Why did my anemone die?

arizonagirl

New Member
Just purchased a rock anomene 2 days ago and now it is dead.(i think?) It's little foot was not attached to the rock anymore and there was this strange balloon looking thingy floating above it's body.

I assumed it was dead,scooped it out of tank and put it in trash. When I looked again, it had closed up even tighter than before. Soooo, I put it back in the tank thinking it was still alive!! No movement at all this time so back into the trash

Please forgive ignorance!! first anemone ever!!
 

nycbob

Active Member
u need to do some research b4 buying any marine specimens. i cant really tell u whether it was dead without a pic. from the way u described it, i migh not hv been dead. anemones need an established tank. is ur tank newly setup? they also need good lighting, but rock anemone isnt as demanding when it comes to light. i;d keep a few hardy fish in the mean time and learn as u go.
 

arizonagirl

New Member
The tank has been up for about 3 months. I did minimal research and it seemed to me that this particular specimen would be the least demanding.
I put in some brine shrimp to feed since the info said that it liked "meaty" things!!
I wil try again I guess. I suppose I also wonder if the lighting was adequate? I have the standard set up which comes with the Aquapod. They really are tight with the information!! There was just the barest of directions with the set up.
 

lexluethar

Active Member
Not only should you worry about lights, your tank needs to have the correct parameters. Test for Ammonia, NItrite, NItrate, PH, Salinity, Copper, Calcium, Alk. ALthough inadequate lighting will kill an anemone, it usually takes a few weeks for that to happen (think of it as slowly starving). Since your anemone died in such a short period of time my bet would be something is off in your tank. Test for those parameters and get back to us.
Hope that helps :)
 

arizonagirl

New Member
Thank you both!!
Here are the water readings as of today.
PH 8.4
Nitrate 10
Amonia .1
Nitrite .1
Temperature 82 degrees.
I think that I just have to admitt that the thing really wasn't dead and I just didn't know enough to spare him!! After talking to the fish store people and telling them my tale, they thought that it was just going to the bathroom!!
Needless to say, I feel pretty stupid!! As always, any advice will be much appreciated.
 

lexluethar

Active Member
No problem - your tank is still cycling too. How old is the tank? If you don't have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite then you are going through a cycle - which would kill an anemone and other tank mates as well. Your ammonia could be high because of the dead anemone, but i don't think it was dead so that wouldn't be why your ammonia is high. Google or search on this site for "cycling". Your tank goes through a few stages before it is safe to put in creatures.
Your nitrates are also on the verge of being to high for an anemone. They only accept PRESTINE water conditions, meaning 0 nitrates, 0 ammonia, and 0 nitrites, among other things like copper, etc. Do a little more reading before purchasing your next anemone, not saying that to be mean, i just don't want you going out and continually purchasing them and having them die on you :)
Good luck, and keep asking questions if you need some answers!
 
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