Borneman Anemone in New Tank

[Bchou93]

Hey everybody,

So my tank is a Fluval Evo 13.5. I've been cycling it for a week today. I added live sand along with base rock and water "supplemented" with bacteria. I threw in a dead shrimp for 2 days to bump up the ammonia levels in the tank to kick start the cycling. I also added base rock. Today, I went and bought a cured rock from the fish store. There was a little hitchhiker, who I was told was a coral. I found out later that he's a Borneman anemone. I had plans of getting an anemone several months after my tank's been established, so I haven't gotten the chance to read up on them until now. Am I SOL with this guy? I really want to keep him alive, but my tank is so new, I'm worried that he won't make it. When I brought him home, he was open and his mouth extended. Hours after an attempt to feed him, he's partially closed up. He wouldn't grasp or eat the shrimp that I tried to feed him, but he seems hungry. I've got stock everything in the tank and I'm still waiting on my powerhead to come tomorrow. What can I do to keep this guy alive with such a new tank? I'm so excited to have him here, but I'm freaking out at the same time! First pic is before "feeding" (he didn't really eat the shrimp); second pic is after

[Gravity]

Glad to see you start a tank. I don’t know about the anemone but it’s probably not good to cycle a tank with it. I would maybe suggest setting the rock with the anemone in a small jar/tank with an air stone for circulation. Then continue cycling the tank. Otherwise remove the shrimp and just let the tank cycle with organic material on the rock and possibly some occasional ghost feeding to keep the cycle going. 

[j.falk]

You shouldn't feed an anemone until a week has passed after adding them to your tank.  Feeding them so soon stresses them out.

[EthanPhillyCheesesteak]

On 11/8/2019 at 10:24 PM, Bchou93 said:

Hey everybody,

So my tank is a Fluval Evo 13.5. I've been cycling it for a week today. I added live sand along with base rock and water "supplemented" with bacteria. I threw in a dead shrimp for 2 days to bump up the ammonia levels in the tank to kick start the cycling. I also added base rock. Today, I went and bought a cured rock from the fish store. There was a little hitchhiker, who I was told was a coral. I found out later that he's a Borneman anemone. I had plans of getting an anemone several months after my tank's been established, so I haven't gotten the chance to read up on them until now. Am I SOL with this guy? I really want to keep him alive, but my tank is so new, I'm worried that he won't make it. When I brought him home, he was open and his mouth extended. Hours after an attempt to feed him, he's partially closed up. He wouldn't grasp or eat the shrimp that I tried to feed him, but he seems hungry. I've got stock everything in the tank and I'm still waiting on my powerhead to come tomorrow. What can I do to keep this guy alive with such a new tank? I'm so excited to have him here, but I'm freaking out at the same time! First pic is before "feeding" (he didn't really eat the shrimp); second pic is after

If you ever end up getting rid of it, or it has babies, I would love to buy one off you. I love the look of that nem, I’ve never heard of it before

[Bchou93]

2 hours ago, EthanPhillyCheesesteak said:

If you ever end up getting rid of it, or it has babies, I would love to buy one off you. I love the look of that nem, I’ve never heard of it before

I'll be sure to let you know if I see another one on my tank. Lol. I went to my LFS yesterday and saw one just like him, but they called him a rock flower. I think they just misidentified him. He definitely doesn't look like most rock flowers I've seen. 

[EthanPhillyCheesesteak]

17 hours ago, Bchou93 said:

I'll be sure to let you know if I see another one on my tank. Lol. I went to my LFS yesterday and saw one just like him, but they called him a rock flower. I think they just misidentified him. He definitely doesn't look like most rock flowers I've seen. 

Dang, wish your LFS would ship stuff. How much are they selling them for?

[Rob22]

Phymanthus buitendijki - Bornemans anemone. Tough as nails and packs a potent sting. If it gets into battle with any coral it will win. They will reproduce in captivity and can reach plague levels but it takes years for that to happen. Not necessarily a pest like aiptasia but they don’t fit in with everyone’s tanks. If any anemone can survive a cycling tank besides mojanos or aiptasia, I would give this one the best shot.