bubble tip anemone not retracting

burtonpj48

New member
For the past 3-4 of weeks my anemone wont go back to its bubble tip state. It stays at its streched state. I was wondering if i should be concerned. I feed it once a week. should I be feeding it more. Maybe its telling me its still hungry. Any advice would be good. thanks
 
Bta

Bta

Most people experience this and no one is really sure why it happens. I just moved a RBTA that had no bubble tips to another tank and now it has bubble tips again. The tank it was in previously also had 3 BTA and they all had bubble tips. People will tell you that the presence of clownfish stimulates bubble tips but there is no research to support that. As long as it's not bleached or shrunken I would not worry about it. Never had a BTA die from lack of bubble tips.

Cheryl
 
Last edited:
I picked up 2 from the same mother and they both were bubbled, i put them in 2 different tanks and one stayed bubbled and the other one which gets alot more flow stays stretched.


Art
 
The tentacles will most likely never bubble again unless you change tanks, lights, flow or something like that. IME they bubble when stressed. Nobody really knows why the tentacles change, but it is just as healthy. What lights do you have? It may be trying to get more light. Also, don't feed it more than once a week. If I feed mine even twice a week they will die because food rots inside of them and makes them unhappy. Best of luck!
 
Waffle thanks for your feeding advise I have been overfeeding mine. As far as the tenacles I have had one in the same tank with bt and one without. IT SHOULD BE FINE.
 
I have had one in the same tank with bt and one without. IT SHOULD BE FINE.

I've seen pictures of colonies of RBTA hundreds strong (in the wild) and some will have bubbled tips, some with straight tentacles, some that are pink, some that are deep red, and so on. I think it is just the anemone that decided. Like I decided to have saltwater tanks instead of freshwater. Or I decide I like puppies better than kittens - I think it is just the anemone personality! :D
 
wow i was under the impression that feeding more often would increase growth rate. i picked up my RBTA yesterday at a frag swap and was told this by the fragger.

so feeding once a week is the 'safe max'? I feed yesterday and today and the anemone gobbled up the silversides both times without issue.
 
The tentacles will most likely never bubble again unless you change tanks, lights, flow or something like that. IME they bubble when stressed. Nobody really knows why the tentacles change, but it is just as healthy. What lights do you have? It may be trying to get more light. Also, don't feed it more than once a week. If I feed mine even twice a week they will die because food rots inside of them and makes them unhappy. Best of luck!

I have T5 54w 6 bulbs in my 90 gallon. Its plenty of light and the rock crevice that it has wedged itself into, the anemone has not moved from it since it found it. I used to feed it everyday and it grew fast. So I cut down feeding it. It never got sick coz it ate too much.
 
thanks for the help. do your BTAs 'thrive' in actinics-only too (simulating sunrise/sundown)? I am considering keeping my 10ks on for an extra hour
 
Today is the fist day i noticed my bta, bubble tips are starting to show again, Im so happy. I was begining to worry, I started to feed it everyday, but less quantity. Maybe thats what did it. I will have to keep an eye on in for the time being.
 
Some bubble, some don't, many lose bubble tips.
There seems to be no ryhme or reason, or at least obvious reasons for this.
Over feeding can induce stress and splitting, I'd keep to once a week for spot, and whatever mysis it picks up at feeding time.
Bubble tips or not seems to not be a health factor.
 
have had rbta's for 4 years no, and i have sold about 50 of the splits the more u feed the faster the grow and split again, i have never had one die
 
Back
Top