The Bubbletip Anemone Care Thread

[pgrVII]

 

 

This is to help the growing number of people getting these awesome creatures and then having a bunch of questions. Fear not! This should make finding info. easier and more a one stop shop of sorts.

That said,ask questions of course!!

 

 

Basics

 Bubbletip Anemones (BTAs) are a host to a bunch types of clownfish,but in the aquarium they will be accepted by most kinds readily,including the Ocellaris. They will accept food along with good flow and lighting. Water chemistry is just standard reef tank parameters so I wont get into that as theres plenty info elsewhere about that.  The most important thing is stable water chemistry, so its best if the tank has been up and running a while before adding them.

 

Acclimation 

So you've brought your BTA home and have a spot picked and cant wait to place it in. Sweet!

But hold up a sec. Lets float that bag a bit and temp acclimate it. Now,lots of people have their own process to get their critters used to their water etc. I honestly just float the bag a while(15-20 mins) cut the mp10 off and place it where I want it to settle roughly. I dont turn my return off,because it may settle where their needs arent met  when you turn both pumps back on,so I like to provide some flow for it so it gets a better feel for the tank. Just make sure you're around to keep an eye on it.  They have a foot,and can move. And probably will. Dont mess with them after placing them,unless you see immediate danger,you can cover power heads with some pantyhose and of course Vortechs have the foam cover. They will know what they need so let em find it. Generally if your tank is stable and needs are met,they stay put more or less off the bat. Or so Ive found. Main point,dont bother them,dont freak out and just enjoy the new addition.

 

Lighting 

Pretty straight forward, BTAs will accept a variety of lights and intensities. LEDs work really well,as do T5 and halides. My exp.has been mostly LEDs from @DaveFason and they do great coloring and growing. They need however at least lighting that support moderate light corals,they can live on less with more frequent feedings,but, the colors will not be as nice. Do yourself a favor and make sure you have decent lights,for the health of the animal and to a lesser extent,enjoying the squishy rainbow you just got to the fullest! They love some light!

 

Feeding

BTAs like to eat.They dont HAVE too necessarily but do better when offered.I use formula 1 pellets,mysis,or freeze dried brine. All are readily accepted. Feed them 1-2x a month. You can feed them more if you wish but be warned they poop,alot,its a thick black goo,(like symbiote style) I will usually siphon it out with a turkey baster. The clowns may or may not feed them. My female has fed 1 ruby red dragonet,and 2 cleaner shrimp to theirs over the years,but dont really feed it prepared food. They will however help keep pesky  shrimp from stealing the food like they do with coral. Any standard aquarium fare food will do, just use tongs to place a piece of food in the tentacles gently. Or a baster to squirt it in the same manner. Heres a video to help.

 

Clownfish(as guests)

Alot of times,clownfish will not show interest in an anemone, no matter how pretty it is or how much coin ya dropped. Sometimes they'd rather use a powerhead or toadstool then the beautiful BTA you got. There's a lot of info.out there to help the clowns along into their BTA. Showing videos or pics of clowns using Anemones, floating them together in a breeder box,swooshing them into it,baiting with food. In all honesty,I've found given time they will figure it out. Just leave them be, I've not used any tricks or the like to get mine to use the BTAs I've kept,they just figured it out. Dont rush them,as they seem to need to build up to the Anemones sting over time and sometimes you will see dark marks on them when they start this hosting process. This is pretty normal and not to worry all part of the process.

 

Bubbles(or not)

The bubble part of the bubble tips. No real evidence as to what causes them to bubble,theres 1000 new theories daily. Light,flow,food,temp.all are theories that may or not cause them to do this. I've had them be like this for months

 

To them getting like this.

 So just keep the tank stable and they will be happy,bubbles or no. One side note  I'll say not to add to the already large file of "could be's", I have noticed bubbles more often when feeding pellet food to them. 🤔

 

Selecting A BTA

Good color to start. And should be sticky to the touch. No tears in the foot,thats just asking for trouble and usually leads to death for the nem for most. It should also have a tightly closed mouth (unless eating/pooping). Avoid ones that are more on the pale side and aimlessly wandering in the current. 

 

Other Info.

 Help!My BTA is wandering all over! Yep they do this just let them,only worry if they do it kinda aimlessly and for more than a week. Ive had them wander a while then just plant exactly where they started, cant say why they just do this. No worries they'll figure it out!

Help! My BTA had stuff coming from its mouth!

Ok. So this happens too. If its just a black tar looking goo,most the time it's poop. They look terrible when pooping and to a first time keeper it can look bad. Its fine,everybody poops! If it's more a white kinda stringy stuff thats another matter,usually this is the result if bad water chemistry and poor husbandry. This is the stomach contents and is usually a bad sign. Remove the nem to a breeder box so if it detaches it doesnt meet your powerhead(cause it will). Also,you will occassionally see it deflate and look like a wad of grumpy gum,this is what I call a water change. Basically,their sacks of water so every once in a while they need to freshen it up it seems so they deflate a bit then puff back up after a day or so.

Tank Size this one is one of those,"everyones got an opinion" and thats cool,and as always the more room,the better. But, you'll see alot of pretty small nano tanks with a BTA in it,so again to each their own,learn from those keepers threads if thats a route you wanna go. Id say 20 gallons would be a good starting point for most folks. 

 

Corals(as neighbors)

Mostly,I have kept them in tanks where every one is ok with each other. They dont seem to bother zoas or palys when they park near them,but some more sensitive corals may not fair well. Remember, these can get big,like 12" across or more pending care,and can travel. So keep that in mind planning your tank. Usually it can be best to put the BTA in first so you can kinda stage frags around it to help any conflict.  But they are a great addition to a reef so worth the extra work.

