Feeding anenomes

[oregonelly]

Hi, I had some water issues and lost my first anenome. He would always spit out the food I gave him anyway. Now I got a new one, he has been in the tank 4 days. I tried to feed him some krill and he closed his mouth. Hung onto the krill for ten minutes then let it go. How can I feed him? Is he filter feeding and I don't need to ? Does anyone know?

Thanks

[EdKruzel]

Please provide all the details possible about your system for more accurate advice. Type of anemone and size, age of system, occupants, equipment, water parameters, etc...

Anemones like a good amount of water movement, but not a direct stream such as a powerhead pointed at them. Most prefer moderate to intense lighting, all depending on species and how they were acclimated in their last holding area. Their food (again species specific) should consist of marine fare such as small pieces of shrimp or fish flesh. Even large anemones will do better to digest small pieces than one or two large ones.

One of the most important and often ignored parameter is the SG. all anemones are osmoconformers which means they reach equilibrium with their surrounding seawater. If the elements of seawater are not at the proper levels an anemone cannot absorb them into its tissue.

[oregonelly]

water has been perfect for some time, water movement is sufficient and lighting is right.

[EdKruzel]

Originally posted by oregonelly
water has been perfect for some time, water movement is sufficient and lighting is right.

Not quite the details I was hoping for, I assume this is the 55gal listed in your bio:

Perfect water? What is "for some time"?

What is the temperature?
SG?
Alk?
pH?
NO3?
Ca?

How often do you conduct water changes and by what percent?
Do you add supplements, and if so what kind, type amount and frequency?

Sufficient water movement?

What is your turnover rate?
How is it accomplished?
If by multiple powerheads, are they alternating by a timer or other wave device or are they running 24/7?

Lighting is right?

What type of lighting do you have and what time frame do you illuminate the tank?
What lighting was over the anemone when purchased at what depth, and how does it compare to your system now?

If an anemone is at the LFS for several weeks or more 18'' under a PC and then you place it 8''s under a MH, you will have one unhappy specimen; the same is true for the reverse, however with less dire consequences. The items I listed are all detrimental to happy and healthy livestock and required for better than general answering.

[kuoka]

In addition to the water params, anemone's can be picky eaters. Meaning if they were fed siversides at the LFS, then you'll have to wean them off silversides and move them to krill IME. Mine were fed silversides so I stuck with it. However I recently bought a cheaper brand and one kept spitting it out. After cutting them into smaller pieces and persistence, he's finally accepted the cheaper silversides.

[oregonelly]

ok i have an aqualife, and i was told that was the only thing i could use in my reef tank besides a more expensive one, cost 250
it is 260 watts two blue bulbs and two white ones, they look like a tuning fork shape. At the aquarium store their lights are on the ceiling....so these are a lot closer as they are 5 inches over the tank. Every time i get my water checked they say it is perfect, in all things and it has been three months. white lights are on for ab out ten hours a day and i leave the blue ones on for a couple hours longer. i have an under the tank filter, a protein skimmer and a penguin filter along with a power head that does 330 gallons an hour, think the water movement is sufficient.

i bought the light after reading online that brown algae that anenomes eat cannot grow if the lights arent right. now that i have had those on for over a month i see brown algae now, sigh tons of it actually.

anyways i thought he would just eat.... its only been 4 days since i got this one so i am not worried yet.

thanks for replying

[IslandCrow]

OK, don't take this hard, I know you're just starting out, but you have quite a few problems here. First, you're lighting is more than likely insufficient. What you have are known as power compact (PC) or compact florescent (PC) bulbs (the two terms are used interchangeably). Second, that brown algae you heard anemones use is a dinoflagellate known as zooxanthallae. It's a symbiotic alga that lives within the anemone. The brown algae you see all over your tank is more than likely diatoms. . .something completely different.
Next, your tank probably isn't ready for an anemone. Most people suggest that a tank be established for at least 6 months, and I personally suggest that in addition, you should have at least a year's worth of experience in the hobby. Anemones are difficult to care for if you've never done it before (or often times even if you have).
Third, your waterflow is actually on the low side. Anemones generally like a lot of flow, and 10x your tank volume in flow is usually considered minimum. . .in other words, you want 550 gph or more.
Lastly, you need to get more specific details on your water parameters from your LFS. Actually, what you really need to do is get your own test kits. Your LFS is probably using one of the cheaper brands, which generally aren't super accurate. Salifert is a very good brand. It's expensive, but if you want to keep an anemone, you're going to need the precision they offer.

