dancewithethan
Ethan M
Q. will anemone bleach (pale) due to too much light or too little light or both?
Thanks
Thanks
Too much light or too little
- Thread starter dancewithethan
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elegance coral
They call me EC
Both. Think about this like a house plant. Put it out in the yard in full sun light, and it will die. Put it in a dark closet, and it will die. There is an acceptable range of light these animals, and their zooxanthellae, can tolerate. Outside of this range, in either direction, bad things happen.
BonsaiNut
Premium Member
It will bleach due to both.
You have to understand the concept of "bleaching". Anemones depend to a greater or lesser extent on symbiotic dinoflagellates called zooxanthellae to provide much of their energy. There are many different types of zooxanthellae, and they respond differently to different spectral intensities of light. Additionally, anemones will often host more than one type of zooxanthellae, and they have the ability to "shuffle" populations to increase one type, decrease another type, or eliminate some altogether.
Only rarely will the light in your aquarium be 100% compatible with the light the anemone (and zooxanthellae) are accustomed to. So when an anemone is introduced to a reef tank, it needs time to adjust its zooxanthellae populations to the new environment. In some extreme cases, the anemone may even lack the type of zooxanthella that will do best given the conditions of the tank. This is why many times when you obtain a new anemone, the first thing you will see is an otherwise healthy-looking anemone exuding slimy brown stuff - even if you have "perfect" reef lighting. It is also why one anemone of a certain species will be doing well in your tank, and when you introduce another anemone of the same species, it may bleach - it probably had different zooxanthellae.
The best way to avoid this or reduce the impact is to gradually introduce a new anemone to a new environment, and to be very cautious when introducing it to new lighting. Don't forget - for zooxanthellae it is not just the brightness of the light that is the issue - it is the brightness of particular KINDS of light that you have to be aware of. Blue and Red bands are necessary for zooxanthellae to thrive, and UVR (which is important for corals and anemones to develop dark pigmentation) is damaging to zooxanthellae. If you take an anemone that has spent a month in wholesaler tanks, and suddenly dump it into an SPS tank with 400 watt MH lighting, you will probably bleach it. Likewise, if you have an anemone that is USED to MH lighting, and you suddenly move it into an LED tank that is dimmer, and has very different PAR levels, it will also probably bleach.
What you want to avoid is an anemone bleaching ENTIRELY. It is ok if it rids itself of 90% of its zooxanthellae as it juggles its populations - it can recover pretty quickly. If it goes completely white, it can sometimes take months for it to regain zooxanthellae from nothing.
You have to understand the concept of "bleaching". Anemones depend to a greater or lesser extent on symbiotic dinoflagellates called zooxanthellae to provide much of their energy. There are many different types of zooxanthellae, and they respond differently to different spectral intensities of light. Additionally, anemones will often host more than one type of zooxanthellae, and they have the ability to "shuffle" populations to increase one type, decrease another type, or eliminate some altogether.
Only rarely will the light in your aquarium be 100% compatible with the light the anemone (and zooxanthellae) are accustomed to. So when an anemone is introduced to a reef tank, it needs time to adjust its zooxanthellae populations to the new environment. In some extreme cases, the anemone may even lack the type of zooxanthella that will do best given the conditions of the tank. This is why many times when you obtain a new anemone, the first thing you will see is an otherwise healthy-looking anemone exuding slimy brown stuff - even if you have "perfect" reef lighting. It is also why one anemone of a certain species will be doing well in your tank, and when you introduce another anemone of the same species, it may bleach - it probably had different zooxanthellae.
The best way to avoid this or reduce the impact is to gradually introduce a new anemone to a new environment, and to be very cautious when introducing it to new lighting. Don't forget - for zooxanthellae it is not just the brightness of the light that is the issue - it is the brightness of particular KINDS of light that you have to be aware of. Blue and Red bands are necessary for zooxanthellae to thrive, and UVR (which is important for corals and anemones to develop dark pigmentation) is damaging to zooxanthellae. If you take an anemone that has spent a month in wholesaler tanks, and suddenly dump it into an SPS tank with 400 watt MH lighting, you will probably bleach it. Likewise, if you have an anemone that is USED to MH lighting, and you suddenly move it into an LED tank that is dimmer, and has very different PAR levels, it will also probably bleach.
What you want to avoid is an anemone bleaching ENTIRELY. It is ok if it rids itself of 90% of its zooxanthellae as it juggles its populations - it can recover pretty quickly. If it goes completely white, it can sometimes take months for it to regain zooxanthellae from nothing.
WDLV
Skunk Hybrid Freak
I've had them bleach from too much heat more often than too much light but excesses in light on either side of the scale can cause bleaching. All in all I think the important thing to consider is that any rapid change in lighting or temperature (or any other factor for that matter) is not good.
