Heteractis Magnifica

H

HELP!

New member
Ok I have recentlly set up a 46 gallon bowfront and really would love to have a Heteractis Magnifica. I have been trying for the last few weeks to get information on their specific needs, but i have not been able to find much. so what i need to know is everything =O). Right now i have 110W of pc that i know is definatlly not near the amount of light that i would need but thought i could use them for actinic suplementation. also how deep of a substrate and do they prefer to be placed in the substrate or on rocks. water parameters/supplements just any info anyone has to offer, links threads that i am missing, anything.

Thanks,
Branden
 
i wont try heteractis magnifica, they are the most diffcult to keep. and PC wont enough to keep it health.
u are better off with BTA/RBTA.
 
Not only are the lights not enough, but you have to have a very large amount of flow. There is not really enough water in a 46g to keep it healthy. If you think about it in a 46 if you have Metal Hallides which are a must with this anemone, you will end up having heat problems, so you will have to spend money on a chiller also. You would litterally have to spend thousands to have a good enough setup for these guys. Don't mean to be a buzz kill but i don't want you to be dissapointed when it doesn't make it. I have one and it is purched in the top of my tank on a flat piece of live rock between two tunzes and under a 800 dollar hood by hamilton. I set up my tank just for this anemone and i still could have a better home for it.

I would suggest starting with a bta like clown nut said.......

Good luck with your tank and future success
 
i've had an rbta in my 29 for about two years and i love it, i just love looking at the pictures of clowns burried in these anemones. is there another type that is as dense in tentacles (for lack of a better word). like i said i plan on upgrading my lights and am willing to set the tank up around the anemone.
 
I have an h. magni in my 46 bow front under 4x39 watt t-5's. When I bought this guy he was almost completely bleached, but was fairly large so I decided to take a chance. I have had it for almost a month now and its starting to regain its color. It eats regularly and other than color, appears to be quite healthy.
 
oh, also the t-5's are cheaper, and put of almost no heat when compared to MH. Mine does not like high flow areas, and prefers to have its foot attached to the bottom of a rock, where the bottom half is touching the sand and the top half is touching the rock (if that makes any sense).
 
i've had one under 440 watts of vho for a year with flow only from a little giant 2 ........don't believe what you read about these anemones they are actually quite easy to care for provided you have good water and feed them.......the keep is zero po4
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7256832#post7256832 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mattliu
i've had one under 440 watts of vho for a year with flow only from a little giant 2 ........don't believe what you read about these anemones they are actually quite easy to care for provided you have good water and feed them.......the keep is zero po4
Click to expand...

I think the main key is that you actually can get a healthy specimen!! These are notoriously bad shippers!!
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7256832#post7256832 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mattliu
don't believe what you read about these anemones they are actually quite easy to care for
Click to expand...

mattliu,

It is quite disappointing to hear such strong opinion as the one above, considering that you only kept your anemone for one year.

Only a few anemone keepers were able to keep H. magnifica alive longer than 7+ years. They all agree that this species requires very strong flow and MH lights.
 
mattliu, if it is healthy with that kind of flow and light I would be very surprised if it wasn't misidentified. Do you have a picture?
 
how do you know every one of these few ?

this species has a wide range on the reef and does not necessarily need strong flow and light.

a general concensus is not fact.

many experts believe feeding is more important than light and flow.

if it's growing it's not dying. you meant "have kept", it's still growing.

i hope you feed your carpet.
 
No offence meant I agree with your statements, but when someone claims to have kept a hard to keep critter under normally not recommended conditions it would benefit us all to show us what you are doing.

I have also seen several times anemones misidentified as magnificas even by expert aquarists. It happens very commonly, that is one reason I asked for pics. The other is because I love seeing pics of magnificas and their behaviours in aquariums and on the reef.
 
honestly i have never posted a pic on here and will learn how to do so.

i can tell you that it sometimes balls up and only lets some of its tentacles sprout out the top.

you may find this note worthy. i don't use a skimmer, tank parameters stay within range but this wouldn't be the case if i didn't use the po4 remover.

i will post a pic.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7260877#post7260877 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by mattliu
how do you know every one of these few ?

this species has a wide range on the reef and does not necessarily need strong flow and light.

a general concensus is not fact.

many experts believe feeding is more important than light and flow.

if it's growing it's not dying. you meant "have kept", it's still growing.

i hope you feed your carpet.
Click to expand...

Mattliu,

I hope you realize that when someone with no established credability posts something that goes against conventional wisdom on a list with as many experienced anemone keepers as this list has, you are going to be challenged.

"edit"

FWIW, I have two BTAs that "ball up" when I feed cyclop-eeze to the tank, just like my little magnifica does.
 
Last edited:
All anemone species that I've had experience with can easily tolerate levels of PO4 that are detrimental to the growth of scleractinians.
A 46 gallon aquarium is much too small an aquarium for H. magnifica to thrive long term (IMO).
A healthy mag will never attach it's foot below a rock or below sand- they attach their foot to a prominent exposed location like on the top of a rock or on the top of the aquarium glass near the surface of the water.
Many anemone species "ball up".
Out of all the anemones I've had experience with, ritteri anemones seem to prefer the "cleanest" conditions. Saturated oxygen levels, regular feedings, brisk water movement along with strong lighting appear to basic requirements for Heteractis magnifica - one of the handful of anemone species that naturally occur in areas of SPS growth in the ocean.
 
my H. Mag. has its foot at the water line, sometimes almost out of the water it seems.. it also curves up and out, then opens just about at the surface of the water.. it has been under PC, and now a 250 SE MH.. it started its life under NO flourescents, then PC, now MH.. it was very bleached when i got it(i saved it).. i only had pc lighting.. regained color(6 months, under pc), fed it lots(almost everyday), and it has had it foot at the water line since i brought it home.. i have had it for almost 9 months.. really colored up under MH..
 
Re: Heteractis Magnifica

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7203874#post7203874 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by HELP!
how deep of a substrate and do they prefer to be placed in the substrate or on rocks. water parameters/supplements just any info anyone has to offer, links threads that i am missing, anything.

Thanks,
Branden
Click to expand...
Did you see this RC anemone FAQ, Branden?



http://www.carlosreef.com/AnemoneFAQ.pdf
 
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