Why do So Many Corals Cost More if They're Labeled as Being From Australia?

[livinlifeinBKK]

link?

It was downloaded as a pdf a while ago...this thread isn't recent actually...i took a couple screenshots for you. This report was published by the Queensland government a few years ago. I'm sure if you really want to look for it online you can find it (i don't know why though... nothing is wrong with having a profitable industry). I definitely wouldnt expect the guys on the boats to be rolling in the cash or anything. I just think the shops inflate the price because they can...just my opinion.

 

[Kmst80]

So here is my 2 cents,

the Scolly's in your picture are all Button scolly's. These only exist in Australia. A year ago Australia restricted how many of those Scolly's can be taken each year. Since scolly's are usually a single coral they have to take the whole coral. On top of that the golden rule is the more colors the more money.
I have payed here in Australia 30 Au$ for a green button scolly and i have payed 350 for a 4 color ultra.

To ship them overseas cost money too. There are so many factors why they are so expensive.

That said my Coral guy told me before that a lot of the good corals go overseas coz they get more money there for them.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

So here is my 2 cents,

the Scolly's in your picture are all Button scolly's. These only exist in Australia. A year ago Australia restricted how many of those Scolly's can be taken each year. Since scolly's are usually a single coral they have to take the whole coral. On top of that the golden rule is the more colors the more money.
I have payed here in Australia 30 Au$ for a green button scolly and i have payed 350 for a 4 color ultra.

To ship them overseas cost money too. There are so many factors why they are so expensive.

That said my Coral guy told me before that a lot of the good corals go overseas coz they get more money there for them.

Why were the button Scolys you're saying are endemic cheaper here than Australia?
Yeah, your last post sums it up....when something is next door it isn't quite as magical.

 

[Viking_Reefing]

No, i actually posted my hypothesis earlier...I'm not hating on any store in particular, just shocked at the price differences I've noticed between pretty much anything from Australia and anywhere else. I just wanted to know if there was some specific reason.

That’s fairly easily explained by the fact that Australia is basically the only non low-cost country that exports corals and also have much stricter regulation.
That being said I buy indo sps colonies for very similar prices to Aussie ones.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

That’s fairly easily explained by the fact that Australia is basically the only non low-cost country that exports corals and also have much stricter regulation.
That being said I buy indo sps colonies for very similar prices to Aussie ones.

Yeah, it's bound to be somewhat higher due to costs but not absolutely ridiculous.

 

[Rmckoy]

Aside from the "catch words", I imagine harvesting from Australia is generally more expensive than from Indonesia.

Years ago it had a lot to do with transporting them . Assuming export companies thought it was further .

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

Years ago it had a lot to do with transporting them . Assuming export companies thought it was further .

I think that pretty far down the list....I'm sure a good $1 or $2 can be justified here lol

 

[Badboyan93l]

Outside of the marketing/rarity/harvesting cost aspect... Corals from certain areas absolutely behave differently due to the conditions they are kept in and can drastically vary in shapes, colors and behaviors. Like Indo vs Aussie torches. Indo is longer and thin, as well as significantly hardier and Aussie is fat, die easy and fight with other torches more. I find they also like way more lighr. This isn't just for torches. Malaysian acro are way different than indo acro for colors and survivability and the list goes on. The source environment varies a lot in terms of water quality, water movement, light exposure etc. And it can be very important to know where they are sourced.

I'm not as familiar with Aussie vs non Aussie scoly but who knows - maybe Aussies are hardier, grow better in captivity etc. Or the reverse, they die a lot easier which reduces the supply and drives up the cost because not as many make it in captivity (not unlike high end acro)

wild corals are less expensive than the ones farmed or grown by stores.... I seen wild fish and corals for super cheap on their re-up list, and they do get some type or reimbursements for DOA. Now you look at different stores that sell captive grown corals. Some sites are expensive and others are cheaper. MOST run a big facility.... Just saying.

Outside of the marketing/rarity/harvesting cost aspect... Corals from certain areas absolutely behave differently due to the conditions they are kept in and can drastically vary in shapes, colors and behaviors. Like Indo vs Aussie torches. Indo is longer and thin, as well as significantly hardier and Aussie is fat, die easy and fight with other torches more. I find they also like way more lighr. This isn't just for torches. Malaysian acro are way different than indo acro for colors and survivability and the list goes on. The source environment varies a lot in terms of water quality, water movement, light exposure etc. And it can be very important to know where they are sourced.

I'm not as familiar with Aussie vs non Aussie scoly but who knows - maybe Aussies are hardier, grow better in captivity etc. Or the reverse, they die a lot easier which reduces the supply and drives up the cost because not as many make it in captivity (not unlike high end acro)

 

[acropora4u]

from what I've seen, AUSSIE ACRO frags are cheaper than ACRO frags from INDONESIA.

 

[livinlifeinBKK]

from what I've seen, AUSSIE ACRO frags are cheaper than ACRO frags from INDONESIA.

I havent looked into what Acro frags go for but I would actually agree that they probably should be more valuable due to the coral triangle hosting 10x the biodiversity of the GBR but regardless of that, a majority of acros frags are aquacutured and sold by trade names. I'm unsure of where you're located but I'm unsure why anyone would have a desire for wild acros vs aquacultured in the first place