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staghorn and elkhorn corals

post #1 of 15
7/8/10 at 4:11pm
Thread Starter 
I was reading the IUCN Red List yesterday and acropora cervicornis and a. palmata are both listed as critically endangered... It's just sad that a few years ago they were so common just a few years ago and now they're almost gone...
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post #2 of 15
7/8/10 at 5:28pm
Originally Posted by gilbert View Post
It's just sad that a few years ago they were so common just a few years ago and now they're almost gone...
It's been a good bit more then just a few years, it's been decades. Commercial collection of stony corals has been banned in the US since 1974.


I definitely wish there was some program that involved aquarists growing out elk/staghorn corals.There are a lot of us, and through a monitored program we could really help population numbers.
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post #3 of 15
7/8/10 at 5:34pm
WOW...I just got an elkhorn monti....is that the same thing????
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post #4 of 15
7/8/10 at 5:39pm
Originally Posted by meowzer View Post
WOW...I just got an elkhorn monti....is that the same thing????
Nope. elkhorn monti -- Montipora hirsuta.

Acropora cervicornis and Acropora palmata are non-existant in the hobby. People that import Atlantic corals know better then to risk getting caught selling thouse corals.
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post #5 of 15
7/8/10 at 6:20pm
Originally Posted by AquaKnight View Post
Nope. elkhorn monti -- Montipora hirsuta.

Acropora cervicornis and Acropora palmata are non-existant in the hobby. People that import Atlantic corals know better then to risk getting caught selling thouse corals.
LOL....I guess if I had taken the time to read the FULL name...I would have seen that
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post #6 of 15
7/8/10 at 10:27pm
Thread Starter 
Originally Posted by AquaKnight View Post
It's been a good bit more then just a few years, it's been decades. Commercial collection of stony corals has been banned in the US since 1974.


I definitely wish there was some program that involved aquarists growing out elk/staghorn corals.There are a lot of us, and through a monitored program we could really help population numbers.
Oh. I didn't realize that it has been that long... I agree though, we could probably take better care of them than some of the groups that are. I found a website that propagates a. cervicornis in the ocean, which is where the corals are bleaching in the first place. I think they stand a better chance in aquariums, away from the changing temperature and pH of the ocean.
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post #7 of 15
7/14/10 at 6:25pm
AK, are you saying they should pay us to grow out these corals so tehy can plant them back in the ocean? That would be awesome!
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post #8 of 15
7/15/10 at 2:28pm
Thread Starter 
That would be awesome, but even if they didn't, it would still be nice if we could play a part in saving the species...
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post #9 of 15
7/15/10 at 3:36pm
Originally Posted by Jstdv8 View Post
AK, are you saying they should pay us to grow out these corals so tehy can plant them back in the ocean? That would be awesome!
Doubtful. At best it would be free, instead of you having to pay for permits and stuff. Not sure how it would all work, but I'd imagine there's some selection process. You'd get a mother colony and then have to return grown out frags of it to a mariculture center that would hold them/check for diseases/etc, then would distribute them back into the wild. I guess you could profit monetarily if the program succeeds. and the corals are no longer red listed, you could sell them.
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post #10 of 15
7/15/10 at 3:53pm
Originally Posted by Jstdv8 View Post
AK, are you saying they should pay us to grow out these corals so tehy can plant them back in the ocean? That would be awesome!
I suppose this will also be necessary if the damn oil disaster ruins all the florida corals....I stocked up on Ricordeas for this reason....Who knows when something may disappear completely. We may have the only species of a particular thing....
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post #11 of 15
7/16/10 at 5:23pm
I went to check what sort of Elkhorn I got yesterday ... it's Montipora hirsuta.
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post #12 of 15
7/16/10 at 7:01pm
Originally Posted by mrdc View Post
I went to check what sort of Elkhorn I got yesterday ... it's Montipora hirsuta.
lol yeah you've got a monti :P

btw mrdc.. when I got that monti it was 100% bleached white...after about 2 weeks it started to get some color and now it's a really cool pinkish.

Good luck with it--they frag easily too.
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post #13 of 15
7/17/10 at 7:00pm
Thread Starter 
Originally Posted by ladyreefseeker View Post
I suppose this will also be necessary if the damn oil disaster ruins all the florida corals....I stocked up on Ricordeas for this reason....Who knows when something may disappear completely. We may have the only species of a particular thing....
It's sad, isn't it? In a few years, who knows? Maybe even super common corals that we have, like xenia, could be extinct in the wild...
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post #14 of 15
7/19/10 at 10:34am
I wouldn't put it past mankind to destroy all marine life.

Hey Speg. I still haven't moved my frags since I got them but plan on moving them around soon. I really need to move the hydnophora before it grows since I don't need it stinging anything.
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post #15 of 15
7/20/10 at 11:49pm
Thread Starter 
Or all life in general.
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