trueblackpercula
New member
I have a Heteractis magnifica, and I'm approaching my 5th anniversary caring for this animal (purchased in April of 2001).
No splits, but does spawn 2 or 3 times per year.
You definitely require a monster setup for this anemone, and I would suggest that it is extremely foolhardy to keep this anemone in a mixed setup (i.e., anything other than a dedicated setup built specifically for the anemone). Size being a major consideration, but also in that this anemone poses a serious risk to tankmates. I have lost several fish over the years as a result of the anemone being disturbed. My own personal recommendation now is don't house fish other than commensal anemonefish unless you're comfortable with them dying needlessly if something happens that disturbs the anemone. It's conceivable that this risk is diminished with smaller specimens but it's important to remember that small specimens have the capacity to one day become large specimens.
I purchased the anemone at 5" and within 6 weeks was over 18" in diameter. Today at full expansion the anemone can reach 24" in diameter although there is a fair amount of variation due to external influences, flow changes, time of day, lighting, how sunny it is outside, etc. etc.
My current setup for it is a 115g cube tank (30x30x30), flow is via 2 Tunze 6100's on a multicontroller, lighting is a single 250W DE 14k.
Flow is an immensely important consideration with this species. Strong laminar (but alternating) flow seems to lend the anemone some structure. Without flow (i.e., if I turn my pumps for as little as a minute), the anemone flattens into a pancake. I estimate I have between 30-40x volume turnover although it's hard to accurately guage since the intention is for recreating wave action in a shallow reef (given the anemone's natural preferred habitat on the top of a reef).
I realize that saying this makes me something of a hypocrite, but it is a species I personally strongly recommend anyone attempt to keep unless they are very, very serious about making a very, very serious commitment to this anemone. It is not an anemone to "try on a whim!" For the amount I have invested into this one animal's well-being, I could have built a serious system to rival the nicest SPS tanks out there. My friends and family think I'm nuts. I guess what I'm trying to say is, if it's just an association between anemonefish and an anemone you wish to see, there are far easier (and easier-on-the-wallet) alternatives out there.
The percula/BTA pairing that you have in your tank may not be a natural pairing (i.e., "as seen in nature"), which may be a contributing factor to the fish not taking to the anemone readily. However, in my experience, they likely eventually will. Ok I can't really promise that but my first anemone was a BTA, and I think at least 6 weeks transpired before my captive-raised percula's took to it. My advice is give it some time, they will likely eventually go in, they just need to realize what it is.
Sorry I don't mean to be a downer (and I didn't mean to make such a long post, sorry about that, I could probably talk for hours about this anemone though, since it's been such a large focusof my reef hobby for a very long time), but I do want to press the message that it can be a very sobering experience to keep this species. You definitely need to know what you'd be getting yourself into!
I will try to take some pictures of my anemone in it's new home (as of last month moved into the cube) and post them. It's time for some new pics anyhow. Here's a (crappy) picture taken a few hours after the transfer:
I sure hope the anemone doesn't outgrow this tank as fast as it has outgrown its previous homes. It was last in a standard 90g, and it was just a bad scene overall how badly it was needing a bigger home. Here is a picture of it in the 90g from 2004:
I currently have no fish in my cube tank. In the 90g I had a pair of percs that were associating with the ritteri, although since the removal they are now taking up residence in a green S. gigantea carpet. Given the size of the fish and the (much smaller!) size of the carpet, it actually makes for a nicer display. I'm currently deciding what species to keep in my 115g, given that I no longer am willing to keep any other (i.e., non-anemonefish) fish alongside this anemone due to the risks involved, I may as well choose something unusual for the anemonefish themselves. I'm not sure what I'm keen on, there are a couple choices. Perhaps A. akindynos or A. chrysogaster... at any rate, something I don't otherwise really get to see very often.
Thank you for the information...i have a 30 x 30 x 30 as well and looking to put a Gigantea in it all alone other then my picasso clowns. I was set up for reef but after 5 years i decided to go back to my pasion cownfish breeding ..... my biggest problem is finding a S.Gigantea.
