Is my LTA dead or pooping
- Thread starter jacobzking
- Start date
Toddrtrex
Premium Member
jacobzking
New member
probably upgrade my lights, keep the nem, see how it does with slightly upgraded lights and get another ray. see if I can find a balance where the ray will be happy and the nem will survive
SkullV
They Got My Number
Slightly upgraded lights aren't going to cut it for a LTA. I'm confused as to why you post here if you refuse to take the advice of people who are successfully keeping the animals you are trying to keep.
MikeInToronto
New member
I don`t understand what you`re doing. It doesn`t make any sense to me. It seems like you aren`t that fond of the anemone, like it was an impulse purchase, yet you are hesitant to return it. With all due respect, it isn`t even that great of a specimen. You could find another later down the road if you are so inclined. If you want another ray, which is seems you do, you would save a lot of grief and money by ditching the anemone and keeping the lower lights. Is there something I`m missing here WHy are you holding on to it
jacobzking
New member
Mike, you've pretty much nailed it. the anemone was definitely an impulse purchase. i could return it and get $20 buck (woohoo!) or I could keep it, upgrade my lights, and hope for the best. right now, my LTA is eating, staying open during the day and my clown (that I would prefer to keep) doesnt seem to ever part with it. the LTA is also staying put so I don't think it's too unhappy.
Its not that I'm not taking the advice of other people here, I am (hence adding more sand, upgrading lights...). I guess what I'm saying is that I don't care THAT much about the anemone... I want a ray tank. If I can keep a healthy ray that's happy and keep the LTA for my clown, then great. If the LTA dies, so be it, I won't buy another one.
MikeInToronto
New member
I think this paragraph is going to hit a nerve, and I think this statement:
... pretty much sums up why.
The reaction you are getting from members to your threads have been very mild and this is probably because members don't want their posts removed for telling you how they really feel. You can't keep the anemone alive and keep a ray at the same time. It won't and can't happen. Putting the animal's welfare aside, you may think $20 (woo hoo) isn't much but it is still $20 you will have in your pocket at the end of the day. You won't have the anemone.
There are certain things you need to bear in mind about LTAs and some of this has already been mentioned.
1) It needs a fairly deep sand bed. Todd recommends 3" and I've never fully agreed with this. I think they need a minimum of 4" for small anemones and deeper as the anemone grows. But the point is moot because your sand still isn't the minimum 3" Todd suggested.
2) The anemone must be on the sand bed. There is no exception. If it is not on the sand, there is something either wrong with its environment or with the animal. It is trying to survive and this is why it is acting abnormally. It's akin to finding a moose in the city or a cheetah hunting African villagers. It's not normal but the animal is trying to survive. The anemone might be looking for more light or more air; I don't know.
3) I'll get some resistance for this, but I've stated it before: anemones should be the focus of the tank. Everything you put into the tank should be secondary to the anemone. This means choosing lighting for the anemone, tankmates for the anemone (both anemone-safe and safe from the anemone), water flow/parameters, etc. The anemone should never be that extra decoration you add to the tank, like an impulse coral, etc. If you do it the other way around, you will either kill the anemone or trade it away when you find it boring. And frankly, the anemone you have isn't that exciting in the first place. Even I would probably trade it away if I found a nicer one.
Now here comes the Kumbaya stuff: Every animal you put in the tank deserves respect and shouldn't be treated frivolously. If your reason for keeping the anemone was because you wanted some angelfish to eat it, it would be distasteful but understandable (to a very small degree), but you really don't have a reason to keep it. You just want to watch it die, to prove a point, or because you are too lazy to return it. What's even more distasteful is that you have a plan for your tank for an animal(s) that is incompatible with the anemone, yet you still don't want to part with the anemone. And to add even more confusion, the requirements of this desired animal(s) are totally different from the anemone.
So again, why are you keeping this anemone?
Toddrtrex
Premium Member
Please, do not get another anemone. They aren't some throw away toy, they should outlive us --- though that rarely happens because people don't want to take the proper time and effort to care for them.
