Sick/Struggling Anemone?

[Killion]

I've had this pink tip anemone now for just over a month. When I first got him I didn't know about them being white meant bleaching so other than him being white he looked very healthy. After adding him to my tank he perked up even more and looked great. Then he started to shrink a little about a week and a half ago. Then he started looking really good and started to get some of their brown coloring back. Then i fed him a silverside like I have been doing since I got him and the next day he looks horrible. He has looked horrible since and its been about 5 days now. He looks shriveled up and not full at all. I'm nervous to feed him again though. He also looks like he has stuff tangled around some of his tentacles. I dont know if that could be the full cause or how to get the stuff off without hurting him.
I have 2 T5-HO lamps with 10,000k and 6,500k bulbs in it then I also have a T8 light hanging over the back side with 2 6,500k bulbs(waiting on my actinic bulbs and they will go in that) then the T8 is lined with LED lights (30 bulbs total)
Just checked my water also and they are..
Temp- 80
Amm, Nitrite- 0
Nitrate- ~8
Phosphate- .25
PH- 8.1
DKH- 13
Cal- 440
Mag- I don't have a test kit yet for it..still need to order one.
any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[Killion]

Here are 2 pictures.

 

[Killion]

well 42 views and i guess no one has any idea whats going on.

 

[smtank]

Your water chemistry is a little whacked. Looks like a Condylactis usually a pretty hardy anemone. But judging from the images of the rock that anemone is on it looks like a newer tank.

I would not feed it again and I would proceed to do some water changes.

You did not list your specific gravity?

If the "stuff tangled around some of his tentacles" is mesenterial filaments the anemone is probably a goner.

Some other basics on your tank like flow amount and filtration might help others nail something more down.

Good Luck

 

[Killion]

the tank is 4 months old now.
specific gravity stays constantly 1.025
I've got 3 power heads equaling roughly 800gph in a 55 gallon tank I have a refugium hooked up below with some chaeto in it and a API canister filter filtering the display tank as well.

thanks for the response I hope he isnt a goner. I took a turkey baster and 'cleaned' some of his tentacle up and after about 2 hours he is looking a little better.

 

[Killion]

oh and it doesn't look like messenterial filaments. the stuff i got from the cleaning looked more like my girlfriends hair...:angryfire:

 

[smtank]

Water changes.

Glad the Anemone is looking better.

Feed it tiny tiny pieces of the Silver sides if it recovers.

 

[Killion]

Okay thank you. I also just got some shrimp if that's healthier for him to eat. I'm at work now so I'm hoping he is looking better when I get home.. thanks fore the advice. I just don't want him to die in the tank and kill everything else in the tank..

 

[Killion]

Well came home today and the anemone still isn't looking the greatest. But the lights just came on 15 minutes ago so maybe he will perk up. Any new ideas on getting this anemone back to healthy?

 

[Killion]

Okay so the anemone still looks pretty bad...been searching every where for anything i can find and pretty much nothing. I picked up the rock he is attached to(good sign) and moved it to better lighting in hopes it may help and also to get a better view of him in general.

I was able to take these new pictures in hopes some one would have some insight on what is going on and what measures should be taking.

I am also currently mixing up about 20% new water for a water change even though all my parameters still seem fine.

Any help is greatly appreciated...

 

[smtank]

No the Anemone does not look pretty bad. It's a Condy and they pretty much look like that.

Phosphates of .25 are not consider fine for marine aquariums housing Anemones.

Make sure you are not adding Chlorine, Chloramines or Phosphates, only use RO/DI water.

Feed the Anemone weekly and not more often. Anemone's have a slow gut, by feeding it more frequently you're contributing to a decline in water quality as well as setting the Anemone up for a bacterial infection secondary to rotting food in the gut.

 

[Shia]

Seems as though a lot of people recommend staying away from silversides due to how poorly some are preserved prior to shipping. I have a BTA who is just a fatty. Loves black worms and flakes. Krill seems to be a good option for many as well.

 

[Killion]

okay thanks.

I'll work on getting my phosphates down as low as possible.

I feel like he just looks really bad compared to last week when all his tentacles weren't clumped up looking tangled and shriveled..they were full and extended and gaining what appeared to be nice coloring. Then this. So naturally my first instinct is something is extremely wrong.

All the other pictures I see of them is how he was looking before.

 

[Killion]

Yeah I've been reading the same about silversides. Thats when I went out and got some shrimp and probably this week/weekend go and find some krill.

 

[MacWilliams]

I dont see what you think is wrong with it. It looks like its doing just fine. But if you're thinking something is wrong with it you shouldnt move it. They will move wherever they feel comfortable. Also, like smtank said dont over feed them. It takes a lot of energy to get the food to the mouth and digest. They have very slow metabolisms. If the tentacles are curled it may have caught something in the water and trying to pull it towards its mouth? Good luck.

 

[Killion]

I don't know then..haha

Maybe I'm just going crazy. I'll leave it be and just make sure everything stays stable in my tank.

Thank you guys for putting up with my nonsense.:crazy1:

 

[worm5406]

No nonsense... ask away... Much easier to ask than get frustrated when you think things are going away from what you normally see.

 

[ddiomede]

I agree with the others that have mentioned your phosphate levels being pretty high.

In a reef aquarium, you want to shoot for anything lower than .09

I believe natural sea water typically ranges anywhere from .03-.05 on a reef.

There are often two secrets regarding anemone care that I've learned: the first is they need good lighting, the second is really good water parameters.

Water flow would be considered a third, but since most people have good flow in their reef tanks these days, I always tend to leave that one out.

Good luck with the nem. I hope it recovers.

If you want to reduce your phosphate levels, look into a gfo reactor of some sort. If money is tight, gfo in a bag, in a high flow area in your sump will do just fine. You'll just need to replace it a bit more often.

 

[Killion]

Okay guys thanks for the help.

I was thinking about getting a nice reactor.

Before I left for work tonight the anemone started to detatch from his rock and is almost laying down on the rock so hopefully he is just going to move to where he wants to be...

I did a 20% water change and lights are out now so hopefully the nice clean water and lights out will help him relax and start to recover. And maybe here shortly order a gfo reactor to get those phosphates down.

I really would like this anemone to recover fully and be healthy and happy in my tank.

Fingers crossed.

 

[Killion]

UPDATE:

The anemone seemed okay earlier. Two days ago he ate a pea-sized piece of shrimp. This is him tonight. Completely detached and upside down. Now he's laying sideways still unattached to anything. Is this normal behavior? Should I remove him from the tank into a bucket? Help?