TM

Limited Edition
Setting Sun Montipora
Montipora capricornis
Limited Edition Setting Sun Montipora Reeffarmers Seed.
A new twist on the ubiquitous red orange Montipora capricornis.
Golden yellow orange polyps and they extend during the daytime photoperiod.
Another incredible find from Great Ocean Wonders.
 Images Copyright © 2010 by Reeffarmers All Rights Reserved.
Way back in the early history of stony coral reefkeeping, (early to mid 1990's), there was a time when just two people within the entire US had captive colonies of the orange red Montipora capricornis. They were Leng Sy of Ecosystem Aquarium on the west coast and Tony Vargas on the east coast. Back then fragments of the orange cap sold for around $50 each. The coral turned out to be very easy to propagate in captivity and we later saw more colonies imported. In modern times, it is difficult now to get $5 for a fragment of the orange Montipora capricornis. That is simply because captive aquarists have been very successful with this colorful whorling and plating Montipora.

In September of 2010, Reeffarmers was looking into doing a coral trade with Great Ocean Wonders located within Arizona. We were told that they had this red orange cap with colored polyps. We initially thought, red orange cap ?, there is hardly any market for that anymore. We were then sent an image of the coral. Wow. Golden yellow colored polyps. Where the heck did that orange cap come from ?

Frank calls this coral the Setting Sun Montipora. He recommends maintaining the coral in moderate light levels. Under intense light the coral tends to take on a washed out color appearence. In low light the base red orange has a muddy appearence.

Since we first listed this coral we have been contacted about two other versions of this color morph of Montipora cap. Chuck Goodman of Reef-Tech.net has a similar Montipora he originally acquired from Zack Wilson. We will list any other orange/red Montipora caps with golden yellow colored polyps that we learn about.

Steve Tyree is maintaining a seed section of this coral for Reeffarmers.com in a 130 gallon Raceway Gyre BiZonal system. This system is naturally filtered with a semi-cryptic zone and a reef flat exposed zone. In Steve's captive reef the coral is positioned to receive moderate light levels from a 400 watt 20,000 K Radium metal halide. The price of this coral per small fragment consisting of a single polyp will be determined by the first edition auction below.

Limited Edition Setting Sun Montipora Polyp Closeup.
Polyps appear to be golden yellow with some orange.
There also appears to be patterns in the pigmentation.
 Images Copyright © 2010 by Reeffarmers All Rights Reserved.
Limited Edition Setting Sun Montipora First Edition.
This was the actual first edition small fragment.
Physical size was 1 inch long by 5/8 inch across.
 Images Copyright © 2010 by Reeffarmers All Rights Reserved.
Setting Sun Montipora Year 2010 First Edition Silent Auction Closed - Sold
Bid Amount
Name of Bidder
Status
$ 45.00
 Thomas Batty Winning Bid

For this silent auction, bidders are required to give their full name and their winning bid along with an optional maximum bid. We will accept these bids via phone 909-989-9711. If no one is there leave a message. We also accept bids via email to reeffarmers@aceweb.com . Email bids will be processed in order of their time stamp. Reeffarmers will be answering the phone from noon to 8 PM PST on the final auction day. Other days we will tend to be here in the afternoon and evening. Accepted payment for the final winning bidder is paypal. The payment method we use for this silent auction is safe and secure. Please note - Your full real name will be displayed above. This is so the accuracy of the auction bidding process can be independently confirmed. Steve Tyree with Reeffarmers is the administrator for the auction. Bid increments are $5.00 . Next day shipping charge for this coral is $45.00 (UPS Express Saver). Local pickups have no shipping charge. California residents add 8.75 % sales tax. Please note - If you do not place a maximum your bid could be out bid within the final minutes of the auction. If you want to be called when your bid is no longer the winning bid, please let us know. Otherwise you may want to place a maximum bid.
Copyright © 2010 by Reeffarmers All Rights Reserved.
BACK TO Limited Editions Montipora page