Help!

[Qball77]

So I recently had a salinity spike from .025 to .030! I was able to lower it back down over a 2 day span. I didn't lose any fish but my gsp and toadstool haven't been seen ever since. My bubble tip anemone had taken quite a turn downward too. Anyone have experience with this? Will things bounce back or did I kill them? 

[Qball77]

Both the gsp and toadstool were happy and in full polyp extension 5 days ago

[ninjamyst]

they will bounce back.  just keep things stable going forward.  

[Lypto]

I've had coral as far as .04-.05 before, it rebounded and grew just fine, keeping the water clean and conditions stable will help it bounce back fast. Keep an eye on the bubble tip for signs of dying as they tend to take things with them if they do.

[Qball77]

What signs do u speak of? I’ve never had an anenome before. He still has his color and is moving around the tank at night. I’ve seen his mouth open and close and his polyps clamp down when I try to feed him. Just not a lot of polyp extension yet and the clown abandonded it. There is a long stringy lookin thing on one side of him. I’ve got him in high light and intermittent medium flow. Every morning for the past week tho when I check on him he is in the lowest, darkest part of a rock or overhang. 

[Rob22]

The anemone will move where it wants to go. Chances are if you keep things stable and leave it alone for a while it will recover fully. Just make sure your water parameters are spot on for it. If it is retracting when you try to feed it, stop. Give it a few days and then try again. 

 

Gsp is tough to kill. Had a power outage for 8 days one time. Mine looked like yours after no water movement and the tank temp dropping to 60. It was fine in a week. Again, it’s just mad right now like the anemone. 

 

I have a toadstool that does that about once a month with no water issues. It’s probably expelling it’s skin and gunk.  They just do this sometimes. I’m pretty sure that one will be fine. 

 

The actual Red Sea, not the salt brand, has normally high salinity and is home to a bunch of corals. What is most likely affecting yours is the quick swing and possible the alkalinity swing. Alk swings will kill coral quicker than salinity. 

[Qball77]

Well I just took a quick glance at the tank before bed and the bta is on the move again. I’m hoping that this is a good sign. My only fear is that he’s gonna park his ass where I can’t get to him to feed him. Grrrrr. Thinking he’s gonna be more trouble than he’s worth!

[Rob22]

BTA need light to survive. It won’t kill itself by hiding in the dark. I would be more concerned with it moving into a pump intake, shredding itself and killing the rest of the tank inhabitants. I have had a green one get stuck in an MP40 mesh guard. It tore itself in half. I pulled both pieces from the guard and it not only lived, but both sides made a full recovery after a couple of months.  It loved to wander though, made it over the overflow and into my sump three times. I finally traded both sides in. 

 

My lfs also had a huge rose bta get torn into about 5 pieces from a pump and all recovered in time. They can be resilient if water and lighting are correct. 

[Qball77]

Well look who decided to come out and play! As usual, patience is a virtue. So glad they're back. 

[Lypto]

I advise not feeding it and focusing mainly on water quality for a while. Anemones do just fine without food for quite a while and it can stress them if provided with too much food. At most feed maybe once a week if using meaty foods for a large anemone, for small ones it's often best not to if they're stressed. Is the stringy stuff a brownish color?

Signs of anemone near death include a gaping mouth for longer than a few days and letting go of the rock, as well as sloughing off flesh and expelling insides. 

If this is a recently (within 3-4 months old) set up tank, you might be experiencing an ammonia spike or some other kind of chemical swing. Have you done a water test?

[Qball77]

Been doing lots of water tests. It's 2 months old but I used Rock and filter sponges from my other tanks to speed thru the cycle. My parameters have been spot on for weeks now. The anemone didn't make it. He was the size of a pea last night and this morning I can't find him at all. So either he's a good hider or he's dead.