BTA Antics

[Pandora]

I have a green BTA. I also have this funny piece of LR which is hollow inside, and has 2 large holes that go into the "cave" part and connect. The BTA originally was placed nearby, and was glad that its base went inside, because I heard they are happiest when they can have their foot shaded, but tentacles in gentle current.

He's been growing a lot lately, and today, he did this funny thing. He is now poking out of both openings instead of just one. My question is, will this help it split? And is there anything bad about this potentially? Appears otherwise very healthy.

 

[Anemone]

Are you sure it hasn't already split? Nothing bad about it that I can see.

Kevin

 

[Pandora]

That would be weird, I don't think there's a middle divide yet. When I saw it this morning, it was still poking its head out one hole. Does the process of dividing happen that fast?

Oh, I have another question: When they split, what happens to the mouth? Does it divide straight down the middle, or would you see 2 mouths forming first?

 

[Anemone]

Splitting can be as short as a few hours to an all-day event. Generally the BTA will look pretty shrunken as it begins to rip itself in half.

Sometimes you get real even splits, and sometimes you get one bigger and one smaller (and sometimes you get multi-splits...the most I've had is four, but one of my clones did a five-way in another tank).

The split rips through the mouth, but doesn't necessarily take 1/2 of the mouth. You might have one side that keeps 3/4, and one side that gets 1/4. The clones will then wrap or close around the part of the mouth they have, basically making this into the new mouth. The clones will then heal from the mouth outward until the have a round oral disk again (rather than one that loks like it had a V shaped wedge taken out).

Kevin

 

[Pandora]

Thanks, Anemone. A 5-way in your tank, eh? Pretty kinky...

OK, just when I got all excited that it already split, I realize it must be messing with me. Now it looks like this:

(You can now see the other hole in the rock)

It looks a little crimped, but no divide there. I wonder if it made an attempt at splitting by doing that (it's been pretty happy since it ate a big chunk of shrimp last night). I did notice a hermit may have bungled in that area.