First anemone...

[Shawn O]

While in the LFS about a week ago, my wife saw a pair of blacks percs in a BTA and had to have it for my Occs (sorry for stealing your home, percs ). I'm assuming this BTA is bleached out, since it's completely snow white.

When I got home I placed it on top a rock in the center of the tank. By morning it had walked over the edge and decided to hang upside down from the back of the rock. I know this is normal for them to do when first added but after about four days I rotated the rock so that it was up on top as I wasn't able to see it's mouth when it was facing the back of the tank. It's been a few days now and it's stayed in the same spot and even let it's tentacles bubble up a bit. It hasn't really completely opened up yet.

I have a Marineland led strip light on the tank, sitting directly on the eggcrate top. Knowing this puts out no significant light I set a 24" fluorescent light beside it. The nem doesn't open up but doesn't close up from it either. I'm planning on replacing the 24" tube light with a combo fixture that will hold 2 PCs and a 24" fluorescent tube. Hopefully this will work for the short term until I can get a chinese black box led unit.

My clowns pay it no attention. I think I'll get a turkey baster and feed the tank just over the nem to draw the clowns down closer to it. Maybe they'll get the hint. The female is a real food whore and would probably chase food into a shark's mouth.

 

[sam.basye]

You may want to avoid the clowns from noticing the bta, at least until it is healthy again.

Hosting clowns, while bleached can hinder the nem from recovering and the clowns could kill it.

Hold off on feeding and the introduction until the nem is healthy and regaining color.

 

[Shawn O]

Good to know, thanks. Replaced the LED strip light with a pair of 36w CFLs over the side of the tank with the anemone. Hopefully this'll work until I get the chinese LEDs.

 

[DanDashO]

If the anemone is completely bleached, it will need to eat to have any energy. Without zoox or feedings, it will eat itself and slowly shrink down to nothing.


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[Dkuhlmann]

Dan is correct, bleached anemones need to be fed because they don't have any zooxanthellae in them to allow them to gain nutrition from lighting. It's also not good to overfeed them, a few Mysis shrimp every other day is good or you can feed them small pieces of fresh frozen shrimp without any preservatives. A piece the size of a pencil eraser every other day is good. They usually regain their color in short order. It's best to keep the clowns out of them while they're recovering from being bleached.

 

[SwampyBill]

+3^^^...

 

[Karldomo]

Ive had a green bubble tip anemone for around 3 months in my tank. I brought a maroon morse code clown today from my LFS tank raised with no anemone. I acclimated him and put him in my tank within 5 mins he started hosting im super chuffed.

 

[Shawn O]

Finally have some pictures of it to post. Mrs. O decided she wanted another one so she bought a RBTA, a Hawaiian Feather Duster and what is supposed to be Xenia. I think it's an actually an Anthelia, from what info I can find. All I went to the LFS for was some live brine and frozen Mysis.

The RBTA immediately (as fast as they go, anyway) crawled down the rock until it was touching the sand. Seems healthy enough. The bleached out BTA pics show his mouth, which looks pretty bad. It does close up, as you can see. Unfortunately, my camera and phone can't get a decent pic because it's so bright white.

Does the bleached out nem look close to death? It seems like there is a closed mouth behind an open hole in a covering layer. Kind of like if it were covered with saran wrap with a hole in it over the mouth. I'm going to attempt a Zoox transplant as soon as I can pick up some silversides. Hopefully it will regain it's color and start getting food from the zoox. Will Garlic hurt an anemone? The pellets and flake I feed the fish both contain it and thought, after the fact, that it might not be good for the nems. What say you?

 

[Shawn O]

RBTA down against sand. Anthelia pic. The hermit pics are of one that came with the tank. Haven't been able to identify the species so far but saw another one at the LFS that was half this guy's size and brought him home. The one in the pic has been pretty shy and reclusive until this past week and the new one started eating the second he hit the sand and doesn't care if my face is near the glass or not.

 

[Tundy]

I recently purchased a used tank that came with two RBTA's - one of which was very small and recluse. It has taken me 3 months to get it to open while the other one has been flourishing. I suspect the previous owner propagated his original BTA. As mentioned above, good lighting and regular feeding should help you out. I've been feeing mine krill and frozen shrimp (thawed) every other day with good results. It is starting to show some color.

