GBTA help

[kylecorson]

alright, so i have i gbta in my 29 gallon tank with 2 clowns. the female has been somewhat hosting in the anemone already, but the problem im having is that the gbta has his foothold in they very back of the tank attatched upside down on some live rock (growing his tentacles towards the sand) and receiving little to no light at all! i have a coral life compact flourecent so it shouldn't be the lighting that is making him live here right? he has been in the tank for almost a month now and hasn't really moved from this location, i cant see him at all really

i have tried to get him to move to a better location by pointing a powerhead at him, but he hasn't moved at all and it just seems to be pissing of the clowns

any suggestions on how to get this anemone to move to a more desirable display? thanks for the comments!

 

[fishrich]

Did you try to move the live rock? You could just rotate the piece around. I have a gbta and it did the exact thing for a few weeks. Then I rotated the rock and it moved to a better spot!

 

[perfectdark]

BTA's often foot deep in the LR, they seem to like LR around them to retreat too should they feel threatened. Yours is not exhibiting any real odd behavior but it should pop out and inflate toward the available light. No I do not believe that the light is causing it to act this way. Actually depending on how far away from the light it is, it may not be receiving enough of it, even if it did pop out. Depending on how large your female clown is and how small your anemone is, this maybe your issue. Clowns can be aggressive guests and a hosting anemone can get irritated by a bit too much "lovin"... Maroons are the most common culprit but its not limited to just them.

 

[kylecorson]

first of all thanks to everybody for the early responces, to address the moving of the liverock, i have already done that twice and the anemone has simply moved to another location near the back of the tank, i feel as though he is really loving it back there for some reason because he is not moving no matter how much current is being thrown his way, secondly, im not sure if the clowns are annoying him too much, as their "loving"

isn't too intense, the anemone moved to the back before i introduced the clowns to the tank
paramaters are as follows:
nitrate:0
nitrate:0
alkalinity: 180 ppm
ph:7.4
salinity: 1.025
temp:80
thanks for the help!

 

[kylecorson]

also, i forgot to add that the gbta is inflated most of the time, looking rather healthy, but sometimes he shrivels up to almost nothing, after much reading it looks like this is somewhat normal, but can anybody confirm this to be true?

 

[perfectdark]

Yes that is true no worries there.
Your PH is tanked... you should be in the 8.2 range. How are you measuring your salinity/S.G.? Refractometer or Hydrometer?
Yep it is back there for a reason weather its for flow/comfort/food... a mixture of all, a combination of 2 or a sacrifice for one more than the others. Tough to tell to be honest, your PH needs to be addressed asap, and a picture may reveal something more but for now thats all I got.

 

[kylecorson]

ok thanks, im on my way to the lfs to get some ph booster, i am measuring my salinity for specific gravity with a hydrometer, and i havent feed the anemone in a week or so, im not sure if this is a bad thing or not, i just dont want him to get too comfortable there, but if thats the way its going to be, then thats the way its going to be i guess ill have to let him be there, ill try to get a pic asap, but my dig camera is broken ...
thanks

 

[perfectdark]

Originally Posted by kylecorson
http:///forum/post/2858177
ok thanks, im on my way to the lfs to get some ph booster, i am measuring my salinity for specific gravity with a hydrometer, and i havent feed the anemone in a week or so, im not sure if this is a bad thing or not, i just dont want him to get too comfortable there, but if thats the way its going to be, then thats the way its going to be i guess ill have to let him be there, ill try to get a pic asap, but my dig camera is broken ...
thanks
Not feeding for a week is not necessarily a bad thing. But that depends on the overall condition of the animal. Typically under ideal conditions there is no need to spot feed, but no harm in doing so either. Its not uncommon for swing arm hydrometers to be off a considerable amount and they are not the recommended tool for measuring SG. I would test against a properly calibrated refractometer just to be sure your SG Is ok before you buffer anything.

 

[kylecorson]

is that sg too high? is the temp too high? i have read that the temp could be lower for a bta but am not sure? any recommendations?

 

[kylecorson]

can anybody think of anything else i could do to sway a gbta towards the front of a tank besides current and rearranging the live rock?

 

[perfectdark]

Originally Posted by kylecorson
http:///forum/post/2858200
is that sg too high? is the temp too high? i have read that the temp could be lower for a bta but am not sure? any recommendations?
No it maybe too low which would result in your PH being so low. Before I buffered my PH I would make sure that your S.G. reading is accurate.
Originally Posted by kylecorson
http:///forum/post/2858203
can anybody think of anything else i could do to sway a gbta towards the front of a tank besides current and rearranging the live rock?
Odd creatures to say the least... there is no rhyme or reason to their methods if all tank parameters are correct for them.

 

[kylecorson]

[QUOTE=
Odd creatures to say the least... there is no rhyme or reason to their methods if all tank parameters are correct for them.
Will an anemone plant itself where it can grow and receive the light? Because my gbta is planted in an area where he receives little flow or light and will not be able to grow much, is there a good change of him relocating? Or has anybody experienced their anemone staying put in an area receiving poor conditions of light and water flow and change of growth?

 

[kylecorson]

this is a pic of my anemone, he is in the lower left hand corner of the tank with little circulation of water, is this ok?!?!

 

[kylecorson]

hopefully it works this time, sorry, i don't exactly know how to upload the pics yet

 

[kylecorson]

does this anemone look healthy? it hasn't moved from this location in a long time and i cannot get him to move with circulation or anything, ph is still a bit low but i am working on raising it, is there anything else that could be influencing this behavior? other than the fact that he has only been in the tank for a couple weeks or so, sorry to keep on posting about this but i love the lil s.o.b. and want to see him on display and healthy! thanks for all the comments and replies!

 

[kylecorson]

how can i get this little sob to move to the front of the tank? water flow doesn't influence him

 

[fishrich]

Theres nothing else you can really do. The gbta looks ok to me. After about a month mine decided to move on its own.

 

[perfectdark]

I agree that there is nothing you can do to make it go where you want. I disagree that it looks ok. IMO it looks bleached, even at its foot the color is fading. I do not have high hopes for survival, unless you address some issues. One would be getting your PH up and making sure your S.G. is correct. Second would be to spot feed it approx 3 times a week with minced marine foods raw soaked in selcon or superselco. And lastly, my opinion would be to move some powerheads around maybe its looking for more flow maybe less flow. And start thinking about your lighting, this will ultimately ensure long term success for this animal. Right now your lighting is marginal at best. HTH.

 

[ibew41]

agree it is bleached move the power heads away and see if it moves

 

[kylecorson]

alright, i checked my sg, and yes, it is correct at 1.024-1.025 and was told that this was perfect for a gbta. also, i am in the process of raising my ph with a ph buffer i am adding to my tank. feeding him 3 times a week? where would i purchase those sorts of foods described earlier? would it be ok instead to give him the brine shrimp i am feeding my clowns? any advise would be greatly appreciated!