shap of rbta

[m3rcury]

ok, i have a beautiful rose bta that i've had in my tank for 2 months now. so far, everything is going great. the anemone moved about 3 inches from where i put it in the tank and has firmly taken up residence directly under the MH light. It hasn't moved once since the first day and readily takes silversides and scallops. it expands and contracts as i would expect it to based on what i've read (about 2 times a week, usually after feedings).

so, here is my question. what influences the shape of BTAs? mind started with a small oral disk and the tentacles had a distinctive bulb at the end. here is a pic:

now, however, the oral disk is much larger (about 4 inches in diameter) and the tentacles are very spread apart. in addition, the tentacles are now long and straight, with no pronounced bulb. i'll post a pic of this when i get home. of all the pic of BTAs, i haven't seen a pic of one like mine (as it looks now).

so, are there certain parameters (such as flow, lighting, etc) that influnce the shape, spread, and length of the tentacles, or is this a potential sign of illness?

i know you folks can't diagnose any potential problems without a pic, but i was hoping someone might be able to tell me a bit about how they grow and what influences their shape.

thanks in advance. i'll post a pic when i get home from work in about 6 hours.

oh, the flow in my tank is constant. i don't have any pulsing/wave maker because i just haven't been able to afford one yet. i have 3 power heads and the BTA is in an area of moderate flow. i've just assumed that the flow and lighting are sufficient since it hasn't moved at all.

one other thing. as you can see in the pic, the anenome is growing very close to one of my montis. will this be a problem?

-david

 

[apayne]

It might be hungry.

 

[m3rcury]

so how often should i feed it. i feed it one 1.5 inch silverside about twice a week. i tried to feed it the whole silverside (about 2 inches) and it spit that out.

i had read that some people overfeed their anenomes, etc.

i guess one sign of undernourishment is the fact the the tentacles along the edges of the oral disk are just small nubs. i thought those were new tentacles growing, but i read somewhere else this can be a sign of under feeding.

so much to learn

 

[TOURKID]

Mine had bubbles when it was under pc lighting. now i have mh and the tenicles are extramly long and no bubbles. but its still very healthy. I would guess its your lighting. they would shrink and become nubs if it was starving

 

[Racing1]

Also, the tentacles at the edge start small and will grow. I have had mine a month now and the outside tentacles were nubs and now they are and inch long and new small ones have started growing. From what I can see, this is how they grow...