Blasted Bubble Tip keeps moving!

B

bobpiker

New member
I think I've reached this conclusion, even though bubble tips are supposed to need a lot of light, mine is one which prefers less. I've had a green tip bubble for 2 months now. At first, after he crawled under a rock I would turn the rock the next day but after 4 or 5 attemps to keep him in front/top I left him alone as most everyone indicated would be the best strategy. Eventually, he would find his preferred spot and be happy and hopefully it would be in a location where I could actually see him.

Well, for the past month, he finally settled into a nook about half-way up my live rock but in the back of the aquarium where he could not be seen except for a couple of tentacles through a small hole between rocks. I left him there for almost 2 months now and thne yesterday afternoon, thinking he was firmly attached to his spot in a rock, I turned the rock completely around so that he was facing the tank front. He was opened up completely, lots of big bubble tips (close to 4" across) and seemingly happy so I thought I was set. I even put some rock rubble into a couple of nearby gaps in my live rock to help prevent him from so easily crawling through and down into the back again.

At 11pm he was still happily in the same location with lghts off. 5am the next day, I looked to see how he was doing and guess what...he's in the back of the aquarium in almost the exact same spot he had been a week before and evidently was able to squeeze through a 1/2" gap. The spot he seems to prefer is shaded so he's only getting half the light that he was the day before and I only have a 2x54 T5 about 17" above. The only difference between where he prefers and where I tried to put him yesterday is that his preference seems to be less light. There may be a bit more water movement towards the front but it's really only enough for a very gentle wave of his tentacles.

That's why I believe, regardless of suggestions regarding flow and light, that I simply have a shy anemone who doesn't want to play with others.

Enjoy those anemones.
Bob
 
Great idea.

Great idea.

I dont know why I didn't think of that. It's a great idea. I'm trying it out this evening and I'll bet dollars to doughnuts that it will work. Have a great afternoon.

Thanks,
Bob
 
What size tank?
What are your parameters -- with numbers

There are numerous reasons that an anemone will move, but they almost all involve its "needs" not being met. Figure out what is going on, and it will stop moving.
 
I agree Todd. Here's a cut-and-paste of what I think:


Here's my thoughts on the matter of wandering BTA's: (copy and pasted from a different thread)

On the topic of a BTA moving "all the time" as some say...I would argue strongly against this statement. In my experience, from reading, and discussions with other people with far more expertise than me, a BTA will remain in its spot if all of its living conditions are being met satisfactorily. There is no benefit to the anemone (risk of being stung/sliced by corals, risk of not finding another rock in the ocean, predatory animals, etc) to "just move around" IF all conditions are appropriate.

Water quality, light, food, Flow, and foot - the five conditions that must be satisfactorily met for all anemones.

Water quality: In the ocean, if local currents drastically change after storms, rivers dump crap into the ocean etc, the nem may want to move to conditions which better suit its liking. In our tanks, however, there are no other areas which have better water - but the anemone doesn't know that. This is my #1 pick for why anemones move without apparent reason. It may even be something in your water which you do not test for - or it may be BECAUSE you just did a water change and didn't match tank water close enough. The anemone is searching for something it just can not find inside a glass box, hence the so called "anemone's just sometimes walk around for no reason". We can't see the reason - so we assume there isn't one.

Light: Lighting in the ocean is quite strong. Far more than our little electrical lights we use. Even on a cloudy day the par is very high - ever had a sunburn on a cloudy day? When you introduce a BTA, you may have a spot picked out that you really want it to go, but it may decide it is too bright or too dim and promptly move. As it gets light-acclimated to your tank, it may move to a spot that is "just right" for its health in the long term. This acclimating and moving to a new home may also cause confusion to BTA's "moving a lot".

Food: Yikes! There is a lot of misconceptions about the "proper" diet for anemones. I did a write-up on RC a while back about the topic: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=1835320 A basic summary of that thread is.....assuming a healthy nem, food is likely unnecessary. If you would like to feed, feed small (pencil eraser max) meaty, raw, SW-found foods. Unhealthy nems need more food to gain energy and should be fed more. Feeding leads to faster growth. Feeding can also in some cases overcome less-than-ideal lighting because the food is supplementing the light source. More in-depth information can be found at that link.

Flow: You need to determine the flow requirements of the species of nem you want, and make it match in order to decrease the likelihood of movement. BTA's will like moderate flow, but not too high or too low. Either of those may cause it to move around. Some can be very picky. I know someone who's Haddoni moved across the sandbed after her cleaned a powerhead and replaced it (he thought) in the exact same spot. Apparently it wasn't quite exact. Haddoni's like low flow - if their oral disk is being moved by the current, it's too much and will cause it to move.