 

That about covers it. I will add to this as I think of anything. And of course add in your experiences too! I hope this helps the growing number of people getting BTAs. The biggest thing is less is more here,let them figure the tank out and settle in,you will be alot better off as will the BTA. They are the best part of a reef tank for me so I hope you enjoy them as much as I do! 

Also, shoutout to @Lawnman for helping come up with this idea to have a BTA info sticky! He has been known to keep some nice BTAs,as have many great Nano-Reefers!🤙

 

 

 

 

[Lawnman]

Great information nice write up buddy! 

[pgrVII]

3 minutes ago, Lawnman said:

Great information nice write up buddy! 

Thanks buddy! From the OG himself!

[Daniel91]

Nice write up.

 

Good thing to note is that target feeding is actually not necessary. No doubt it helps with growth and overall health but whether it grabs leftover from broadcast feeding or nothing, it should be fine.

 

Also, anemone crabs are amazing - great symbiotic relationship if you do not have clowns or a bigger nem that’ll have room for both. Again, not needed but great to experience.

 

 

[NoOneLikesADryTang]

This is great information! Thank you! I just picked up my first bubble tip anemone this weekend, so I hope you guys don't mind if I have more questions. 

[pgrVII]

On 2/25/2019 at 6:47 PM, NoOneLikesADryTang said:

This is great information! Thank you! I just picked up my first bubble tip anemone this weekend, so I hope you guys don't mind if I have more questions. 

Thanks! Not at all,that's what it's here for. Ask away!🤙

[Tigahboy]

Great write-up!  👌

[pgrVII]

6 minutes ago, Tigahboy said:

Great write-up!  👌

Thank you much!

[righttirefire]

 

 

 

 

[mitten_reef]

Great write-ups, just here to share some bubbles

 

 

[NoOneLikesADryTang]

Here’s my first. Any idea what kind this one is? 

[Snow_Phoenix]

Thank you for posting this very informative thread. It's my first time owning a RBTA. Here's mine:

 

 

 

It's little right now, but I'm hoping it'll split as it grows bigger so that I can trade off the 'baby' nems at the LFS. 🙂 

[pgrVII]

10 minutes ago, Snow_Phoenix said:

Thank you for posting this very informative thread. It's my first time owning a RBTA. Here's mine:

 

 

 

It's little right now, but I'm hoping it'll split as it grows bigger so that I can trade off the 'baby' nems at the LFS. 🙂 

Youre very welcome and thank you!  You look to be off to a great start!

[Tigahboy]

Are these nems hard to pull off rock?

[pgrVII]

1 minute ago, Tigahboy said:

Are these nems hard to pull off rock?

They can be if they arent keen on leaving the rock. They can be removed, just takes time and of course,patience. 🙄😂...

Some people put ice on the foot to move it,or scrape/pry with a credit card,aim a power head at it,move the rock. You know the routine...

[Lawnman]

8 minutes ago, Tigahboy said:

Are these nems hard to pull off rock?

A lot easier to remove than a maxi mini I know that lol 

[NoOneLikesADryTang]

I tried to remove a rock flower tonight from a rock, and it’s currently RFA 1, NOLADT 0. 

So I would imagine that these would be very similar. 

[Tigahboy]

11 minutes ago, Lawnman said:

A lot easier to remove than a maxi mini I know that lol 

Thanks for explaining in terms I would understand.  😂

[Tigahboy]

Now who is going to put together a definitive power ranking of all the nems, from aiptasia to RFAs to BTAs (though I'm primarily interested in the rankings among maxi minis, RFAs and BTAs)?  😁

[Tigahboy]

@pgrVII I understand your position on size of tank, but any thoughts on whether tank height is important at all (e.g., 20g long versus 20g high)?  I've only kept 1 RBTA once (a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away) and that was in a 67g where tank height wasn't an issue. 

 

@righttirefire that's a beautiful BTA that you have.  I don't think I've seen such an amazing yellow (?) speckled one like yours.

[pgrVII]

6 minutes ago, Tigahboy said:

@pgrVII I understand your position on size of tank, but any thoughts on whether tank height is important at all (e.g., 20g long versus 20g high)?  I've only kept 1 RBTA once (a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away) and that was in a 67g where tank height wasn't an issue. 

 

@righttirefire that's a beautiful BTA that you have.  I don't think I've seen such an amazing yellow (?) speckled one like yours.

I like shallow tanks myself but that's just cause the layout is easier to figure out for me. I guess really it isnt any different,just provide the basics and itll be great. 

[Enyo]

Have we learned much about them in the past 5 years? Ive been out of the hobby for about that long, I had a few dinner plate sized BTAs that lived for about 2 years until one randomly died and wiped the entire tank out. 

 

Back then it seemed like there was quite a bit up in the air on how to keep them. Some said overfeeding kills, others said underfeeding kills, some said they wont live long term with lights only etc. I use to feed mine shrimp and clam meat. Thinking about buying one and trying my hand again, hoping a captive split one would be hardier than what i was accustomed to.

[Mrs. Limpet]

Nice write up. Thank you for such helpful information on these amazing animals. 

[pgrVII]

On 6/10/2019 at 8:08 PM, Mrs. Limpet said:

Nice write up. Thank you for such helpful information on these amazing animals. 

You're welcome! Glad its of use to you.😊

[DSA65PRO]

I have a private tank bred Rainbow Bubble tip, that was given to me. It looks more like the second picture down, but with much longer tentacles. I have it fed it small pieces Silversides twice since Sept. 11 The tank went up to <84F recently, and I brought it back down to >78F. Yesterday it split, not sure if the temperature change or the silversides prompted this.