Lemon Drop, Purple Rain, Acid Rain, Darth Maul, etc...

[Dancurb]

Looking for anyone that may have these in their home tanks. I am looking for those with LOTS of experience with BTA's and hopefully some pics of color variations they have seen. I am only looking for truly rare and exotic BTA's. Please do not post run-of-the-mill anemones and experiences. Thanks!!!

 

[mcfa2403]

Not sure what you mean by run-of the-mill experiences as color variants have little to no impact on the behavior/heartiness of a BTA. I have had a decent amount of experience with BTA and have managed to be able to get each of my nems to stay where I place them and been able to remove them and place them elsewhere in the tank. I have also successfully rehabilitated many BTA and have experience (as well as some tricks) picking color variants from bleaching nems and less experienced vendors (for example acid rain variants are relatively common at the PetCo in this area).

That said, named variants are should only be called that if they are cloned from the original. For instance, only clones from Gonzo's original should be called Colorado sunburst. I have bought a couple of the named variants and they do look nice and am a huge fan of aquaculture but I also have found a number of unique BTA morphs (as well as ones almost identical to named variants) without having to pay the significant premium.

Anyways here are some pictures (cell pics, next time I do a water change I plan to get pics with the dslr) of my current collection.

This one is a flame that I have almost fully colored back up, I have the hardest time getting pictures of it for some reason.

There are four nems in these two are true rainbows (one is speckled) the other two are peach colored with a nice green base and florescent green in the foot (the only two I have ever found with this). I have only seen about 1 out of every 100 roses come in with this coloration. (my large rainbow came from neptunes cove, mentioned by topoff, if you live near Dallas his in store prices are much better than online)

This is the best picture I could get of the green in the foot, its difficult trying to get the picture before the lights come on.

Keep in mind that these are not great pictures and LED lighting really messes with the brightness of the picture. The lightest colored rainbow (the largest one) was actually from neptunes cove and I paid a ridiculous price for it. In person these have a lot more pop. Anyways, IMO there are only three BTA worth paying the MSRP for and those are the Lemon Drop, a Gonzo Colorado Sunburst, and a Flame or Inferno BTA. Make sure who you are purchasing them from because they are easy to doctor in pictures. Personally I would not buy without seeing in person unless it came from the original clone.

 

[mcfa2403]

Based on the names you are using it sounds like you have been looking at the coral collection website. They have some nice BTA and the pictures aren't too done up but I recommend looking at this link to another thread

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2429114&highlight=coral+collection

As you can see the inferno looks great but not quite like the picture.

Here is a video of someone with both a flame and inferno from coral collection

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOjAXUldmKk

My understanding is that their flame and infernos are clones so they would be a reputable vendor (however enjoy swallowing that 400+ price tag, it hurts every time)

 

[justinky]

Many of the main posters here in Anemones and Clownfish don't really buy into the name hype of BTAs so you may or may not get the help you need, that being said mcfa good write up.

 

[D-Nak]

I started with BTAs many years ago. I can tell you that some BTAs are colonial and readily split/clone while others so not. In order for a BTA to be considered rare, it falls into the latter category as this is what keeps them "rare". While a few people have had success with propagating rare color forms, IME they seem to be less forgiving and extra care needs to be taken when attempting a force split. In other words, make sure the nem is fully healed and thriving before purchasing it.

A friend of mine had both a lemon drop and an inferno. I held them for him after he tried to propagate them. Only one half of each survived:

They were by far the brightest and most vivid nems I have ever seen, and glowed under blue-heavy LEDs (Kessil in this case).

As mcfa2403 mentioned, if you plan to buy any of these rare color morphs, I too recommend buying them from a reputable dealer or at least knowing the lineage, as this justifies the price you will end up paying and increases your chances of selling clones of them at a premium price in the future.

 

[drtrash]

True lemons hard to find, secondary colors wash out yellow. Mine has stayed yellow with hint of orange

 

[phender]

Here is a picture of my "Flame Tip" BTA. It's not the same as any of the ones I see offered for sale. The only one I have ever seen like it owned by someone in San Diego. This bta is unique in that its color is very opaque. Most BTA's when stretched out become very washed out. This one holds its color intensity.
Here is a picture of the anemone when it was moved to another tank. It stayed small for about a week and then expanded back to its normal size and color.

Condensed

back to normal

I have been keeping BTAs for 30 years. Like someone already said. BTA care is BTA care, the color doesn't really matter. However, be aware that the color or BTAs is not stable and will change depending conditions in different systems. The white speckles in particular tend to disappear if conditions are not replicated. Masking pigments (the pretty colors) will also fade if your lights are not intense enough or of a different spectrum. A $500 anemone can become very ordinary after a month or so in the hands of an inexperienced keeper.

 

[drtrash]

True, I see the multiple generation clones seem to be less finicky

 

[phender]

Just for kicks, here are a few I picked up here and there. Most of them were purchased when BTAs were classified as either rose or green, so you can give them your own names if you want.

As you can tell by the size of the aptasia, this first guy was pretty small. I called him "copper".

This is one of the original "Rose Anemones" from Tonga (pic taken in 1995, don't remember how long I had it before the pic) before they closed collection.

 

[Ron Popeil]

i always wish i would have taken this one home.

 

[CoralsAddiction]

i always wish i would have taken this one home.

Any particular reason why? I have one very similar with pink tips. It's not bleached at the moment but looks a little faded due to lack of care at the fish store I bought it from.

 

[Ron Popeil]

beyond the two tone rose bubble tips, i just never see any two tone greens. and this one in particular had very pronounced pink tips. i thought it looked spectacular but it was over 12" across. it came out of another persons very successful 850 gallon that had been set up for many years.