Anenome Disemboweled? What Happened?

[tliss]

I wish I could get a good picture of this, but my digital cam does not take quality pics. A month or so ago I noticed a spot on the side of my anenome where it looked like the anenome's insides were coming out. Since then it has stopped accepting food, has a gaping mouth and has started to roam around the tank. Right now it is climbing up my rockwork and is hanging upside down. Any idea what might be going on and what I could possibly do to help bring this guy back to health?
Thanks in advance.
Tom

 

[thomas712]

What type of anemone are we talking about?
Try to post the pic anyway?
What if anything is sticking out of the anemone, or leaking from it?
Sounds like some kind of trama/stress from possibly a preditor attack, any peppermint shrimp or other animals that might have caused this?
I'll be at work until midnight tonight so I might not be able to help again till around that time.
Thomas

 

[tliss]

Originally Posted by Thomas712
What type of anemone are we talking about?
Try to post the pic anyway?
What if anything is sticking out of the anemone, or leaking from it?
Sounds like some kind of trama/stress from possibly a preditor attack, any peppermint shrimp or other animals that might have caused this?
I'll be at work until midnight tonight so I might not be able to help again till around that time.
Thomas
I'll get a pic as soon as possible and hope it comes out OK. Might be kind of hard since the anenome is wedgeing itself upside down in my rockwork. It is a long-tip, and has been doing great in my tank for about 6-8 months.
The part that is sticking out looks kind of like intestines...really stringy and tightly waved. It almost looks like the tentacles of a jellyfish, yet not hanging in strings...just kind of bunched together. There are actually bunches of it, and if one didn't know any better and only saw a pic of the stuff hanging out they would swear it is some type of coral. It is very odd, and I wish I knew what is going on.
As far as predators or things that would cause it stress, I do have a sally lightfoot crab in there, but they have been living in harmony ever since I got the anenome. The only time the sally even messes with the anenome is during feeding time when it tries to steal the food by hanging over the anenome and grabbing for it. Other times it appears not to give the anenome a second thought. The other stresser could be the anenome crab I have. This is one of those crabs that hangs out on top of the anenome and filters particles out of the water. I didn't think it would fight the anenome for it's food, but it did until I tried to seperate him at feeding time and accidentally pulled off a claw!
Anyway, there is the story. I'll get a pic when I can, and hopefully I can considering the position of the anenome.
Tom

 

[tliss]

Here's a pic. Very blurry and and you can't really get a good look at what is coming out, though. The pic makes it look like an old battle scar, but believe me it is not. The is the best pic I could get. Limits on the size of the pics on this site doesn't help much, either.
Any ideas?
Tom

 

[milomlo]

try to get a pic from further back. Don't zoom so close and make sure you are using your macro setting

 

[tliss]

Originally Posted by milomlo
try to get a pic from further back. Don't zoom so close and make sure you are using your macro setting
That is from as far back as possible to get the spot in question using the highest quality that the camera allows. I just cut the picture around the spot I am speaking about. That's the best picture I have gotten out of many many taken. If I take a pic any further back all you'll get is a pic of my tank and won't be able to see what it is that I am talking about.
Tom

 

[tliss]

Well??
:help:

 

[milomlo]

I personally can't see the picture clearly at all. Thomas is more than likely going to be the one to know, but the picture is probably not good enough for him either.

 

[thomas712]

Hows he doing?
Sounds like you are seeing the mesenterial filaments coming out of him, thats not a good sign at all. Thats the kind of trama that can make short work of an anemone as he begins to look like melted ice cream.
Unfortunatly the pic is really hard to tell anything from. But the fact that you state the anemone is still climbing up things sounds like a good sign.
Can you give me a general appearence? What color is he, describe the tentacles, longer than normal, shorter? Color of the column? Anything.
have you tried feeding him latley?
Thomas

 

[tliss]

Well, yesterday he took the plunge in the back of the tank and went into full eruption. I got it out before it really started falling apart, but my faithful anenome has now passed

. He was looking a little better but then he just shriveled up and turned into a pile of mush. Prior to this he still would not hold onto any food and wasn't really responsive when provoked (he would usually shoot under the sand as soon as he was threatened).
Any idea what could have caused the mesenterial filaments to come out, as you say? I don't know if anything in my tank would have sliced him open.
Thanks,
Tom

 

[thomas712]

I have no idea what caused the hole that made his insides come out. Sorry to hear that you lost him.
Thomas