coral reefs.
In aquariums:
Useful for algae control, especially for cleaning live rock and aquarium glass.
Variations:
Different species of Tectus snails exhibit variations in shell color, surface texture, and other features
Haliotis snails, commonly known as abalone, are marine gastropods characterized by their single, smooth, and ear-shaped shell. They have a strong, muscular foot that they use to cling to rocks and other surfaces. The shell exterior is often smooth and covered by the mantle, making encrustations less common. Abalone also have a distinct row of breathing holes on their shell, which can vary in number and shape depending on the species.
Shell Characteristics:
Shape: Oval or elongated, with a relatively flat shell.
Surface: Smooth, with varying degrees of striations or ribs.
Color: Can range from dark green, blue, or black to reddish-brown, olive, or brown, with varying patterns and colors.
Perforations: A series of breathing holes (perforations) on the shell, typically on the left side, allow for water intake.
Inner Surface: Iridescent nacre that lines the inside of the shell, often with shades of pink, red, green, or blue.
Other Features:
Foot: Large, muscular foot used for attachment to substrates and movement.
Radula: A tongue-like band with many small teeth (radula) for scraping algae.
Gills: Symmetrical and well-developed gills for respiration.
Head: Head-lobes are fimbriated, and side-lobes are also fimbriated and cirrated.
Spire: The spire (apex of the shell) can be prominent or concealed, depending on the species
