A good anemone

[windmill]

Looking to add an anemone to my tank soon (55G). I'm planning on having many shrimp and crabs, a flame angel, a yellow coris wrasse, 3-4 pajama cardinals, and eventually a clown for my chosen anemone. I'm also wanting to add an anemone crab eventually.
First question - anybody have any experience with a clown and crab fighting/sharing an anemone? Should I consider 2 anemones?
Second question - with all those critters crawling/falling should I worry about certain species of anemones eating any of my creatures it gets a hold of?
I'd also like to throw in some hardy polyps or zoos, anybody have experience with that arena? I'm leaning toward a sebea anemone because I like their color (simple white with purple or blue tips) and their tentacle size.

 

[swlover]

Thomas is the one to ask...but I have had no trouble with clean up crew getting into trouble with anemones..they will poke them and make them close so they can do their thing around them. My flowers are constantly being molested by emeralds, hermits and snails. The fish seem to know not to get too close...mushrooms and zoos are another story, they will eat them if they can get their grubby little tents around them. But the zoos will be spit back out and will survive, they are pretty tough. I've had loose polys float into them, couple days later spit back out and live, mushrooms are gonners, seems they like the taste! Hope this helps you.

 

[windmill]

I've been doing some browsing on this site and found something called a "sea pen" under the anemones. Thing looks cool. Anybody know anything about these?
Now i'm off to find Thomas.

 

[colourmop]

i've heard that some sea pens will emit light when you touch them (wow) and they eat planktons.
for your clown, i'd pick a BTA or a LTA(dont REQUIRE MH, but they LOVE it).
#1 emerald crabs/anemone crabs will irrate anemone all the time, and clown fish should able to chase them off(unless you have a huge crab with a tiny clown) but sometimes my anemone crab will come back and grab the bottom of my anemone, my clowns(f.perc) just look at him then ignore him, i guess they are sharing the anemone

#2 my anemone is 5 inch wide when fully opened, and i have scarlet hermit, blue leg hermit, nass snails, conch, turbo, cleaner shrimp, herley shrimp, zoas, shrooms, clams, xenias, cucumbers all around it(with in his tentacle range), but the worst thing the anemone did to them was constantly tap them with tentacles, then either ignore them or go back to play with the clowns(he like silverside and my finger better than anything xD), shrimps/crabs shouldnt have trouble walk on anemone's tentacle, if none-anemone fish try to sleep on the anemone, i think the anemone will try to sting them. but if your anemone not happy, he/she/it will try to sting whatever they can get their tentacles on!

 

[thomas712]

Lets address the tank size, lighting and your thoughts about a sebae.
A 55 gallon is a good size tank, no problems there. However the lighting is still in question. For a sebae in order for it to survive and thrive you almost certainly need metal halide lighting. I've never kept one but I have others to thank for their experience with them to know that MH lighting is the way to go with the sebae---MH lighting hands down.
The sebea is a rather delicate species and seems almost in every case to rely on the MH lighting.
Never purchase a white sebae if you can help it, they are bleached, bleached anemones have lost their zooxanthellae, and that is a bad thing. It can take several months to recover. Many sebae's loose this zooxanthellae when they are collected, so having the right lighting before you get one is paramount.
Thomas

 

[windmill]

I'm using 2 50/50 55w power compacts (I believe that's what they are, fluorescent type bulb with 4 pins on one end) I know it ain't the best, but it sure beats the hell outta regular fluorescent or T5s.
I'm not extremely knowledgable when it comes to anemones so bear with me. But last time I had an anemone (I think it was either a curly-q or a pink-tip condy) I tried to get the bugger to plant itself higher up in my tank (I try to make 3 levels - sand, mid, and high out of my rock arrangements) but he'd always migrate lower. I always figured maybe it didn't need all that much light and wanted to stay further away from the surface. Would placing an anemone that needs more light closer to the surface help them get that extra bit? Or will they just find somewhere they like and stay there regardless of the light it gets?
I've been drooling over those green carpet anemones, beautiful critters. But that's one for my next tank upgrade. By the way, do you know anything about those "sea pen" creatures?

