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Anemones: Care & Keeping


SouthFlorida_Tron

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SouthFlorida_Tron

Completely UNOFFICIAL Tips & Tricks to Anemones!

 

So after reading alot of posts regarding Bubbletips and other such anemones, I decided to do a light reading thread with some advice for reefers on properly maintaining these beautiful yet pesky creatures in our reefs.

 

I, myself, have had my fair share of issues, such as introducing my first GBTA (Green Bubbletip Anemone) into my tank with just a few corals in the tank to let it get established so then I could continue adding corals. Well, that was a mistake as I woke up in the morning to find this anemone entirely footed on top of my Frogspawn entraping its branches, yet luckily the Frog just stayed closed and wasnt affected until I rescued them both!

 

One huge thing I have never encountered a problem with is ALGAE or POOR water quality. I have always been lucky to be able to maintain ideal parameters, CONSISTANTLY, for a variety of reef inhabitants. I am no expert at keeping ALL marine animals but by asking questions on NANO-REEF and listening to advice of fellow reefers, I found mself in ideal conditions to experiment without negative reaction!

 

Most people will tell you lights are a huge part in keeping an anemone happy, how I cannot argue this

point, it is more a MERITAGE of LIGHTS, WATER QUALITY, & FOOD SOURCE. My experience with anemones goes the whole circle with: Purchase without knowledge, buying a completely bleached animal near it's end, to the opposite: Hosted by two Clownfish & full of growth and color(still going).

 

Tip #1:

If your anemone seems to be finicky and moving constantly, try introducing food to it, letting it know it wil be comfortable where it will remain.

Tip #2:

I have had amazing luck with flow passing directly onto my anemone and therefore plenty of nutrients & food passing through its area of the tank.

Tip #3:

Lights are your anemone's friend, my bleached anemone (pics later for proof) was clear ghostlike white upon introduction and was held under power compacts as I awaited the arrival of my much desired Aqua Illumination. Upon the installation of the new lighting system, the anemone reacted almost instantly; Bleached and without protection, it nearly doubled in size in roughly hours of soaking in the new power of the LEDs.

Tip #4:

I had mentioned previously above how the anemone was able to quickly adapt to new, more powerful lighting, this wouldnt have been possible without maintaining ideal parameters for its habitat. At the time, I kept close watch on my TEMPURATURE, pH, SALINITY, CALCIUM, ALKALINITY, MAGNESIUM, & NITRATES.

Althought you would think calcium, alk, and magnesium do not impact certain animals directly, these three components are a vital trio in the IDEAL water quality check list for creating a unanimously harmonious environment that will explode with life whether there are fish only or frags a million!

Tip #5:

Give your anemone plenty of space to grow and expand. My experience went from having it roam its tentacles in a corner under a huge Bird's Nest colony, to next thing you know, it nearly wrapped itself entirely over the rock holding both! The Bird's Nest is gone and has been fragged since then.

Tip #6:

If your anemone will not stop moving, allow it to roam. It is moving for a reason, until it finds a place it likes... Whether it is to find better flow, get away from lighting, it will find a spot, and then spot feed it and see if it stays!

Tip #7:

For food, I chose KRILL but others have used silvercides, and other forms, I recommend starting small (length wise).

 

If you are considering adding an anemone to your reef and are not sure if you are able to keep one healthy, consider these few tips...

Lighting

Water Quality

Food

Surrounding animals

My trick was to keep a consistant level of my water parameters and while the lighting was there, I fed my bleached anemone from every other few days, to once a week for several month to keep it happy.... In the following photos(including dates), you will see proof that one can enjoy these beautiful creatures which have a mind of there own!

 

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Anemone 6-16-11 - Bleached by SFL_Tron, on Flickr

 

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Anemone 7-17-11 - Healthier by SFL_Tron, on Flickr

Next one was on 10-2-11

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2 Clowns by SFL_Tron, on Flickr

 

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Clowns & Anemone by SFL_Tron, on Flickr

 

In short, with proper care and informed knowledge, anyone should be able to keep these animals and even bring them back from Davie Jones' Locker :ninja:

 

I hope you enjoyed this light reading I have prepared and please, never hesitate to shoot any questions my way via PM as I am always around NR!

 

Good Luck

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SouthFlorida_Tron
Thank you I will pass this on to some friends that are wanting to get a bta. Yours made a remarkable recovery.

 

Thanks, meticulous care and observation! Knowledge is power!

 

What are you feeding? How much lighting are you using on what sized tank?

The last pics look really nice. Great post.

 

Lol I should add that.

 

My tank was a mere 14 gallon BioCube, nothing outrageous, yet I had my AI Sol set low at the time, fed shrimp on a every other 2-3 day regiment, voila, pics to show results!

 

The pics are old. But always wanted to share my experience and knowledge publicly.

