Haggard Anemone

[palabared]

Hi all. This is my first saltwater (20gal) tank. It's been setup for about 3 months now. About two weeks ago I bought my first bubble tip, and it was looking much better in my tank than in the store (the tentacles were bubbled up as opposed to long and stringy at the store). A week ago I bought a mated breeding pair of gold striped maroon clowns, as the fish store clerk told me. They have been doing fine together, and once they were added to the tank they went straight to the anemone and haven't really left it yet. The problem is that the anemone has not looked the same since the fish have been added. The tentacles are short and stubby, not long or bubbly. Here is a picture of what I mean. The anemone has been moving ever since his arrival, and I have tried to change water flows etc so he is happy. He has stayed in a shell though for the past 3 days so hopefully he has found his home. Is there something I am doing wrong? Should I add trace elements? I am afraid the clowns are beating up on the anemone? Help!

http://reefcentral.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=230267&papass=&sort=1&thecat=500

6watts/gal PC lighting
79 degrees
1.024 salinity
0 ammonia
0 nitrite
<5 nitrates
10-25% weekly water changes

Thanks!
~ed

[Reefynewby]

moving anemones after first adding aren't happy anemones. How deep is your tank? How far away from the lights is the anemone? Have you tried feeding it? And a tip, never buy specimens from stores that don't look purrfectly healthy.

[palabared]

He looked great in the store, even though the tentacles weren't bubbled up he was still large and colorful. It is a basic 20gal tank sizewize. I have put him on the bottom and top to see if the lighting change has affected him. Ive fed it twice in two weeks, once with table shrimp and once with frozen krill.

[JSeymour]

The maroon clowns may be killing it. The anemone is not settled in and now it has two of the most aggressively hosting clowns constantly bothering it. Remove the clowns.

[palabared]

i really dont want to rid of the clowns, the store would prob only give me like 10$ for 60$ worth of fish. Could i put the anemone in a strawberry basket or something?

[E.J. Coral]

That anemone is way to small for those clowns. A mature pair of maroons should probably have an anemone that is >10", probably better at 15"....

[newrossman]

Cover the Nem but then you into a long wait for it to grow to a good size.
Maybe get another bigger one but tank size it going to be a problem.
Swap the nem for a bigger one?, please note the can look very small when newly added and could take a few weeks for it to fully expand, so not sure how big was it in pet store?

[palabared]

I was thinking about doing that, trading the anemone in and getting a larger one. Would a 10 inch anem fit my tank? If so how much do you think it will cost me? i paid 30 for the 4-5 incher.

[kar93]

Ive heard many stories of clowns especially maroons killing anemones so that might be what it is

[flamehawkfish]

hi Kaneryles

Here are my thoughts...

1) Your tank is definitely too small to host an anemone (8"-10" wide) large enough for a pair of Maroons. However, I don't believe that they're causing your current anemone's decline. When maroons are 'destructive'- as described by a few people's responses- they are obvious about it, ripping off tentacles and viciously biting into the anemone.

2) The tank has only been set up for 3 months; right? What else is in the tank? Have you successfully raised & grown more basic coral like mushrooms, star polyps, yellow polyps, & zoanthids? If not, I'd recommend focusing on those first. You need to establish success with basic corals before advancing to more challenging critters like anemones.

3) 20g Reef tanks are tough. Your 10%-25% weekly waterchanges are probably helpful to keep the nitrates & ammonia down, but might also fluctuate pH, temperature, and salinity. This might be very disruptive to your anemone which explains its constant motion around your tank.

So, to help with next steps, I strongly discourage you from purchasing another, larger anemone. Instead, let us know what other critters are in your tank. From there, we can suggest good corals and inverts to make you successful. After feeling comfortable with them, you'll be much better prepared to introduce a new anemone down the road.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Flamehawk

[palabared]

Thanks for the reply flamehawkfish. Here is what I have in my tank.

8 astrea snails
6 hermits
1 turbo snail
1 green chromi
1 small head of xenia
2 maroon clowns

The xenia is my only coral other than the anemone and has been doing well. So you dont think the tentacles are retracted like that due to constant beatings? Right now the anemone is under a rock, with no direct lighting too. Thanks for your help!

~ed

[flamehawkfish]

hi Ed

I don't think it's retracting tentacles due to the 'constant beatings'. For whatever reason, anemones respond that way- and retreat into darkness- when they're stressed by water chemistry. Just leave it alone, allow it to adapt in its own unattractive way, and with any luck, it will rebound over time. Don't move it, and only feed it if it readily accepts food.

How much live rock is in your tank? Do you have live sand? Both help stabilize tank conditions mitigating the need for constant water changes.

I recommend getting some colored mushroom coral. Technically, they are anemones requiring light, but they're hardier and easier to keep. Some varieties are bright blue, purple, green, or striped green & blue. They are beautiful, and will grown & multiply. To start, stay away from ricordias. (They're more delicate & much more expensive.) If you can keep mushrooms happy, you'll be more likely to keep anemones happy.

After a few months (really, not a few weeks, but 3-4 months minimum), you can try a bubble anemone again. Next time, try a RBTA (Rose Bubble-tip Anemone). They are the only natural hosts to Maroon clowns, and while more expensive, they are among the most hardy of any clown-hosting anemones.

I hope this helps.

Sincerely,

Bjorn

[palabared]

I have about 14lbs of live rock. I seeded the sand with a couple cups from my aquarium store. I have been doing only 10% water changes weekly as to not swing the ph drastically. What size RBTA would be the best for my clowns? Thanks again for your help!

~ed

[flamehawkfish]

Ed,

I recommend using live sand, and continue to add another 10-15 pounds of live rock.

As for the RBTA, maybe a 6" one would endure two maroons & a small 20g tank. Don't even think about it though. Just gets some mushrooms, and enjoy them.

Your tank needs to mature before you 'graduate' to anemones. Good luck.

Take care,

Bjorn