Scott Fellman

I’m a bit, well- confused…In the reef aquarium hobby and trade, we tend have our own ways of naming things. In fact, “common” names and scientific names get interchanged, mixed up, whipped to a froth, beaten to a pulp, twisted, and otherwise whacked out. Madness ensues…

Case in point- a recent discussion I saw between hobbyists, discussing the identity of a soft coral. It went something like, “That’s a Blue Xenia!” Another hobbyist chimed in, “Nah, it’s a Cespitularia!” Still another ...

Why do I like small , grey fishes? Why do I covet fishes and corals that most people find rather uninteresting? Why do I get excited about great Sarcophyton, Acropora yongei, and Fungia specimens way more than I do about almost any other corals? Do I not get out enough? Am I too cool to jump on the bandwagon of new corals? Or, could it simply be that, after several decades in the hobby- I’ve learned to be honest with myself about what I like? Hmm…is there a lesson here? Or even a blog? Let’s see… ...

Being a high-octane fish geek, I'm always on the lookout for something new and different. Travelling as much as I do, I get to spend lots of time in different fish stores and visiting different aquariums. This weekend, it was the DFWMAS. Following the meeting, Marc, Drew and Gina Richardson, my Girlfriend Michelle and I found ourselves at one of Dallas' high end aquarium stores.

Eager to spend Marc's money to help stock up his tank, we spied an unusual starfish called the 'Beadel ...