OK, I know you're not going to want to hear this. I didn't when people told me the same thing when I was in your exact situation, and I wish I'd listened. Please, take that anemone back to the store if you can. There's a very good chance it won't survive in your tank.

[oregonelly]

I am not using flourescent bulbs

[James77]

Originally posted by oregonelly

it is 260 watts two blue bulbs and two white ones, they look like a tuning fork shape.

Those are compact fluorescent bulbs.

[ManotheSea]

Anemones need much higher lighting. 260 w is not enough for a 55 gal tank. You could easily double that and still be in a safe zone with much better corals and anemones health.

[oregonelly]

I was told i couldnt use the flourescent bulbs by the aquarium person , i know for a fact they are not flourescent bulbs

[James77]

Do the bulbs look like this?

http://hellolights.com/ProductImages...10K-square.jpg

I think you were told that you can't use normal output flourescent lamps, the ones that light freshwater tanks-they are useless to most every coral. Compact flourescents are more intense than regular ones, so you can keep some coral with them, like softies and LPS coral. High light corals and anemones will not do too well under compacts. A green bubble tip anemone MAY survive under them, I'm not sure on that one though.

[reefnetworth]

RESEARCH is one main ingredient in reef keeping. fallowed by patients and understanding that your LFS is in the business to make $$$. he will gladly sell you anything you want over and over again.
I agree strongly with IslandCrow!
and whether you chose to believe it or not, you do have PCs.

my opinion is purely my own and does not reflect that of RC or its affiliates.

[IslandCrow]

oregonelly, one thing you'll find is that you can't take everything you hear at your local fish store as the absolute truth. In many of them, you don't want to take much of anything you hear as truth. Most of the people here who will give you advise have been doing this for awhile. I admit, I'm still a bit of a newbie myself at 2 1/2 years, but I'm drawing on not just my experience, but that of many other people. In short, just because the aquarium person says something is so, doesn't necessarily make it so. You'd be surprised how many of them don't even have tanks of their own. Take what you hear here with a grain of salt, but there's a wealth of experience available in this forum, so use it to its fullest potential. I'd also suggest reading. There are some great books out there, as well as magazines, both hard copy and online. Advanced Aquarist is a great online publication (and a free one!). If you check out their archives, they probably have some good articles on anemones.

[reefsbeforehoz]

as your local pet store, maybe he can give you some helpful advice

[kuoka]

I've actually been successful in keeping BTA's under PC's.

[IslandCrow]

OK, there are exceptions to the rule. People certainly have kept BTAs under PCs, but it just makes it that much harder to keep the animal alive and healthy. How long have you had your BTA, kuoka?

[kuoka]

IslandCrow, I've had him for about a year under PC's. Remember too that they'll move to a location where they're happy. But as your sig suggests, I'll take your opinion with 35 ppt of salt.

[bertoni]

Some BTAs seem to prefer lower lighting levels. It's hard to know what you've got, though.

[pitt_prodigy]

I too have kept a BTA under PCs (260w dual actinics/dual day). It is located close to the middle of the tank (the BTA chose that spot) and the thing has been flourishing for almost 2 yrs. After that i would have to agree with Bertoni.... some anems really seem to like lower lighting levels. I have kept a pink condi for 8mths now and it seems to be growing like a weed as well.

Personally i feel that regular feeding and exceptional water params can make up for lost wattage in some cases.

[cloak]

[IslandCrow]

Well, I'll certainly default to Bertoni's experience. I'm certainly far from being an expert on anemones (or much of anything else). My real point here is that there don't seem to be too many anemone losses from too much light, but anemones dying from too little light is much more commonplace, so although you may be able to get away with it, it just doesn't seem like the best practice to me.

[EdKruzel]

The question is what kind of anemone is it? As Jonathan expressed, BTA's require and seem to prefer lesser intensity than other species.

Carpets and Long Tentacles require very intense lighting. I have a pink Bubble Tip under a 96watt quad, which in a 10 gallon is fairly intense. It will not remain in the open, but held fast under a ledge and extends its tentacles. It was under a 150watt DE in a 20L, but moved away from the point source and to a semi shaded corner.

Other anemones (mostly LTA's) I've had climbed to the highest point in the tank directly under halides. So again, knowing the species and its requirements is a top priority.

[hwyman]

annomones are living creatures and as such they are each unique. therefore we really need to know what kind it is to try and help you. I would suggest that since it wont take the krill try silversides, the annomone may respond better to them then to krill.

FYI, we have had a sebae for 4+ years under 260 watts of pc lighting, also we have 2 RBTA as well.