trouble with anemones

[solow11]

this forum is great. im a newbie in love with this new found hobbie. wife is awlays complaining im reading your forums till the wee hours of the morning. but she loves when i bring new interesting fish. a couple questions i havent found in your forums yet. ive tried 3 times with flordia pink tip anemone. get them home and acclimate. a few hours then there big and beautiful. few days i give pieces of krill then they shrink. this is normal ive heard. now the problem is they never fill up again. sometimes they fill half way up and they still move around but look sick. and after a week or 9 days- dead. three different occasions. my tanks a 125 plexie canister filter 3 power heads 80 lbs live rock 100lbs live sand 5 months and all conditions are perfect. old 3 stars, 2 perc clowns 5 damsels1 tang(dont know what kind)feather dusters x4 lots of hermets and my favriote is lawn mower and pixie hawkfish. any help understanding the care of anemones would be appreciated as im very intrigued on them noe. its my new goal in life. thanks again solow11

 

[slick]

What kind of lighting do you have? What are your water parameters?

 

[solow11]

all parimeters test perfect and lighting is florecents 48" 50/50 attics x2 48" coral life 45 watt x4 10,000k

 

[trainfever]

Are you sure they are dead? Anemones are not dead until you see a big blob disentegrating in your tank. Sometimes they will shrivel up to nothing, with their tentacles all drawn in, looking like just a little clump of flesh with little bumps sticking out. I used to think that mine was dead but as you can see from my Avatar, it is alive and thriving. And I dont have that much lighting, only 60 watts in a 45 gallon tank.

 

[solow11]

deffently dead- as a fish swims by and pieces of the anemone fall off and drift away in the current. i got curly q amenones 3 days ago and they are so cool. should i feed something besides krill? and how long should you wait until you feed? thanks for all your help solow11

 

[acrylic51]

Definitely dead if they are falling apart and drifting through the tank like you said.... I wouldn't leave them in the tank to that point just to verify they are toast.... I know you said your water test good, but what are your readings???? I have 1 anenome and he doesn't drift or anything and he is in the original place I put him 3 years ago, and I've even gone so far as to try to cover the dang thing, but he seems to move just enough to get the light he needs and has grown quite a bit.
Where do you start him off at in the tank??? water movement?? I would still look at my lighting and water quality

 

[newbiereef]

i would have to say that you need more lighting? are yours NO or PC lights. you dont have much light in the tank and that coulfd be your problem

 

[itchy]

I would agree that your lighting is not strong enough for anemones. This is a discussion that goes back and forth between alot of people. For anemones to thrive you need very high lighting....more like MH. There are success stories with PC/VHO but the anemones are just surviving not thriving. It is true that some anemones do not need MH lighting but still need strong lighting. I am not claiming to know enough to comment as to how to keep them thriving but I am sure someone with a whole lot more knowledge will answer your question to extreme. I do believe that the lighting is your problem. Sorry I couldn't be of more help.

 

[ophiura]

But lighting is not fatal for condylactus, IMO, in a few days.
I know that your tank parameters are probably perfect but allow yourself the pat on the back Please give ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, alkalinity, pH, calcium and specific gravity readings :yes:
What sort of seastars do you have? How old is the tank?

 

[itchy]

Oh yes Ophiura......I agree , sorry I did not pay attention to the kind of anemone....I am not sure how I missed that.
I agree there is some water parameter that has to be bothering these anemones as they are usually pretty hardy!! Guess I just need to either zip my mouth or read a little better..lol

 

[airforceb2]

That is also a pretty young tank. Your water may be good but not prestine. I would wait a few more months before trying again. Also, if the anemones are falling apart, there could be ammonia/nitrites in the water from the decaying limbs. What kind of test kit do you have? Maybe you should get a sample tested at the LFS to make sure?? Just some ideas on the table so you don't loose another anemone.

 

[ophiura]

Originally Posted by itchy
Oh yes Ophiura......I agree , sorry I did not pay attention to the kind of anemone....I am not sure how I missed that.
I agree there is some water parameter that has to be bothering these anemones as they are usually pretty hardy!! Guess I just need to either zip my mouth or read a little better..lol

Not at all, you were headed in the right direction and asking the right questions! :yes: If they had died after a few months, definitely the right track, IMO. A lot of issues are best addressed using a "buck shot" type approach. Every possible factor thrown out, and sometimes those factors can be downright crazy, but factors nonetheless (and someone has to be willing to throw them out for discussion/elimination).