Anenomes and Light

gwtank

gwtank

Member
I'm new to marine aquariums (have had many fresh water tanks in the past, but that is of no concern), and have heard quite a few conflicting opinions when it comes to Anenomes and light requirements.
My tank now is mainly a fish tank but I would like to add an Aneome. I do not have very high powered lights (just the hood that my 44gal came with), I have 2 florecent bulbs (1 very high in the actinic spectrum and one 10k daylight bulb). Is there such a thing as an anenome that does not require 160,000+ watts of light?
Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
 
ak_reefer

ak_reefer

Member
Sorry there is no such anenome. All anenomes require good lighting. With your regular flo lights there is no anenome you could keep.
 
bentrue

bentrue

Member
i have a 29g, and run 2 55watt power compacts. one is 10k and one is actinic and they work great.
just a note on the anemones. though strong light is a VERY good thing, many people seem to forget that you also need to feed them what they need to survive. Dr. Shimek, PhD in invertabrate zoology and author of many marine aquarium books, states that the feeding care of anemones is more important than the lighting. he even states that THEY WILL SURVIVE IF THEY ARE FED THE RIGHT COMBINATIONS OF FOOD EVEN WITH NO LIGHT AT ALL, but they will not thrive. the thriving is what i am after so i have chosen the 2 55watt PCs for my carpet anemone.
remember that this is just an opinion and stuff from Dr. Ron's book.
 
jumpfrog

jumpfrog

Active Member
I'm fairly new and know I have tons yet to learn; but, I have had a very positive experience with an anemone. A rock/flower anemone specifically. Bought it when I had a ten gallon with 30 watt NO. Fed it twice a week with pieces of shrimp/squid and it's algea stayed a dark green/brown and it actually grew. Since being placed in my 72 gallon with 260 watts PC it's continued to thrive, doubling in size and eats greedily once a week. I know I broke the rules through ignorance, but the animal is not only surviving but appears healthy and continues to grow.
Not arguing, just sharing an experience!
:)
 
neofish

neofish

New Member
I have a 29 gallon with the lights that came with the canopy setup. I'm not even sure what wattage they are, but I can assure you they are nothing special. I fully intend to upgrade my lighting ASAP, but haven't gotten around to doing it just yet.
Anyway, my LFS sold me a pink tip carribean (I think) anemone and said they would do fine under normal lighting. I am new to the hobby so I'm just passing what they said along. It could be totally wrong. However, I've had mine for about a month and he seems happy in that short time. At first I couldn't get him to eat, but he now seems to be eating pieces of cut up shrimp.
Actually, he really seems to hide from the light. I put him in the front corner of my tank, where he would get the most natural light (at window) as well as light from the canopy. However, he has moved and positioned himself halfway under a little cavity I had made in some live rock, mainly for my long lost Blennies to hide.
 
bentrue

bentrue

Member
the key statement, that i have said earlier, that i think we should all be focusing on with anemones and this hobby as a whole is:
we should want our systems and animals to THRIVE and not merely survive. anyone can get a tank and put stuff in it and get it to barely survive, but that is a waste of our environment, money, and totally unhealthy for the animals.
yes, you can get things to survive in a system that is much less than optimal, but it is WRONG for all the reasons listed above.
 
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