anemone

[Yellowboy]

I got a new anomone on sunday and was wondering how long it takes for it to settle and find its happy spot. It moved a around a bit the first day but mostly in circles in the same area then dug in under a rock outcropping. The entire next day he was wide open and stayed there. Now he is out again and curled up real small and the tenticles are pulled inside...maybe cause its night? I dunno whats going on here. Its an lta so it should like the sand and stuff. Lighting is good. water params are good...is it just cause hes not settled that hes shunken and not looking happy?

 

[danmhippo]

What kind of anemone, and your tank setup please. Tank size, light setup, photoperiod, and current inhabitants.

Also, how did you acclimate the new anemone into your tank? Did you dump it in asap?

 

[Yellowboy]

i acclimated the anemone over an hour dripping water into his backet then dumping water out until it was all my water. Its a 20 gallon with 55 watts of pc 50/50 over it. 12 hours light 12 off, percula occelaris, cbs, fiji blue devil damsel, some feather dusters little brittles etc

 

[danmhippo]

Just re-read the post, so it's a LTA? I would pick it up, lightly hold it against a piece of rough surface rock, hold it there and don't release your hand for about 60 sec. until you can see it has latched onto the rock. Placement should be high up in the tank. When it is just attaching to the rocks, keep the current low. After about 20 minutes, it should've firmly attached itself to the rocks, direct a swift medium flow current over it.

You have to feed it 12 hours later by offering a small piece of seafood (no more then the size of your nail at first). Feed them about twice a week.

Good Luck

[ April 08, 2002: Message edited by: danmhippo ]</p>

 

[Yellowboy]

i was under the impression that lta like to have their foot in sand not rock? should it be rock then?

 

[danmhippo]

See, the problem is I don't know what specie exactly your anemone is. Long Tentacle Anemone covers a broad range of anemones. But whatever it may be, they liked to attach themselves onto a rough surface with deep crevices so if they sense danger, they can retract themselves into the crevices. The rough surfaces are preferred than the smooth tank wall or tank bottom.

Try higher up on the rocks. If he doesn't like the spot for some reason, you will see it detach itself pretty soon.

 

[Yellowboy]

is there any key feature that would distinguish a rock loving long tentacle with a sand lover?

 

[carolinaclown]

yellowboy,

Your tank is much to small to house an anemone fish. They are very hard to keep in captivity and it is not neccessary for you to keep one for the sake of a clownfish. Most tank raised clownfish do fine without one the only reason they are needed in the ocean is for protection. IMO not a good idea. Good luck anyway. cclown

 

[Yellowboy]

caroline i did not get it for the clown. it would be great if the clown adopted it but if i was getting it solely for the clown i would have picked up its natural host like stichodactyla gigantica, hetreactis crispa, or haddoni

 

[EmilyB]

Yellowboy, I only know of one LTA. If it looks like this one, it belongs in the sand in a rock crevasse.

[ April 10, 2002: Message edited by: EmilyB ]</p>

 

[Anonymous]

If you dig a ditch in the sand and place a small to moderate sized rock in it you can attach the anemone to the rock. Then you cover it's foot with fine sand. This ditch should be about 3-5" deep.

 

[danmhippo]

<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:</font><hr>Originally posted by Yellowboy:
<strong>is there any key feature that would distinguish a rock loving long tentacle with a sand lover?</strong><hr></blockquote>

Well, I would highly recommend "The Reef Aquarium" by Julian Sprung and J. Delbeek. It's the Volume 2 that has about 100 pages dedicated to anemones. It is a great volume for anyone's collection, as well as the first volume. You should be able to find most distinguishing characteristics you need.

I believe you can get them in most online Reef stores such as inlandreef, inlandaquatics....etc.