 

[thomas712]

I've never kept the sea pens.
With regards to your lighting, I'm afraid that I would suggest that you don't get any anemones. You would need at least 220 watts to keep some of the lower light ones like condy and Bubble Tip alive long term. These are photo synthetic animals and must have the proper lighting to survive let alone live.
I had a 55 gallon that I kept 360 watts of VHO lights and my first BTA, worked really well.
Thomas

 

[windmill]

I remember my first saltwater aquarium. I eventually set-up a 10g next to it as a quarantine/hospital but never used it. So I bought an anemone to throw in it. Keep in mind FIRST saltwater so I was much younger (read less intelligent and mature) so I didn't know anything about lighting other than you needed light to look at your fish. Anyways I think that guy was a curly-q too (had the wierd "segmented" tentacles that were pretty much clear) he ended up living under a regular household fluorescent light I had laying around at all of about maybe 10w for several months. He was always inches within the surface mind you, but it seemed like it was doing fine. I remember feeding him feeder fish and watching him eat it. So in my mind he was fairly "healthy"......ok he was miserable, but he ate and he survived for 6 some odd months under my uneducated and merciless care.
Getting to my point. I know my lighting isn't perfect or the "recommended" wattage. I also know my lighting is nowhere near bottom of the line. But by placing the bugger higher, he gets more light right? So by getting one of the hardier species that require less light, it should be able to find itself a spot in my aquarium where it will get adequate light. Since a green carpet is out of the question and a sebea needs more light, a basic long tentacle condy should do fine? I'm not expecting it to thrive or split every week. I just want one that will live.

 

[hemicj]

i wolud stay away from green carpets my clowns didnt host and it ate 2 gobiies and wiped out some polyps

 

[swlover]

Originally Posted by windmill
I remember my first saltwater aquarium. I eventually set-up a 10g next to it as a quarantine/hospital but never used it. So I bought an anemone to throw in it. Keep in mind FIRST saltwater so I was much younger (read less intelligent and mature) so I didn't know anything about lighting other than you needed light to look at your fish. Anyways I think that guy was a curly-q too (had the wierd "segmented" tentacles that were pretty much clear) he ended up living under a regular household fluorescent light I had laying around at all of about maybe 10w for several months. He was always inches within the surface mind you, but it seemed like it was doing fine. I remember feeding him feeder fish and watching him eat it. So in my mind he was fairly "healthy"......ok he was miserable, but he ate and he survived for 6 some odd months under my uneducated and merciless care.
Getting to my point. I know my lighting isn't perfect or the "recommended" wattage. I also know my lighting is nowhere near bottom of the line. But by placing the bugger higher, he gets more light right? So by getting one of the hardier species that require less light, it should be able to find itself a spot in my aquarium where it will get adequate light. Since a green carpet is out of the question and a sebea needs more light, a basic long tentacle condy should do fine? I'm not expecting it to thrive or split every week. I just want one that will live.
Condys will move around if they are not happy, and get themselves into trouble with filters and powerheads. flower/rock for first anemones is a good choice, they don't move..where you put them is where they stay. They are fun to feed, they are more forgiving of light ranges and very hardy. PC are great for them in my experience, they were white when I got them, not knowing at that time they were bleached, it was about a month later I realized this and I actually thought something was wrong with them when they turned colors. My first flower turned dark brown with a brillant green mouth, I thought turning brown, like fruit was going bad/dieing. LOL. Curleys are fun too, I have one of those, he is about 6" tall and just as wide. He was about 2" when I got him and almost see thru he was so bleached. If you do get one make sure they are not bleached as Thomas said..I didn't know any better, and it took them awhile to bounce back. Hope this helps.