Anemone ID

[OrionN]

It does not behave like a Magnifica. Looking at the picture above, withour consider the picture of the column earlier, it can look like a H. crispa or H. malu. However the column is not compatible with Malu or Crispa. (colorless tan or white column with white verracue).

Regardless, it seem to be doing well. Keep us update with pictures every week or two.

 

[SomeDude12]

It does not behave like a Magnifica. Looking at the picture above, withour consider the picture of the column earlier, it can look like a H. crispa or H. malu. However the column is not compatible with Malu or Crispa. (colorless tan or white column with white verracue).

Regardless, it seem to be doing well. Keep us update with pictures every week or two.

I agree. From this photo, it appears to be a Malu. Ritteri's tend to remain on rock structures and prefer direct light.

 

[Navyblue]

It does seem like a malu.

However I might not have it in a week or 2 as I am really torn between keeping it and selling it. I am afraid that I would kill it, but it is really beautiful.

 

[Navyblue]

It's official, I'm keeping it. I have now re-scape my tank to accomodate sand dwelling anemone or coral.

 

[Navyblue]

I had another try in hunting a magnifica. I found one that look like a magnifica to me. In the LFS tank that is horribly lit, it was climbing the tank glass till right under the waterline.

So I got it home, gave it a flat rock at a high point. It climbed down and started looking for crevice. I suppose I have another not-magnifica.

To top that off, it isn't in a good shape. The foot is torn and the mouth seems to be gaping.

 

[1fishkeeper]

Your new one is a Ritteri or Mag for short. It might just be going down the rock until it gets use to your tank. Give it time and it will move back up. As for the tear in the foot. If its a small one and it looks to be healthy it should recover. And for the gaping mouth how long has it been in your tank?

 

[Navyblue]

I got it yesterday, and going downhill fast. This morning it is deflated and detached. I took it out for fear that it is going to die when I am away.

 

[Navyblue]

Update.

Not much difference, though the tentacle seems to be a tad less knobby. It also seems to have less white tips, not sure if it has to do with the Tunze incident.

Still not eating. There was once I seem to manage to get a feeding response (pellets + cyclopeze + garlic), but I don't think it actually managed to swallow anything thanks to the clownfish hosting it.

It seems content anywhere on the sand by the rock.

 

[OrionN]

I think phender is right. You got a dyed H. malu or H. crispa. I ma really interested in this anemone. I wonder if in a few months the dye fade and it become a tan anemone.

 

[Navyblue]

So the disappearing white tips is indication that it is dyed? And it takes this long for the dye to reach the tips?

 

[OrionN]

H. malu or H. crispa have white tank colunm. Your anemone have bright purple colunm. Now the picture of the tentacle seem to be purple also. It could be that they just take a tank white aneone and dyed it purple.
The last picture is very typical picture of a H. malu or crispa. Onlything that does not match is the purple colunm. I cannot be certain, but the colunm and tentacles purple color can be dyed.

 

[Navyblue]

I think malu can have coloured column.

The column is magenta. The top side was a dirty purple, but I think it is slowly turning pink/lighter. I have noticed it spewing zooxanthelae quite few times. The column had always been always brighter than the top side.

A bleached and dyed anemone always have the same shade top and bottom. I don't know how it is with a not entirely bleached but dyed anemone, may be this is how it looked like.

If it is indeed dyed, the dye hasn't started to fade yet. If anything it looks brighter by the day because it is expelling zooxanthelae.

This anemone seems to be shy away from light. At one time I put the rock that it is attached to under the light. It became small and knobby. And it still look better with the light off. Bleached anemone does seem to have the tendency to do that. Or may be it is just a malu that doesn't like direct light.

 

[OrionN]

My Malu (I have 2) doing great under 2X250W MH ina 65 g tank. Right under the light. As far as I know Malu have off white tan column

 

[Navyblue]

Quoting WWM.

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemones.htm

Heteractis malu (Haddon & Shackleton 1893), the Delicate Sea Anemone. Narrow, buried column of pale cream, yellow, orange to red color, sometimes with some yellow or orange splotching. Upper part with adhesive verrucae in rows. Sparse tentacles of stubby appearance, variable length, usually magenta tipped, with radial markings. Found in sediment in shallow, still water. Here in Australia with a Clarkii Clownfish and at a wholesalers.

Though it doesn't mention magenta/pink/purple foot. And the examples I have seen seems that the colour is confined to the foot portion, not like mine which is a uniform magenta.

The tentacle tip is kind of blue or purple. If this points to crispa, then it has to be dyed.

 

[OrionN]

I think the operative word there is pale.
If your anemone turn out to be a Malu or Crispa, I would expect the column and the tentacles coloration to fade. It it is a Magnifica, I expect him to climb up the rock when he get healthy.
Good luck with him and please keep us update. I am very interested in the outcome and the final ID of this anemone.

BTW, I know for fact that the describtion of H. malu there is wrong, specifically about the verrucae. They do not occur in rows but random with higher density near the top of the column and less lower on the column.
I don't trust WWM very much, there are numberous wrong information there, especially about the carpet anemones also, which I know well.

 

[Navyblue]

How long would these dye last?

I didn't know that wwm can be unreliable, I have been reading it for like a decade. Thanks for letting me know.

I was reading this thread:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1072573

It mentioned the tentacle difference between malu and crispa. Mine does not seem like a malu, probably a crispa but can't be sure.

Are the photos posted so far clear enough? Would a high resolution macro shot of the tentacles help?

I will definitely update this as I too find it perplexing.

 

[garygb]

Maybe malu, maybe crispa, not magnifica though.

 

[OrionN]

Light off.

Gary, Did you see this picture? This is why I though that this was a Magnifica.

 

[LesMartin]

FWIW I have a purple malu but the column is an egg yolk yellow colour. I've also seen a few with green and one or two with yellow spotted columns so it appears that they don't always have a cream/off white column. Maybe (?) navyblue just got lucky with a magenta column

 

[Navyblue]

FWIW I have a purple malu but the column is an egg yolk yellow colour. I've also seen a few with green and one or two with yellow spotted columns so it appears that they don't always have a cream/off white column. Maybe (?) navyblue just got lucky with a magenta column

Do you have a picture? Would love to see it.