Rock flower anemone

[calvertbill]

I was told when I bought it (at MACNA) that if I attempted to move it and damaged the foot, I'd kill it.

I'm rather fond of it's appearance attached to the side of a rock 15" below the water's surface.

So can I, and if so how do I, frag it?

 

[bradleym]

For some species of anemone, they will split when damaged in certain ways, but I won't be taking responsibility for teaching such a practice as I am against it, unfamiliar with it, and not sure which types it works on. And even if done right, there's a real risk of killing the anemone instead of splitting it. Be careful...

 

[garygb]

Epicystis crucifer isn't known to assexually reproduce from any information that I've read. So, I would be reluctant to frag that species. BTAs and magnificas, on the other hand do naturally divide assexually, thus are better candidates for fragging in my opinion.

 

[Ohponies]

Everything i have read says that damage to the anemone such as a tear at the foot will most likely result in death. I have yet to find anything that says they reproduce through fragging. So i would not suggest it. I have found that they can reproduce asexually by splitting, but that is them doing it on their own.

 

[garygb]

Ohponies, I'm curious where you read that Epicystis crucifer, the rock flower anemone, reproduces assexually. All I've ever read about that particular species is that they only reproduce by sexual reproduction.

 

[bradleym]

Everything i have read says that damage to the anemone such as a tear at the foot will most likely result in death. I have yet to find anything that says they reproduce through fragging. So i would not suggest it. I have found that they can reproduce asexually by splitting, but that is them doing it on their own.

FOR BTAs ONLY!!! calvertbill not possible for your anemone. But it has been done apparently. Creeps me out...
http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f6/splitting-an-anemone-134520.html

 

[calvertbill]

So I guess the consensus is that I need to find her a boyfriend.

 

[elegance coral]

I've been keeping these anemones from my very early days in the hobby. I've never seen evidence of them splitting. In captivity or the ocean. I have had them reproduce sexually in my tank though.
I would not attempt to move one after it has found that perfect hole in the rock for its foot.

 

[garygb]

Yeah, if it's a she, she will need a male. Anemones are generally, maybe always, dioecious (either male or female, but not both), so you might want to get a few more flower anemones to increase the odds of there being both sexes. Also, they aren't sexually dimorphic, so you can't just look at one and differentiate the gender.

 

[calvertbill]

Yeah, if it's a she, she will need a male. Anemones are generally, maybe always, dioecious (either male or female, but not both), so you might want to get a few more flower anemones to increase the odds of there being both sexes. Also, they aren't sexually dimorphic, so you can't just look at one and differentiate the gender.

LOL, I was only guessing, but that brings up another point. If I acquire 2 or 3 other anemones hoping for offspring, I won't want them all covering this same rock.

If I attach the new guys to a piece of acrylic, can I expect offspring to free float the tank in search of a home, attach to the acrylic, the rock...? Should I remove the rock to a separate tank?

 

[Ohponies]

Ohponies, I'm curious where you read that Epicystis crucifer, the rock flower anemone, reproduces assexually. All I've ever read about that particular species is that they only reproduce by sexual reproduction.

I've got a book "Sea Anemones ... as a hobby" TFH Publications 1993. In it it talks about cloning in that all sea anemones may clone. But it also makes it seam as though it's not really all together fact. And by reading any forum about BTA's according to them they clone all the time. The book is a little on the old side, hell i think it talks about wet/dry filters as filtering of the future. So do i know rock flowers clone, nope, but i think it is within the realm of possibility. All i was trying to say was not to take a scalpel to one.

 

[garygb]

Actually I have that book, it has alot of misinformation and incorrect ids. For host anemones, Allen and Fautin is an interesting read. Now, the thinking from experts like Fautin, is that some species reproduce assexually, but many do not. All that I've read on E. crucifer is that they reproduce sexually only. Like you said, it's not outside the realm of possibility. However, the species that reproduce by assexual fission are sometimes found in groups with identical individuals. As far as I know, all the species reproduce sexually and a portion reproduce assexually. To further complicate things, it's possible that a species that never reproduces assexually could be successfully fragged. But, it seems it's much more of a long shot. I'm of the opinion that captive breeding of the species that are only known to reproduce sexually should focus on sexual reproduction. On the other hand, lots of successful fragging of BTAs has been going on for years and I suppose mags have real potential in this area too--though I'm to chicken to cut one of mine up.