what do h.crispa look like when new to a tank

[adtravels]

Any PIcs whats the best way to id them,
i know the tentacles tend to be shorter? purple tips they never seem to look like the mop like ones you see in the wild.

[GSMguy]

depends on the health of the anemone most come in very bleached if they are in good shape they look about like 55 semi reefs or Ron popeils beutifull crispas

[jer77]

One of mines in my avatar, here's another pic:



When I first got it it was severely bleached and smaller with smaller tentacles.

Here's another one of my H. crispa's recently eating some shrimp:



Aquarium raised H. crispa's do look different than the pics I've seen of wild ones that have a leathery appearance. Some do not have purple tips too.

[marc price]

before clownfish took up residence

[marc price]

and after

[marc price]

notice the shape of the tentacles in the before and after pics .

[bluerug]

Take a look at 55semireefs, his crispa is an amazing specimen.

[bluerug]

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forum...readid=1134384

[marc price]

bluecarpet,
you seem to have missed the point of the post . 55 does have a healthy sebae but it is well established . "adtravels" asked to see what they look like when new and first introduced to the tank . he described the most common size and condition found in at lfs's . my pic's are of a sebae which has been in my tank for 2.5 months the first pic was taken a month after i got it . it's now 5'' was 1.25"-2" at the store and when first introduced to my aquarium :[IMG][/IMG]

[bluerug]

Marc price just wait till 55semireef posts his crispa when he first bought the thing, it is amazing how much of a change has occured.

[bluerug]

These are all over 55semireefs pictures by the way.

[bluerug]

These are still his pictures by the way of the anemone today.

[bluerug]

By the way, the first pics of the anemone when it is all white with pink tips were taken the first day after being put into the tank.

[adtravels]

very good
The specimins I see here usually have stubby tentacles with purple tips and a creamy brown colour. I just do not want a malu but I also know that malu are quite rare here anyway.

What about verucae?

[bluerug]

You can see the holes in the pics that i had posted up. Its amazing to think that its the same specimen from being completely white to being what it is today.

[jer77]

Here's mine from the beginning, sorry, should have posted this first off:



then...



then...



then...



and four years later



Just to show you what they look like through the years.

[marc price]

yes blue , i did know of those pic's , they weren't the pic's on your link . it's good that you posted them , nice to see it regained it's expelled zooxanthellae . my last sebae (sold to make room for a diff. species), looked like 55's except that i picked one with a hint more color when new , thanks to phender's 12/95 F.A.M.A. article titled choosing your next anemone . sorry but it's pic's are on film and no scanner on hand .
i have noticed more and more sebae's making it to the stores not so bleached as in years past . my lfs currently has a sebae with yellow tips on pinkish flesh tone tentacles which i may buy to see if and how it colors up . they had a chestnut brown with white tips sebae a few months ago that was different looking . i'd like to see what it looks like now but you know how that goes .

[55semireef]

Originally posted by adtravels
very good
The specimins I see here usually have stubby tentacles with purple tips and a creamy brown colour. I just do not want a malu but I also know that malu are quite rare here anyway.

What about verucae?

Both Heteractis Crispa and Heteractis Malu have adhesive verrucae under their oral disk. The Verrucae are basically used for grasping on to the surfaces of the rock structure or sand so they are not "lifted" by the current.

From what I have observed, the key differences between H. Crispa and H. Malu is the tentacle length, tentacle width and how much visibility there is of the mouth. H. Malu tends to have shorter, stubbier tentacles while a healthy Crispa has longer, slim tentacles. However, as we all know, most LFS primarily import Crispas that are ususally unhealthy. Unhealthy Crispas are most commonly bleached with short, stubby tentacles making proper identification difficult. If the method of looking at the tentacle shape in determining the species of either H. Crispa or H. Malu is not useful, you could always take a look at the oral disk. Like I mentioned earlier, H. Malu tends to show their mouth while "most" Crispas tend to hide their mouth.

adtravels, honestly I wouldn't be to worried about accidentally purchasing a H. Malu instead of a H. Crispa. Like you said, H. Malu tends to be more rare while H. Crispa is much more common. I am pretty confident that you will end up buying a Crispa.

[55semireef]

Oh, and Bluecarpet...I am taking you to court for using my pictures.

[marc price]

http://www.nhm.ku.edu/inverts/ebooks/ch1.html#malu

and in addition to the above link , Invertebrates A Quick Reference Guide , ISBN 1-883693-00-4 , has two very good photos of h. malu in the solomon's and three of h. crispa on p. 58 .

[A sea K]

This is a early pic when I first got mine. He was added on Dec,9.

I only got the nem for the clowns that came with him. I thought the white looked good and the LFS guy said they're supposed to look like that. I have learned a lot since that day.

Starting to get his color.


And these from a few days ago.

[adtravels]

just bumping to show some great progressions with H. crispa.

[sarahkucera]

I started with this in July of 2006.
It came from a guy who was tearing down his tank and had kept it in an unlighted, unheated tank for several days. He said you're the last one to pick up, take it or I flush it.
So I did.


2 weeks later I had this.



Today I have this.



Full Tank Shot for good measure.

[TikiDan]

[marc price]

Originally posted by marc price
:[IMG][/IMG]

the above pic from the second day in my tank.
and nine months later;
still undecided if it's h. crispa or h. malu????