It appears to me, from your posts in this thread, that you aren't willing to give an anemone the proper care, environment, and time that they require -- which is fine, not everyone can do that. So, do yourself a favor, don't get one.
jorgeldelapaz
New member
I would have to agree with everyone advice on this thread tank to mature enough if looking for home for anemone i will be happy to give it one.
jorgeldelapaz
New member
Also if anemone die over night in tank you may have a bigger problem in the morning.
MD Ocean Girl
New member
While $20 may not seem like a lot, you could put that toward upgrading your tank or toward another ray MONTHS from now after your tank has cycled and is established. There's no way a tank that's 2 months old has cycled so that living creatures can thrive in it. Your tank needs time to develop the beneficial bacteria in it to break down the wastes any animal will produce in there.
Your LTA certainly is NOT happy...they're sand dwelling anemones. The only reason it's staying put is because that's the highest point in your tank and it's desperately seeking light. What you're doing to this anemone is like if someone stuck you underwater and all you had to breathe with was a straw. Sure, you might be able to survive, but it definitely would not be ideal and sooner or later you'd die from not getting enough air.
Not trying to be offensive, but this really is a horrible attitude to have if you're going to be keeping living creatures. I started out in this hobby a few years ago when I won some goldfish at the state fair. Having never kept a fish before, I bought a small tank for them and put them in, and watched them die horribly over two weeks. It was awful and cruel. Since then, I've learned to read before I purchase anything, and every single tank I have now is well thought out, has the proper equipment on it, and all of my fresh and saltwater creatures are extremely happy. Much more rewarding in my mind then watching these beautiful animals suffer and die all the time.
You've already had a shark and a ray die in your tank....maybe you should take a step back and rethink what you're doing before your anemone dies as well.
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jacobzking
New member
nice first post! its more like a plant. those things dont have brains do they? but what do I know... anyhow, like I said; it's eating, staying put, stayng wide open and seems to be doing fine. and I am spending the time and money to upgrade my lights and more sand. but I guess that still makes me a murderer
MikeInToronto
New member
...yet it is still an animal.
He isn't calling you a murderer, just irresponsible.
I do think this is my last post on the subject. If you are working to keep the anemone alive, that is good news. We've all explained how a LTA is supposed to behave so hopefully yours will as well. Let's also hope you decide to focus on the anemone rather than the ray or shark or whatever.
If so inclined, you might consider trading in that anemone now, while it's still healthy. You won't be able to do it when it's dying. Just a thought.
Good luck.
jorgeldelapaz
New member
+1 Toddrtrex
+1 MD Ocean Girl
+1 MikeInToronto
+1 MD Ocean Girl
+1 MikeInToronto
jacobzking
New member
how's that for more sand? (sorry, still a little cloudy from the extra sand...should be cleared up in a few hours). more lights are on the way, should be here by the end of the week.
and to beat a dead horse... the anemone hasn't moved... hasn't tried to find better light elsewhere... hasn't moved to the highest point in the aquarium... hasn't looked for deep sand bed... seems to be eating fine... is sprawled open WIDE (not curled up)...
can someone post a photo of there LTA so I can see what mine SHOULD look like. I know I could google it, or even look here on other threads... but I want to see what a similar LTA should look like, while thriving...
one last thing... now that I've got more sand, and better lights should be here in a few days, should I try and separate him from the live rock and put him in the sand?
thanks in advance again.
and to beat a dead horse... the anemone hasn't moved... hasn't tried to find better light elsewhere... hasn't moved to the highest point in the aquarium... hasn't looked for deep sand bed... seems to be eating fine... is sprawled open WIDE (not curled up)...
can someone post a photo of there LTA so I can see what mine SHOULD look like. I know I could google it, or even look here on other threads... but I want to see what a similar LTA should look like, while thriving...
one last thing... now that I've got more sand, and better lights should be here in a few days, should I try and separate him from the live rock and put him in the sand?
thanks in advance again.
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When you get your lights, I would put the rock he is attached to on the sand so he can choose. I have had LTAs that liked to have a foot on or under a live rock in the sand. Also be careful not to shock the anemone with too much light if you are doing a major upgrade. Decide between the rays and the sand dwelling anemones. A ray is basically a spatula that is going to irritate at best. If you had to have both, let the anemone settle in its spot- then build a ring of rock around it to protect it from the ray. Whatever the case I would avoid the ray for a while while the tank matures.