Foot: This is my #2 reason why BTA's apparently move without known cause. The foot of most anemones also requires special concern. Some anemones like to bury in the sand, some at the sand/rock interface, and some directly onto rocks. BTA's like to have their foot in a deep crevice, hole, or cave. Basically, it's a safe zone for them to hide in if they need to retract. It's also a way for them to regulate the amount of sun it gets. These deep holes are key to keeping a BTA happy with it's current spot. They like their foot shaded, and head out in the sun.

Hope that's a good summary of what I think about BTA's.
 
i cant wait to get bta, i just need to wait for my water to adjust and cycle (just set it up on sunday)so i know i have a long wait, but still, im soooooooo excited, thanks for the info bues0022
 
Thanks for everyone's input

Thanks for everyone's input

I have some reading to do now. Thanks for all help here. I did try directing a powerhead towards him last night and as of this morning he had moved around the rock towards the front where I can see him again. Now, I'll see if he's comfortable enough to stay there. Maybe then my wee perculas will take an interest.

My setup is a 55 long with Nova 6x54 T5, about 40lbs of live sand and 70lbs of LR. I have a large HOB CPR refugium/skimmer/pre-skimmer, 2-750gph powerheads, and little fishes phosban reactor. I have 5-2" fish and a 1-5" foxface that my local store aquarist assured me then would be just fine in my tank. I think he's a bit large but he seems to be doing well. I also have a couple of 1.5" turbo snails, 1 3" emerald crab, assorted small corals, and 14 small hermits. My bio-load may be a bit high but I check my parameters weekly, write them down, and they tend to keep pretty constant right in the proverbial ballpark. Temp is 80 most of the time with an occasional blip of 1 degree depending upon the time of day. I've been swapping out 5 gallons per week but will likely start going to 10 gallons beginning this weekend. I've had most everything in now for about 3 months and my anenome is maybe 1 month old. He opens up well (nice and bubbly) when he's comfortable but always closes up when the lights come on in the morning and he stays that way for about 3 hours. Then, he'll open back up and look good. He's a very pale green color...almost neon when the leds are on.

Thanks everyone.
Bob
 
What lights was it under where it came from? Given the size of tank and the lights that are on it, I'm guessing it's upset from too much light. Especially since you say it closes up when lights come on, then eventually opens back up again. Though typically a tactic used for carpet nems, you can try putting a few layers of window screen on top of the tank, and remove one layer/week to light acclimate it. You can also reduce your lighting period a little bit. Can you post a picture of it?
 
Anemone doing better

Anemone doing better

When I purchased my BT, I believe he was under a 4x54 T5. He spent about a month under a 2x54 T5 in my aquarium yet kept crawling under rocks. I'm hoping the higher power of a 6x54 will make him happyier as I had been under the impression that BTs preferred more light.

I got up this morning and checked my aquaium to find my BT in the same location as he was the day before, and this is after my lights came on with one of the power heads creating what would call at 6 out of 10 in terms of ability relative to flow. My BT is fully inflated, which is how he appeared last night with lights out, and has been so since about 5am this morning.

He's toward the back of my tank but near the top so that I can see about 1/3rd of him over the rock ledge...not so bad even though it would be better if he were in the front. He's partially under the rock ledge but not hidden from the light. The top 3rd is fully explosed, though, so he appears to like his newly discovered location with a lot of light at least on a part of his body.

If anything changes I'll let you know but this is the longest he's stayed in one partially exposed position in a fully inflated posture.

Thanks,
Bob
 
Mine keeps moving also. Or should I say the second one. Last weekend My RBTA split. One half is staying put the other seems to want and find a better home. Don't no if this is an effect of it splitting.:dance::dance:
 
Yeah I was in there clearing out some HA. I moved its rock also took a power head and blew to rocks off. I suppose it didn't like that much.
 
Well it happened! Since we are talking about mobile anemones. The clone of my RBTA found the intake to my filter. The Darn thing won't stay still now. Only it's tentacles made it through. I turned the filter off and removed the screen. It eventually backed out. Hopefully it will recover. Any body have a similar experience?
 
bues0022 said:
I agree Todd. Here's a cut-and-paste of what I think:


Here's my thoughts on the matter of wandering BTA's: (copy and pasted from a different thread)

On the topic of a BTA moving "all the time" as some say...I would argue strongly against this statement. In my experience, from reading, and discussions with other people with far more expertise than me, a BTA will remain in its spot if all of its living conditions are being met satisfactorily. There is no benefit to the anemone (risk of being stung/sliced by corals, risk of not finding another rock in the ocean, predatory animals, etc) to "just move around" IF all conditions are appropriate.

Water quality, light, food, Flow, and foot - the five conditions that must be satisfactorily met for all anemones.

Water quality: In the ocean, if local currents drastically change after storms, rivers dump crap into the ocean etc, the nem may want to move to conditions which better suit its liking. In our tanks, however, there are no other areas which have better water - but the anemone doesn't know that. This is my #1 pick for why anemones move without apparent reason. It may even be something in your water which you do not test for - or it may be BECAUSE you just did a water change and didn't match tank water close enough. The anemone is searching for something it just can not find inside a glass box, hence the so called "anemone's just sometimes walk around for no reason". We can't see the reason - so we assume there isn't one.

