tube anemones?

[dahouck]

I saw one of these in a LFS the other day. Anyone have experience with them?

Thanks

 

[newnanoman]

I've had one for about a year they are pretty cool but you have to be careful because they will sting other corals. When you feed the tank you can watch them catch food and insert it into their mouth. I've heard they can leave their tube and wonder around but mine has never left the tube and built another one.

 

[dahouck]

Thanks for the info. I haven't been able to find much info online.

 

[BonsaiNut]

They are beautiful creatures, but they aren't really cut out for reef tanks. In the wild they are found on mud / silt bottoms where they bury deep into the substrate. In a reef tank they will make their tubes out of layers of mucus, but unless you have a deep sand bed of fine pieces, they will probably end up falling out of / leaving their tube in search of deep sand (similar to LTA's and other sand anemones). When they do this, they are particularly vulnerable because their soft bodies have no protection, plus they leave a nasty tube of mucus behind. Finally, when healthy their tentacles can extend long distances in the current. They will sting anything they contact, and can burn/damage other sessile inverts.

They would be appropriate for a species tank, or for a special mud flat environment.

 

[velvetelvis]

IIRC, tube anemones aren't actually classified as "true" anemones. I think there's one species that's actually most closely related to (non-photosynthetic) black coral. They do come in some spectacular neon colors.