BTA not getting lots of light - but not moving?

[rwb500]

I have two BTA's, one about 5" and one about 4". I have a large "mountain" of rocks epoxied together in my 40br with lots of nooks and crannies for them to hide their feet. I put both anemones out in the open when i got them about 4 weeks ago and they both went to hide in the rocks within a few hours (lights were on). Now, both are hidden pretty deeply in the rockwork, getting barely any light at all.

Should I be worried that they are not getting enough light? the lighting in that part of my tank is not very intense at all.

I guess im wondering how good their light-finding instincts are. what will they do if they are light-starved? they'll walk around, right?

 

[rwb500]

anybody?

 

[Coral Hind]

They normally will move to the light but you can point a powerhead at them to make them seek out a better location. Not too strong but enough to make them want to move.

Because they are not getting much light I would try to feed them small pieces of silver side or shrimp twice a week. Note that after feeding the anemone it will deflate the next day to expel the waste. Many newbies freak out and think it is dying when they see it deflated. Once clean it will inflate back up.

 

[bradleym]

You gotta give some more info, like how much light over what size tank for instance. It sounds like the light is too bright so they are hiding until they are acclimated to it. Their light-seeking abilty is top notch. If they are hiding from the light something else is up causing them to hide.

 

[rwb500]

ok, thanks for the tip.

The tank is lit by a DIY LED/T5 hybrid fixture. its a 40 breeder. The LED's are mainly over the center of the tank. The ends are designed as lower-light areas. Both anemones are under rocks in one end.

I have pointed a k-nano (old version) directly at the anemone which i feel is more sheltered than the other. no movement yet but its only been a few hours.

Neither anemone looks very happy. theyre not deflated, but their tentacles are looking pretty shrunk (definitely not bubbling up!).

 

[SwampyBill]

Are you acclimating them to your lights? I'd suggest putting 3 sheets of window screen across the top of your tank for a few weeks, taking a layer off each week. What are your water parameters in numbers...?

 

[rwb500]

I dimmed the lights when i first got them. But they hid in the rocks even with the dim lights.

Could it be possible that my maroon clown is too rough on them, causing them to hide? He was somewhat brutal at first, although now he is very gentle with them. well, he can only get to one of them. he is a she btw. tomorrow I am picking up a very large RBTA so she should pretty much leave the BTA's alone from then on.

water params (just tested):
temp: 76.5 (held very steady by reefkeeper, used to be higher, anemones acted the same way when it was up at 79.0)
pH:8.2-8.3
nitrates: 0 (by two test kits)
alk: 1.9-2.0
phosphate: 0
dKH: 11-12
Ca: 460

thanks for the help!

 

[SwampyBill]

I'd still put window screening above the tank for a few weeks, esp. if you're adding another nem to the mix. Along with the lighting acclimation, it could very well be the maroon is stressing them out more, also.

 

[saltymight]

+1 with the screen how big is your maroon? some issues that happen when they dont get accumulated to the light is they can stressed, and lose the algae in them (i forgot what its called) then they tend to get bleached. If this happens you will need to feed them manually squid, shrimp is what I use. about 3 times a week until the algae grows back than I usually do about 1-2 a week

 

[rwb500]

ok i dimmed the lights again.

the maroon is about 3", so its a little too big for the BTA's. but after their initial meeting she has been pretty gentle with them.

Today i twisted the mountain of rocks that the BTA's are on 180 degrees, so I have a better view of the BTA's. One of them is not as hidden as I thought. I fed it 4 mysis shrimp (its first feeding in about 3-4 weeks, because it was not accessible).

The smaller of the two BTA's is still completely hidden in the rocks. Yesterday I pointed a k-nano at it but that just made it shrink up. It did not move an inch.

Today I picked up that RBTA i was talking about. Its doing great for its first 6 hours. The Maroon is definitely giving it lots of attention, but if anything its just helping it get anchored by gently nudging it. i played with powerheads for quite a while to get the right current to help the anemone settle where i wanted it.

So now the main problem is just the smaller of the two BTA's. I'll update this thread with any developments, and if anyone has any advice to chime in until then, please do so

thanks for your help everyone.

 

[SwampyBill]

As stated before, 3 layers of window screening on top of tank is highly recommended to acclimate anemones; taking a layer off each week once they've stopped looking stressed; not just dimming the lights again....
Personally, 2 bta's & a large rbta in a 40 gal tank seems alot to me & it may all be chemical warfare. I'd also remove the maroon clown for awhile & let the anemones settle in on their own time w/o the 'extra lovin'. Do you know a fellow reefer that you could bring the clown to 'fish sit' while the anemone's acclimate?

 

[SaylorsReef]

What is your salinity?