 

[Shawn O]

The bleached out nem seems like it's starting to get some color, a tiny bit of pink at it's tips, but this could just be from my lights. I switched out the combo light (color T8 and two PCs, one blue/white and one for color) for a 48" Coralife T5 fixture. Wanted to do a programmable MarsAqua 165w led unit but was voted down and compromised on a T5 that'll cover the whole length of the tank. Hopefully this will be strong enough for the nems and the xenia.

I fed the new RBTA a chunk of home made seafood medley, which it immediately closed around . The bleached out nem kind of pulled it toward it's mouth but that was all it did. Will have to try feeding it just a couple of mysis every day until it seems to be eating well enough.

Tundy, your post gives me hope that it can be brought back to health.

 

[madweazl]

Finally have some pictures of it to post. Mrs. O decided she wanted another one so she bought a RBTA, a Hawaiian Feather Duster and what is supposed to be Xenia. I think it's an actually an Anthelia, from what info I can find. All I went to the LFS for was some live brine and frozen Mysis.

The RBTA immediately (as fast as they go, anyway) crawled down the rock until it was touching the sand. Seems healthy enough. The bleached out BTA pics show his mouth, which looks pretty bad. It does close up, as you can see. Unfortunately, my camera and phone can't get a decent pic because it's so bright white.

Does the bleached out nem look close to death? It seems like there is a closed mouth behind an open hole in a covering layer. Kind of like if it were covered with saran wrap with a hole in it over the mouth. I'm going to attempt a Zoox transplant as soon as I can pick up some silversides. Hopefully it will regain it's color and start getting food from the zoox. Will Garlic hurt an anemone? The pellets and flake I feed the fish both contain it and thought, after the fact, that it might not be good for the nems. What say you?

Other than the bleaching, it doesnt look abnormal to me. Like previously stated, offer it some food every few days. When they start to go, it is a rapid process and you'll know it is happening (I don't see any issues with the one you have in the pictures though).

 

[carrots]

Careful what you wish for. I had hoped to ad a BTA to my clowns. They beat the BTA to death in a matter of weeks. Every time I fed it they stripped the food out of it. When it was extended they would ram into it so hard that it would cause it to close up. Tried to move it to another tank, but by the time I was able to get it to let go of the rock it was on it was too far gone. The clown is doing the same attacking to my Duncans.

 

[Shawn O]

What kind of clowns? I considered buying the two black percs that were in with the anemones at the lfs and getting rid of my Occs. The wife is attached to the Occs. Hopefully, once the nems grow a bit I can convince the clowns to give them some love.

 

[Shawn O]

OK, the new RBTA decided he didn't like his spot and moved half way around the rock. At this point he hitched a ride on a large hermit and jumped off behind the rocks and stayed there for a few days. I happened to receive a trio of dalmation mollies (1m,2f) a few days before I went on vacation. All seemed well until I came back from camping for 3 days. The new nem was at the top of the water in the corner of the tank and one of the female mollies was missing. I think he may have gotten his own lunch while I was away. Then he moves to the back wall of the tank a few inches away from a powerhead, which I then moved. The next morning I found that he had climbed down the glass and nestled himself into a depression on the top of the rock, as shown in the attached pic.

I bought some silversides the other day and, after bringing them up to 78f, I cut off behind the gut cavity and fed that to the hermits. I then split the front half of the fish straight(ish) down the middle and fed one half to each anemone. Inside of 5 or 10 minutes they had both completely swallowed their chunk of fish. The next morning I found the nems had spit out their meals after very little digestion, as you can see in the attached pics. Is this normal? I'm thinking that maybe nems this size should only get about a 1/2" long piece of fish?

Also, as you can see in the bleached one, it's mouth is not fully closed. Is this a bad sign?

 

[SNAKEMANVET]

Those pieces are way to big,and I wouldn't feed silversides.To much of a chance the silverside could be spoiled and in turn can kill the anemones.Get some frozen Mysis and give them alittle bit,like 4 or 5 Mysis shrimp evry three days until color comes back.A healthy bta doesn't need to be fed.They will catch food that is fed to the tank.

 

[Shawn O]

I figured they were on the large side for the size of the nems. Thanks.

 

[dreaddinit]

Don't worry so much. Mine was the same way but is gaining its zoox pretty good now. Take a look. Its been six months. It was in a weird spot before and stretched for the light. It was partly hiding but now it moved once it gained enough zoox I guess and is loving the light right in front and center.
Then

Now

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