Blasted Bubble Tip keeps moving!

[bobpiker]

I found some information awhile back compiling a survey of anemone owners. The survey concluded some very interesting results. I got the idea to feed an anemone daily from this survey. The results tended towards daily feeding. Has anyone else read this survey. Here's a couple of links:

http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/seaanemoneprofiles/ss/sbsanemonesurvey_3.htm
http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/seaanemoneprofiles/ss/sbsanemonesurvey.htm
http://saltaquarium.about.com/od/seaanemoneprofiles/ss/sbsanemonesurvey_9.htm

Regards,
Bob

 

[RBU1]

I don't believe those surveys...I have had my anemones for several years. They are healthy and look great. I never feed.

 

[BonsaiNut]

I found some information awhile back compiling a survey of anemone owners. The survey concluded some very interesting results. I got the idea to feed an anemone daily from this survey. The results tended towards daily feeding. Has anyone else read this survey.

There are many problems with this survey:

(1) It is based on people's memory of events, instead of real-life observations; it is therefore using a quantitative tool (survey) to measure qualitative information (perceptions/memory).
(2) It does not test a single variable at a time (holding all other variables constant) instead it draws conclusions from situations where numerous variables change.
(3) It confuses correlation with causality.

In my opinion, this survey is worse than no survey at all, since it draws all sorts of conclusions based on flawed methodology.

 

[bobpiker]

I'm with you all on that. My suspicion was that it did seem to rely on perceptions rather than actual science. You summarized it perfectly, Bonsainut. Science and qualitative logic makes the best sense. Thanks for everyone's input. I'll go to feeding occasionally...very occasinally, and rely on the results you've all achieved. Have a great afternoon.

Bob

 

[RBU1]

I'm with you all on that. My suspicion was that it did seem to rely on perceptions rather than actual science. You summarized it perfectly, Bonsainut. Science and qualitative logic makes the best sense. Thanks for everyone's input. I'll go to feeding occasionally...very occasinally, and rely on the results you've all achieved. Have a great afternoon.

Bob

I think that would be best Bob,

Maybe Bonsai can help me with this but I recall reading that if you overfeed an anemone they actually never digest the food from the day before. When that happens it goes bad inside the anemone causing all kinds of problems.....

Again I think I recall reading that but not positive....

 

[BonsaiNut]

I think that would be best Bob,

Maybe Bonsai can help me with this but I recall reading that if you overfeed an anemone they actually never digest the food from the day before. When that happens it goes bad inside the anemone causing all kinds of problems.....

Again I think I recall reading that but not positive....

I have never actually read this, but would be curious if you remember your source - I'd be curious to hear more about it.

Based on personal observation, I think anemones can hit a point where they are "full" and they no longer attempt to consume additional food. If they are still digesting food, they may not attempt to eat more... but I don't really know. I admit that I am very careful with feeding anemones only small pieces of food because I have had bad experiences that appear to be correlated with feeding food chunks that were too large. However I have no idea what it was about the large chunks of food that was causing the problem...

 

[BonsaiNut]

I'm with you all on that. My suspicion was that it did seem to rely on perceptions rather than actual science.

There is one other major flaw in the methodology that I'm having trouble remembering the exact term of (it's been a long time since my last research class).

It is a logical error where you assume that if a group has certain characteristics, that all individuals within the group have the same characteristics as the group. In the case of this anemone survey, the author aggregated information (from his survey) and then applied it universally to all anemone species - despite the fact that we know that some species have very different care requirements than others.

It would be like looking at a polar bear living in Alaska in an ambient temp of -30 F, and a black bear living in Georgia in an ambient temp of 70 F, and saying that the perfect temperature for all bears is an ambient temp of 20 F. This is exactly what the author does in his write-up about anemones.

P.S. I would avoid trying to keep your anemones at 86 F...

 

[webslinger]

I would freak out if my aquarium temp went to 86