what anemone is this?

[dave86]

hi guys, been a long time browser on this forum and thought its time to join up, so hello from rainy England, today ive bought a small anemone and the guy at the shop had no idea what type it is as hes never seen it before, its got a bright orange (leg?) its about the diametor of a snooker ball, with short tentacles which are blue tipped, any idea?

Dave

 

[bjledbetter]

That is a sebea (Heteractis crispa) and its bleached. When not bleached they are a tan color and you can barely see the purple tips

 

[bjledbetter]

How old is your tank, and what are your parameters and what lights are you using? Is the mouth still open and how long are the tentacles? Sorry for 100 questions but we need to know them to be able to help you. Most places bleach there sebeas to make them easier to sell it makes them more attractive. It needs daily very small feedings of mysis,krill, clam or some other meaty food to help it recover. Also avoid direct bright light as that may further stress it. Has the foot attached to the rock or buryed in the sand or is it free floating?

 

[dave86]

tank is 9 months old, parameters are all fine, ph 8.2, kh 8, ammonia 0, nitrate 2.5 nitrite 0, using standard lights ffrom my 90l nano, the mouth is now closed fully, tentacles are about 1cm long, been in my tank around 6 hours now. no idea on if its grounded itself, as i wedged it inbetween a small rock and sand.

dave

 

[bradleym]

If the base is what you are calling the leg, and it's orange, then it is a Heteractis Malu. H. Crispa doesn't have a orange base. It looks to be very healthy, and setting it's foot by the sand is normal.

 

[dave86]

brilliant thanks, although was hoping for something for my percs to host lol

 

[irishcal]

Hi dave i agree with brad looks good and its a malu H. The crispa which i have has a white foot and longer tentacles. Its also true they should be tan not white so make sure you feed it yours looks good tho they are normally bright white coming from most LFS.

 

[bjledbetter]

If the base is what you are calling the leg, and it's orange, then it is a Heteractis Malu. H. Crispa doesn't have a orange base. It looks to be very healthy, and setting it's foot by the sand is normal.

It may be Malu, but it and crispa are both often called the same thing seabe, and are hard to tell apart.What ive always been told is there isn't a real difference in them besides tentacle length. And the stores around here sell both just labeled as seabe. Care for both are the same when bleached like that. And both like the sand bed up against the rock.

 

[rssjsb]

Care for both are the same when bleached like that.

This anemone doesn't really look bleached to me. It looks like it's got a healthy amount of tan color in the tentacles.

 

[dave86]

Guys I'm having real problems with this anemone, after I last posted its not staying anywhere and it keeps putting its guts out and sucking them back in

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[bradleym]

Gently roll the anemone and check all around the base for cuts or scrapes. If there is ANY damage, it will probably not recover. Every time I had one dig itself up I found that the foot was damaged. I had to try 4 different H. Malus before I got to keep one. The key difference between Malu and Crispa, IME, is that the Malus are sand ONLY while Crispa can be sand or rock dwelling. Unfortunately, all sand dwelling anemones can die from even the smallest cut on the base (again IME).

 

[bradleym]

It may be Malu, but it and crispa are both often called the same thing seabe, and are hard to tell apart.What ive always been told is there isn't a real difference in them besides tentacle length. And the stores around here sell both just labeled as seabe.

I would be careful trusting local stores. They don't specialize in anemone taxonomy, and noone should expect them to be experts at it just cuz they carry saltwater. "Seabe" is an outdated scientific name for H. Crispa, but it is now used as a catch-all for several species. Several LFS have sold "Seabes" that were actually Heteractis Aurora. These anemones do not come in often, but when they do, they always get that name. Unfortunately, if you look up the Aurora anemone, you will see that, when healthy, they look VERY different from Crispas or Malus. There also several differences between the species as far as behavior, but most of them do not survive shipping long enough for it to matter.

 

[dave86]

There are no cuts or damage on the foot he just doesn't attatch to anything, I've moved it in-between rock and sand in another location now as it just lies on its side

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[Willster]

Dig a small hole in your sand by your rocks and put the foot in. Turn off all flow and allow it to attach. Also by standard lighting, what do you mean??

 

[dave86]

Standard lights that are above the nano

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[Willster]

Standard lights that are above the nano

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Bad choice of words on my part. Are the lights the little screw in incandescent lights, a fluorescent bulb, or what?

 

[dave86]

I've been running 2 t5 bulbs one was daylight and one was actinics? I've swapped out the actinic bulb to another daylight one. So both are daylights, maybe that was my issue and it just wasn't getting the lighting it requires

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[dave86]

That's what I had in, swapped now for daylight bulb

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[Willster]

Even then, two t5 lights wouldn't be enough. But I think you've been running pcs. If possible try to get another 3 or 4 t5s or even upgrade to a halide or LED fixture. The DIY LEDs aren't hard and you have lots of control on color, intensity etc

 

[dave86]

Previous owner of tank kept a nem for 2 years in there? No chance of upgrading lights for around 7 months until partner qualifies as nurse unfortunately :-(

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