What You Missed at MACNA 2022: The Trade Show
While many marine aquarium events draw in retailer participation, MACNA is often the pinnacle of manufacturer presence and new product releases, just as aquarium retailers see the start of the busy fall season.
What You Missed at MACNA 2022: All The Corals
Visitors to MACNA 2022 in Milwaukee met with a wide range of coral vendors, including regional staples, new farmers, and nationally recognized coral purveyors.
What You Missed at MACNA 2022: Innovative Speakers
As a “vendor” on the show floor, in my case representing CORAL Magazine, it’s very difficult to get away to cover three days of lectures. I managed to sneak a moment away from the table on Friday morning to sit in on the well-attended presentation from Dr. Jamie Craggs of the Coral Spawning Lab in London, England.
What You Missed at MACNA 2022: Poster Sessions
The Poster Sessions at MACNA are a relatively recent addition to the conference format. With times set aside for researchers to be present and discussing their findings, the MACNA poster session offers an intimate, personal experience between attendees and presenters.
CORAL New Issue “BOXING SHRIMP” Inside Look
A preview of articles and images in the just-published issue of CORAL, The Reef & Marine Aquarium Magazine, September/October 2022.
Matt Pedersen says:
The original fish are genetically modified. The type of genes that cause corals and jellyfish to fluoresce are inserted, and when successful, the fish create the fluorescent proteins. Absolutely not injected/dyed. The trait is heritable, although it's protected via patent, so unauthorized breeding of the fish could land an aquarist in hot water.What You Missed at MACNA 2022: Innovative Speakers says:
[…] propagated the coveted “Scoly” in captivity, but they have succeeded in producing the world’s first captive-bred Elegance Corals. These breakthroughs in sexual coral propagation come at a critical time for the aquarium trade, […]Are they injected with colour? says:
Is the colour injected into the fish or is it true pigment of the fish themselves?Katherine Kraft says:
Hi Matt, it's Katherine Kraft from Tropic Isle Aquarium (new owner still working with the previous owner, Ellis London (78, in charge for 58 years); we have worked together for 16 years and fought hard to save this store and transform it back to greatness. We are looking to bring people with shared passions for this hobby together). I just wanted to thank you for your article keeping busy people & new business owners like myself in the know and sharing our passions of fish husbandry and education. Ellis London, the previous owner (now 78 but still working for the love of the fish), has done a lot of genetic research (some cancer research) and has 58 years breeding, running retail and wholesale stores, and lots of experience with an impressive background in chemistry and biology. We have over 300 aquariums in our store with both freshwater and saltwater livestock and a passion for learning/teaching and evolving. If you are ever nearby, please stop by and take a peek at our new larger location and labor of love full of plants, corals, invertebrates, snails, rocks, driftwood, aquascaping and breeding tools at 686 Worcester Road, Framingham, Ma. It would be our pleasure to show you around. If you are ever looking for an article of interest, Mr. Ellis London would be a great point of interest to share for the hobby and experiences in the research/breeding/wholesale/retail and service sector from the age of 20-78 years. Best Regards and Thank you again, ~Katherine Kraft~Matt Whitmire says:
gosh I don't like this trend ;( Those cories just look "sick" and strange to me.Eric Peterson says:
In my opinion, Glo varieties are an abomination and do nothing but encourage kids with little to no experience to buy fish they have no business caring for. This leads to an excessive number of mistreated fish and premature death. The Glo fishes are nothing but an industry cashgrab in an industry that already prioritizes profit over animal health and happiness. To be clear, I am not some PETA-toting, tree-hugging person. I am a fish breeder with many years of experience in the hobby. However, playing with genetics that cause a fish to fluoresce under UV light (which, how does constant black light exposure affect fish health? Has a study been done on it?), or breeding fish to have compact (balloon) body forms, even longfin varieties, negatively impact fish health and quality of life. This process should be banned from the industry, citing animal abuse reasons. It is our duty, since we have the ability to effectively play god with these animals, to ensure that we are doing everything in our power to create the most robust and healthy fish we possibly can; NOT fish that would be normally considered to have birth defects if not for the fact that some people consider it "cute".