 

Did a quick post on reef central before and I got brushed off like pfffft, this guy is a peasant (compared to their 500gal tanks with 2 foot colonies lol)

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SouthFlorida_Tron
very nice, since my kids (and by kids i mean wife) are forcing me to having a clown fish i have been thinking about a nem, and this is great.

 

Enjoy, good luck, & it's easier than people say!

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Good write-up Tron! I would like to add, that while your experience with the bleached 'nem was a positive one, I would not recommend beginners to run out and "rescue" a bleached specimen.

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SouthFlorida_Tron
Good write-up Tron! I would like to add, that while you're experience with the bleached 'nem was a positive one, I would not recommend beginners to run out and "rescue" a bleached specimen.

 

Lol definently not my intention but more to inform beginners & experienced reefers who are unfamiliar with actually having one, I'll read through the post later & tweak some things here & there :)

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well i have rescued a bleached bta like two weeks ago and he is already doing better and turning a light green with red tips ......he has doubled in size and only really roamed around the first day and has not moved since ......

 

the question i have is i have been feeding mysis and brine every other day should i switch it up and get krill like u said and i have also heard of table shrimp but i wasnt sure if they ment cooked or raw(im guessing raw lol)

 

and when you feed the frozen krill do you let it thaw in a baster then feed ???

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SouthFlorida_Tron
well i have rescued a bleached bta like two weeks ago and he is already doing better and turning a light green with red tips ......he has doubled in size and only really roamed around the first day and has not moved since ......

 

the question i have is i have been feeding mysis and brine every other day should i switch it up and get krill like u said and i have also heard of table shrimp but i wasnt sure if they ment cooked or raw(im guessing raw lol)

 

and when you feed the frozen krill do you let it thaw in a baster then feed ???

 

I wasn't daring enough to try the store bought shrimp... The mysis is smll, but I notice when I dose a bit of mysis feast for my fish, the nem snags a few in its tentacles.... Having said that, the krill is bigger, averaging about .5-.75" in length. I did one of those, hand fed on its mouth til it "popped" and enclosed over it. I had frozen krill, I'd snap a bit off the block. Thaw it handheld in tap water to release one or two, let them rest in a shot glass with tank water, then one for the cleaner (so he's occupied) then hand feed the nem.

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SouthFlorida_Tron
I used to peel the shrimp that I fed as well. It is easier for the nem to digest, less waste spit back out.

 

Raw or cooked?

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thats a good idea for the cleaner shrimp lol he always steals from the nem lol......im going to get some krill today and see how he likes it ......

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SouthFlorida_Tron
thats a good idea for the cleaner shrimp lol he always steals from the nem lol......im going to get some krill today and see how he likes it ......

Absolutely, just remember, if it's the big frozen block of them, take a chunk off, run it under water in ur hands (sink is fine) so that u can detach a few krill (preferably the whole ones or tails) I let them sit in tank water in a shot glass to fully thaw, then I feed a chunk to the shrimp, and the big piece to the nem. (depending how if Urs is)

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SouthFlorida_Tron
Raw. Just a flat pack of frozen krill. Thaw one out, pop the shell. Viola!

 

That's good to know. I haven't even fed mine n weeks, he's gotten so big so fast with feelings, nowi just let him filter feed the oyster feast, snag mysis from the dosing, and light feed.

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+1 to raw shrimp at your local grocery store.

 

Have fed silversides in the past as well but found that my bta never spits out any shrimp so long as its small enough.

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SouthFlorida_Tron
Nice writeup!

Now any tips on getting them to split? ;)

LOL, ya as soon as i get there, ill def add some more INFO!

 

+1 to raw shrimp at your local grocery store.

 

Have fed silversides in the past as well but found that my bta never spits out any shrimp so long as its small enough.

very good... ya i found that when they spit stuff out, theyre over eating.... thats how i gauged how much to feed how often...

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LOL, ya as soon as i get there, ill def add some more INFO!

+ 1 on the krill tron thanks for that my bta and maxi are loving it full pieces also....just from the last few days of feeding there way fuller than before

 

im feeding every other day is this OK ??

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SouthFlorida_Tron
+ 1 on the krill tron thanks for that my bta and maxi are loving it full pieces also....just from the last few days of feeding there way fuller than before

 

im feeding every other day is this OK ??

you can gauge it, if theyve been deprived, its ok for a short term... shoot for every other 3 days, eventually going to once a week, now i dont even feed it actual food except what gets there from the flow

 

Thanks for the post, bro. Glad I found this. Gonna read up on it after I get off in 20 minutes.

enjoy, i hope you like it, just an informative little tid bit i thought would be a nice contribution to the forum :)

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Do you think it is possible to keep a RBTA in a 46 gallon Bowfront Reef Tank that has PC (2 x 96 watt bulbs, one actinic, one 10 000k) lighting? My parameters are very good and constant. My info is in my tank thread. Thanks!

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