bubble-tipped anemone

[steelrod79]

just bought a bubble-tipped anemone yesterday and it was looking great even this morning when I went to work. But when I got home It looks like it has turned inside out and has very little movement the tenicals are very small now and not sure whats going on. I asked a friend if it was normal and he said yes but wondering if anyone could educate me on them. Thanks

[ClownReef®]

It could be two things.

1- It died. Anemones when they die, sometimes they turn inside out expelling all of their zooxanthellae (symbiotic algea).

2- Its expelling waste.. aka pooping. When they do this, bubble tip anemones deflate all of their "tentacles" and release any waste.

How long your tank has been set up? What kind of lighting you're running? and what your water parameters?.

My guess is if your tank is new, it probably died. Anemones like VERY well established tanks with plenty of rock work and good flow.

[erikharrison]

Did you follow proper acclimation procedures? Sounds like it's pretty stressed!

[steelrod79]

my tanks been set up for about 4 months. I have 4 four foot long svo lights. I have about 30lbs of live rock. I did notice this morning that it looked like it was slowly opening back up and some of the tenticals are getting fuller. Hope it is better when I get off of work today

[ClownReef®]

Honestly i just think it decided to poop.

Entacmaea quadricolor (Bubble tip anemones) are moderate light anemones. BRIGHT lights, like Metal halides will make then shy away and lose their bubble tips. Its not a food issue, or a flow issue, but a light issue. People have the misconception that there is no know reason on why they lose their bubbles, but truth is because of bright lighting.

Ive dealt with BTAs for a long time. They are very hardy and easy to care for.

What you just need to look for in the future is bleaching or its constant walking around the tank..thats a sign of stress and unhappiness.

[Bill S]

Hmm. Some of my RBTAs seem to LOVE high light. I have 3 that sit less than 4" from the surface, under 400w MHs. The clones that I just traded away (3 of them), came from one that liked the bottom of the tank.

[steelrod79]

ok thanks for the info. I still have alot to learn about salt water tanks

[ClownReef®]

Cool! Id love to see any pics. Most RBTA's ive ever dealt with shy away from such bright light..and lose their bubbly tips..especially if they are 4" away from the surface. They do love actinics and not so much bright white light (from a 10K).

There was a huge study in hawaii about that subject. The only conclusion was lighting. The bubbles appear when the anemones arent exposed to such bright lights.

Im diggin' through my pictures but i cant find any of my anemones..ill keep looking.

[steelrod79]

I need to get a camera that takes good pics of the tank mine just looks like crap when I take them.

[ClownReef®]

AAHHH! Im trying to find that article!! I guess BTA's have decided to rebel lately!!..

Give me a couple of more minutes.. :D

[ClownReef®]

This (http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1130545&perpage=25&page number=2) is a good read.

From personal experience, my RBTA's would only bubble up in the morning when the VHOs would kick in. Once the halides fired up, the bubbles would disappear.

I had 2 clones from the mother RBTA. Both clones were ALWAYS bubbled. Although some people say it is a mystery why they lose their bubble tips. I am 100% convinced it is because of light. I will keep looking for that article about the study done in hawaii.

[ClownReef®]

Sometimes i think its a case by case thing. Like i said, i had a huge RBTA that would only bubble in the morning. Its clones where always bubbled up. Even if we believe it has to do with lighting--its still very complex to explain. HAHA.

[Richard]

The rbta's in our tank are under a 250w halide. Most of the time they have elongated tentacles but some days they have bubble tips. I don't know what makes them decide.

[steelrod79]

I can't wait tell I get off work so I can see what mine is doing I think i need to set up a web cam for when I am work

[apedroza]

The closer the anemones are to the surface the more the bulbs show. Those that remain closer to the bottom often have the long tentacles. The anemone will decide where the conditions are best for it. The one I got from Bill still prefers the bottom and has the long tentacle look.

[ClownReef®]

Richard,

I had 3x250w Reeflux 12K's and VHOs (48w maybe?) on my previous tank and my BTA had bubbles in the mornings.

I had bought the anemone from Aquatic Warehouse and the tank where it was wasn't lit very well and the anemone was perfectly bubbled up. As soon as i put it in my tank, it stayed put, it liked the flow.. but i started to notice it would bubble up only when the VHOs kicked in. As soon as the MHs fired up, the bubbles would deflate and go stringy.

I ran VHOs all day as an experiment. The BTA looked amazing that day. The bubbles were crazy full and it looked very happy...my corals didn't thinks so though.

Ive read so much about the subject. Some BTAs are from deeper waters than others, so that plays a huge role as well. There may be many factors that cause the lack of bubbles, but i strongly believe its related to light.

[Bill S]

I've had about 12 clones from my original - and they ALL act differently! Some like high flow, others low. Some like lots of light, others "hide" from light. And they were all from the same one. So weird...

Here are photos from my tank that Ace took: http://www.maast.org/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=25495&hig hlight=bstreep

The photo with the RBTA and the green slimer, shows one of the top dwelling anemones.

[Richard]

Yeah, I'm not so sure on the lighting thing based on my limited experience. Just because the lighting on these never changes but they do. I always kinda thought it had to do with how much they're being fed but have never really paid too much attention to it to say for sure.

[ClownReef®]

Well, some get bubbles after getting fed which breaks the whole "lighting" theory to pieces. Some get bubbles after water changes.. They are just weird..LOL

[Bill S]

:sick :lol

[Ram_Puppy]

Richard,

while I was working mornings there in your shop I fed the Trash out of that anemone, it would take 4 to 5 krill at least twice a week... their bubbles never changed in the least.