Light: Lighting in the ocean is quite strong. Far more than our little electrical lights we use. Even on a cloudy day the par is very high - ever had a sunburn on a cloudy day? When you introduce a BTA, you may have a spot picked out that you really want it to go, but it may decide it is too bright or too dim and promptly move. As it gets light-acclimated to your tank, it may move to a spot that is "just right" for its health in the long term. This acclimating and moving to a new home may also cause confusion to BTA's "moving a lot".

Food: Yikes! There is a lot of misconceptions about the "proper" diet for anemones. I did a write-up on RC a while back about the topic: http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=1835320 A basic summary of that thread is.....assuming a healthy nem, food is likely unnecessary. If you would like to feed, feed small (pencil eraser max) meaty, raw, SW-found foods. Unhealthy nems need more food to gain energy and should be fed more. Feeding leads to faster growth. Feeding can also in some cases overcome less-than-ideal lighting because the food is supplementing the light source. More in-depth information can be found at that link.

Flow: You need to determine the flow requirements of the species of nem you want, and make it match in order to decrease the likelihood of movement. BTA's will like moderate flow, but not too high or too low. Either of those may cause it to move around. Some can be very picky. I know someone who's Haddoni moved across the sandbed after her cleaned a powerhead and replaced it (he thought) in the exact same spot. Apparently it wasn't quite exact. Haddoni's like low flow - if their oral disk is being moved by the current, it's too much and will cause it to move.

Foot: This is my #2 reason why BTA's apparently move without known cause. The foot of most anemones also requires special concern. Some anemones like to bury in the sand, some at the sand/rock interface, and some directly onto rocks. BTA's like to have their foot in a deep crevice, hole, or cave. Basically, it's a safe zone for them to hide in if they need to retract. It's also a way for them to regulate the amount of sun it gets. These deep holes are key to keeping a BTA happy with it's current spot. They like their foot shaded, and head out in the sun.

Hope that's a good summary of what I think about BTA's.
Click to expand...

The link you posted doesn't seem to work. Is there a newer one.?
 
<img src="/images/welcome.gif" width="500" height="62"><br><b><i><big><big>To Reef Central</b></i></big></big>
 
Here's a follow up 2 months later. My gbta didn't make it. I don't know if it was me always trying to make him move to a better spot by aiming a power head at him when he came to stop in a less than ideal condition or he was simply less than in ideal condition to begin with having very little green at all but he eventually just melted so I removed him immediately about 2 weeks after my iniitial thread. Since then, I tried again and have a mini-maxi carpet that stayed where I put him with low flow and has been growing well.

Most importantly, I have had an rbta now, too, for about 3 weeks. I have found that he seems to be comfortable with low flow in the front right corner of my aquarium. I received him already attached to a rock and he's about 4" across now when fully inflated. His color is great and I've been feeding him everyday almost very small pieces of silverside or krill in an attempt to get him to grow a bit more quickly. I was told that the rock he came on had a large 1" hole almost all the way through it and that is where he has his foot. My belief now is that if a bta has an opportunity to really sink his foot in a rock there's a much greater likelihood he's going to stay put. Mine hasn't moved an inch from where I placed him in my tank these past 3 weeks. He's 18" from a 6x54 T5 light, in low flow, and is attached to a rock with a very deep 1" diameter hole. For future aquariums, I'll try to place my nems into these parameters as I've been happy with the results so far.

Bob
 
bobpiker said:
Here's a follow up 2 months later. My gbta didn't make it. I don't know if it was me always trying to make him move to a better spot by aiming a power head at him when he came to stop in a less than ideal condition or he was simply less than in ideal condition to begin with having very little green at all but he eventually just melted so I removed him immediately about 2 weeks after my iniitial thread. Since then, I tried again and have a mini-maxi carpet that stayed where I put him with low flow and has been growing well.

Most importantly, I have had an rbta now, too, for about 3 weeks. I have found that he seems to be comfortable with low flow in the front right corner of my aquarium. I received him already attached to a rock and he's about 4" across now when fully inflated. His color is great and I've been feeding him everyday almost very small pieces of silverside or krill in an attempt to get him to grow a bit more quickly. I was told that the rock he came on had a large 1" hole almost all the way through it and that is where he has his foot. My belief now is that if a bta has an opportunity to really sink his foot in a rock there's a much greater likelihood he's going to stay put. Mine hasn't moved an inch from where I placed him in my tank these past 3 weeks. He's 18" from a 6x54 T5 light, in low flow, and is attached to a rock with a very deep 1" diameter hole. For future aquariums, I'll try to place my nems into these parameters as I've been happy with the results so far.

Bob
Click to expand...

Cut back on the feedings........I never feed mine....Overfeeding can kill them. Cut back to one feeding per month if you have to feed.
 
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