HELP!! Dying BTA!

howardj

Active Member
I Need Major help!
I have NO clue what to do..
Why is my anemone acting like this!?
My Clarkii clown was hosting it, but I had to take it away from it because it wouldn't leave it alone.. now it looks horrible!
I have it under 96W T5 -single reflectors over a 29G.
I was GREAT for a long time, then it moved under a rock and never came back out..


 

alexknight

Member
it could just be explaining waste how big is your nem and your clown. Your clown could be bugging it to much so it started to move, Have you tested your water or changed anything lately? It could have also been getting ready to split. sorry to tell you but moving a Nem that is moving because it is unhappy is one of the worst things you can do. you can stress it out to the max and it will go face up. if it is sticky put it back in the tank and see if you can block the clown from getting to it.
A dieing Anemone smells HORRIBLE!!! you will defiantly know it when it does kick it.
 

spanko

Active Member
You may have hurt it taking off. Let's see if we can get an anemone expert in on this question.
 

shrimpi

Active Member
looks much better!
dont touch it at all, even if it gets out of the breeder net and hangs all crazy on the glass or something. The less you touch it or move it, or change its environment the better.
try offering it some mysis or other SMALL meaty food and see if it grabs it. If it doesnt, then wait a few days and try again. Dont try to force feed it or anything like that. It looks a little white towards the mouth, Im sure it needs a little TLC to start looking the way it should, but given the proper love it will be fine!
Keep us updated!
Jess
 

fragglerock

New Member
It may have needed light also. It is much higher in the tank now in the net. Water quality may be an issue and 96 watts of T5 may not be appropriate lighting for it in a 29.
I run 156 watts of T5HO. 2 10k blue and 2 12k white actinic and my anemone is still lacking, I believe, what it could be getting from the spectrum.
That is a starving BTA .... I hate to be the bearer of bad news.
When the tentacles shrink to that level, and get skinny like that...when it spreads apart like that, it is starving to death.
The bleaching is very clear as well, because that should be a much darker anemone.
The zooxanthelae are not surviving and that is usually #1 a lighting issue, #2 a flow issue and/or #3 a food issue #4 a salinity or water quality issue. They do live well in captivity without a skimmer.
Overworking it with a clownfish who is overly affectionate can demolish an already-ill BTA, so putting it in the net is a good idea, to an extent...it is believed that the film on the fish exhudes some kind of nourishment for the anemone.
Please consider getting better lighting and changing the type of feed you are feeding. Mysis and Brine Shrimp (which have zero nutrition) are not sufficient food.
Please supplement with krill, cut into small 1/8 inch bits at first, once a week, or maybe twice a week.
My questions would be:
How old is your tank?
What other inhabitants does it have?
Where was the anemone stationed when it went down?
What are your water perameters?
What do you feed, and how often?
Please forgive me if you already answered these questions. :)
 

howardj

Active Member
How old is your tank? 6 Months
What other inhabitants does it have?
My Clarkii Clown which was hosting in the anemone, many coral, softies, LPS, Polyps..
Where was the anemone stationed when it went down?
It had moved under a pretty decent sized rock.
What are your water perameters?
Ammonia - 0, Trite - 0, Trate - 0, Cal - 450
What do you feed, and how often?
I didn't feed the anemone at all, I thought my lights were up to par for a BTA?
my LFS had them under cheap PCs. I feed the fish Omega 1 flakes and pellets, Mysis shrimp and brine shrimp sometimes.
 

howardj

Active Member
Update: I came back to this thread to tell everyone that the anemone looked So bad and Smelled AWFUL, I had to toss it. I didn't want it messing up the rest of my tank, It looked so bad. I wish I knew why it didn't come out from under the rock
 

lmecher

Member
Sorry to hear, before and if you add another I'd increase your lighting, with t5's you can just add another strip or two. supplimental feeding is important even though some will tell you they don't need it.
 

fragglerock

New Member
Hi HowardJ,
I am so sorry it died, but I have to get one more word in...to those who suggest never feeding an anemone I say it's ill-advice to give someone.
In the wild, they eat and they simply exist better and longer with food in captivity.
For those who will say, "My anemone is strong and fine and I've never fed it", I have some comments to that also. You are dreaming if you think your anemone is solely surviving on nothing but light. They simply cannot do that.
Phytoplankton or other foods are being introduced to it, whether that be fish food or fish poop, it is eating somewhere.
We're all entitled to our opinions...and mine is to please consider feeding your anemone if you are not doing so now. :)
 

lmecher

Member
FraggleRock: I completely agree, I took much flack a while back for suggesting the same thing. Some on the forum will start off their advice with "first of all stop feeding they get all the nutrition they need from the light." I suggested Karensroses and oh man I was ripped a new one. I think we should be able to discuss and disagree without getting mean and hurtful towards each other. After all we are here because we care and want to be helpful to others right?
 

howardj

Active Member
Thanks for the help FraggleRock and Lmecher.
I don't plan on ever adding another BTA to the tank.. I'm going to stick with coral only.
 

lmecher

Member
Very sorry to hear, don't let a bad experience sour you on anemones, many of us have lost them in the begining, you'd be suprised. They are fickle fussy little things we are just begining to understand mostly through trial and error. Well good luck I wish you the best.
 
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