This is my opinion

clowns101

Active member
Iv been asked this qustion more than enough."Why does my Bubble Tip Anemone not have any bubbles."Well Im posting this to tell you guys why i think Bubble Tips dont Have bubble tips anymore.


(1.)They need more light.

I think that anemones need at least 5 watts of light per gallon.Even though the Bubble Tip Anemone may be one of the most hardiest of the anemone family they still need more light than what we gives them credit for.They(like all anemones)will expand to get light therefor making the tentecals longer so they can get more light and make the oral disk larger in order to make more surface area on the anemone so they can get more photosynthetic light for them to use so they can "try" to thrive. I know that some people can keep them under less light but keep this in mind the "depth of the tank".The deeper the tank the less light that may reach the bottom of the tank or any part of the tank.Yes the anemone may move up the rock work to get more light but how do we know if that will be enough for the anemone to thrive.If the tank may be 12 inches in depth from the top of the light to the bottom of the sand bed the light can penetrate much more better than if the tank were 24 inches from the top of the light to the top of the sand bed therefor you would need light like a metal halide to penetrate to the bottom of the tank.


(2.)Second.I also think that the anemones will expand their tentecals to therefor catch food in the water column.From my experince with the Bubble Tip Anemone they will expand there tentecals,catch food in the water column,then go back to their normal shape with bubble tips.Some times the anemone will be so hungery that it just will shrivel up and die due to the fact that there was little to no food in the water column.When the anemone has no bubble tips it may not be due to the fact that there was no food in the water column it may be to the fact that they are hoesting and aggresive clown number 3.


(3.)Thrid.I also think that an anemone will not bubble up due to the fact that the clowns are such an aggresive hoster.When I say this i mean when the anemone has started to host the clown the clown takes advatige and becomes an aggresive hoster.I think this because Iv keept a Bubble Tip Anemones with out a host and they would bubble up just fine.Sometimes they will still bubble up even though they are being hosted.I see the anemone not bubble up as much when the colwns are trying to "force a split."Clowns will try to force a split when they feel the anemone is small or not what they want.

I have many other reasons why I think that Bubble Tip Anemones dont bubble up.Like water quality,Flow,Tempature,and were its foot is placed and what its attached to.

If you dont aggree with me please feel free to tell me about your opinions.I may be wrong but this is just a thraed about my experinces and what mistaces Iv made.

Thanks,
Austin
 
I am going to have to disagree, but this is only my experiences. I no longer keep BTAs, but I use to keep them (( for around 7-8 years )) and they all lost their bubble tips. The following occurred in the same tank with 4-7 different BTAs (( 3 "mothers" ))

6*65 PC over a 75 --- no bubble tips
2*250 MH + 2*54 T5 over the same 75 --- no bubble tips.

Hosting a pair of clowns --- no bubble tips
Not hosting a pair of clowns --- no bubble tips.

Feed twice a week for several months --- no bubble tips
Feed once ever 3 weeks --- no bubble tips.
 
Well, your theory on amount of light goes against most peoples exp, and in fact so many times I see posts asking why their BTA went under a ledge, or behind rocks and the first thing I look at is light, which usually is too high for them.
As for food in water column, light is their main source of energy, and they can go a long time w/out being fed, and some purposely don't feed as a means to keep them from growing too fast(melev is one of those peeps).
As for clowns actually trying to make a nem split?
Never heard that theory, not sure I'd agree w/ that.
How would that make nem bigger, or more nem area?
 
i have 2 diff. btas in my tank. one has bubbles the other does not. i also have a tiny one the size of a quarter that has bubbles too. i think it's just that some bubble, some don't. the one that has bubbles i feed once every 2 weeks. if i don't he still keeps his bubbles but the tentacles get a little longer.
 
I think it has to do with light and flow intensities which essentially equate to optimal adaptation to food source.

Low flow and more light (lagoon) = tentacles shorter with bubbles (photosynthetic mode)

High flow and less light (reef slope) = tentacles longer and without bubbles (predatory mode)
 
I have clones in the same tank under the same MH lighting bubbled and not bubbled.

Compare my bubbled clone down near the bottom of the display, to the non bubbled clone at the very top, it looks completely random to me.
 
i had a GBTA under PC's and it had very long tentacles. i upgraded to t5's and now it is constantly bubbling, not extremely but it bubbles a lot more than it used to.
 
<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=15383853#post15383853 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by hogben
I have clones in the same tank under the same MH lighting bubbled and not bubbled.

Compare my bubbled clone down near the bottom of the display, to the non bubbled clone at the very top, it looks completely random to me.

That could be directly attributed to flow.
 
when I had my 2x150w my bubble tip did nto bubble, when upgrading to a 400w started to bubble. Is more bubbly when the flow is lower as well.
 
This were the experinces I had.When the anemones had less flow they were always bubbled up.When they had less light they had no bubbles.The more light the more bubbles I seen.
 
I have one literally on the top rock, some of its tentacles come out of the water sometimes. It's directly under a 150w halide, low flow around the area and it has never bubbled. It has never moved either since I put it there so it must be happy.

In regards to your needing more light argument, to increase surface area it would make sense for the anemone to bubble up, think of a deflated and inflated balloon, which one has a larger surface area? Some good points though, I think they are just random creatures, bubble when happy, bubble when not, split when happy, split when not. So long as they're healthy, stay put and don't bleach, I think that's what we should be concerned with
 
I dont know if thats all we should be concered with.There are more things to be cocernerd like I said and like WDLV said with the flow.
 
Well, a healthy nem that stays put and doesn't bleach is one that is in a proper (as proper as can be) environment no? Flow, food, light, predators, hosts (guests) etc.
 
Yes; but that's not the intended topic of discussion. The point of the thread is what makes them bubble or not bubble. Survival should only be the starting point for an aquarist. Thriving should be the ultimate goal.
 
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