Help with anemone

[tytyler]

I have what I think is a colorado sunburst anemone and I'm not quite sure if it has a problem or not. When I put it in the tank the first day it opened up nice and big (first pic). It's been about a month now and for the last few days it hasn't been opening fully (second pic). Is it normal for them to do this? I feed it yesterday and it ate well and got nice and big for a couple hours afterwards. Color is still good and mouth seems to be tightly shut. Ammonia 0, nitrite 0, nitrate 5-10, phosphates 0, kh 10.8, calcium 500, mg 1450, any ideas? Thanks.

 

[Aquarist007]

That's normal behaviour for bubble tips.

 

[tytyler]

Is there any reason as to why they do it?

 

[Aquarist007]

Could be reacting to some small change in water chemistry or could be ready to split

 

[sparky45]

There is no need to feed a bta if your light is good enough. Watch the mouth for some Brown stringy stuff coming out of it. Mine catch food i feed to the fish and poop it out a day later. They shrink down when there expelling waste

 

[tytyler]

You can see in the picture a brown line down the center and the top kind of stays sucked in so I thought it was going to split but it hasn't yet.

 

[BonsaiNut]

A "colorado sunburst"? LOL!

 

[Aquarist007]

A "colorado sunburst"? LOL!

I didn't think it was either but didn't think it was important to the question asked

http://www.*********.com/forums/cherry-corals/165516-colorado-sunburst-anemone-$450-shipped.html

 

[tytyler]

What kind is it then, it has green at the base of the tentacles and white speckles?

 

[tytyler]

Either way I sure didn't spend no $450 on it.

 

[tytyler]

Looks like it's a rbta with a green oral disc from what I find on the internet. The lfs told me colorado sunburst.

 

[Aquarist007]

Looks like it's a rbta with a green oral disc from what I find on the internet. The lfs told me colorado sunburst.

Plain old Rbta
Good news is they split very easily

 

[tytyler]

What do they normally sell for?

 

[cnreef]

What do they normally sell for?

Really depends on where you live, I'd say... FWIW yours looks fancier than a normal rbta to me

 

[tytyler]

Thanks for the help, now I need to see if I can get my clown to host it.

 

[Aquarist007]

What do they normally sell for?

60 bucks here.

 

[JeffyT]

im having the same problem. my Inferno i just bought at Reef-A-Palooza just spat out a bunch of black goop and shriveled up. my friends who own nems say its just them getting use to the water. i was told not to feed it for at least a week once introduced to my tank.

 

[mcfa2403]

In all 3 pictures it is opened fully. Current, lighting and access to food can all affect its orientation and shape. I have noticed a tendency in my BTA's to attach the verrucae to surrounding rock when first acclimating and then to start stretching into the current and orient themselves toward the light (not about getting more light but more of a natural "light feeding" reaction) once they are acclimated.

As for BTA pricing, anything under $150 for a healthy specimen is reasonable (IMO) if you like it. Sunburst, Inferno, Sherman rose and other specific names are used to refer to a lineaged captive split anemone (for instance Colorado sunburst come from Gonzo's corals). A wild caught RBTA is anywhere from 30-50 from the wholesaler and while retailers need to have some markup anything over 3 times is just gouging and unfair (especially since they are pretty easy to keep if you have experience). Anyways, just my .02 cents

 

[tytyler]

Well here he is today guys, any thoughts? Ammonia and nitrite 0, nitrate 20 and phosphates 0.

 

[Aquarist007]

Well here he is today guys, any thoughts? Ammonia and nitrite 0, nitrate 20 and phosphates 0.View attachment 295617

Why are your nitrates rising from your first post. Is this a recently set up tank?