LTA is on the move

[Mr_Cool]

I've had an LTA for a few months now and it's been really happy. Lately, though, it just won't stay put in the tank. It's not that it's moving around, it's BEING moved around either by the flow or it's GSM's.

It never attached to any rock and it never buried it's foot in the sand, either. It just kind of sat there on the sand in a little cove between some rocks.

Any ideas on how to get it to stay put? Should it be on the rock work or do they like the sand better? I've read that they'll bury their foot in the sand, but I've heard that they kind of like to wedge themselves between a rock and the sand. Any help would be appreciated. I don't want it sucked up against the Maxi-jet (again). :at_wits_end:

[ismvel]

I had a LTA a long time ago, and I too placed it in the sand, and it moved around....of course it seemed as if it always wanted to homestead on the back side of the tank so I couldn't see it. So I would try to move it.....over and over and over again. Then was told to leave it be....it will continue to move until it finds its comfort zone/spot. I just got a RBTA and since the first night I brought it home, it has been on the move, unattaching itself from the rock that came with to finding several other rocks over the last couple of days. And I expect that today, it will also be in another location. I just plan on leaving it alone to decide where its new home will end up being and then move corals accordingly.

[Mr Cob]

I have had my LTA for about 6 months now and I got lucky with it's assigned placement as it has not moved once. I put it dead center of my tank and rock work where there is light water movement but steady and it gets direct light there. It did wedge it's foot into the middle of two rocks and my foam. I have no idea if it's attached though.

It has also doubled in size.

I did notice that when I adjusted my water flow a couple of times and increased the flow in it's zone it did not seem very happy and looked as though it was about to pack it's bags....so I put the flow back the way it was.

Good luck. I would probably just leave it alone.

[apedroza]

Just keep an eye on it, and that it doesn't move into a powerhead. Anemones will generally move around when they are in areas they don't like.

[seatrueblue]

I haven't tried this, but I heard that it has worked for some people..put the lta in a pvc pipe filled with sand. That should keep it from moving around. Also put rocks around the pvc, so you won't have to look at a ugly pipe. My purple lta has only moved around once but was still attached to the bottom of the tank. I think what made it move is that we upgraded the lights.

[Mr Cob]

I haven't tried this, but I heard that it has worked for some people..put the lta in a pvc pipe filled with sand. That should keep it from moving around. Also put rocks around the pvc, so you won't have to look at a ugly pipe. My purple lta has only moved around once but was still attached to the bottom of the tank. I think what made it move is that we upgraded the lights.

Well....woudn't it end up moving anyways? As the LTA grows so does the foot and eventually the foot would be too large for the PVC thus causing it to move again???

[seatrueblue]

Not if its a large enough pvc. I'll find pictures of what other people have done. They said their lta haven't moved since using a pvc pipe.

[seatrueblue]

Hey Mr Cool, can we see a picture of your LTA?

[ErikH]

are we talking LTA (Long Tentacle Anemone) or a tube anemone? I can see how it would work for a tube anemone, but I for the life of me, can't figure out how to arrange pvc and sand so an anemone won't move. Please explain!?!? My RBTA is in the back after staying front and center for almost a year.

[seatrueblue]

I honestly don't know..lol.. its just some thing they talk about on RC.
Here is a post from RC.

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11254664#post11254664 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by garygb
If you don't have a deep sand bed of fine sand, you can get a six inch pvc pipe and fill it with fine aragonite, place the LTA in the pipe and fill it with sand. You can put live rock around the pvc to hide it from view.
Gary

Alot of people say it works..I've never tried it so I don't know if it will or not. Luckly I haven't had any trouble getting my very healthy lta to attach.

[Mr_Cool]

He seems to have settled into another little cove. Looks like he's backed up against some live rock. Can't tell if he's attached or not, though. Thanks for the PVC idea. I was ready to try it, but now I'll just wait and see.

I'll try to remember to get a pic tomorrow when the lights come on.

[Mr_Cool]

I remembered...

It's been in this location for almost 2 days! :applause:

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh223/Mr_Cool1/anemone010.jpg

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh223/Mr_Cool1/anemone011.jpg

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh223/Mr_Cool1/anemone004.jpg

http://i257.photobucket.com/albums/hh223/Mr_Cool1/anemone009.jpg

[seatrueblue]

Oh good, I'm glad I asked for pictures, are you sure thats an LTA? Alot of times people think a bta is an lta. There are some btas that tend to never have the bulb tips. Does your lta have verrucae, as in spots on the underside of the disc? If it doesn't have any verrucae its a bta.
Here is a pictures of my purple lta.
See the spots on its underside? All Macrodactyla doreensis (ltas) have this.
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/8396/picture20278tp3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)
http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/7955/picture2030691cy8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

If yours is a Entacmaea quadricolor, that is probably why it won't attach to the sand, they like to be high up on the rocks.

[Mr_Cool]

Does your lta have verrucae, as in spots on the underside of the disc? If it doesn't have any verrucae its a bta.


It's an LTA. I bought it as one, and although you can't see the spots from any of the pics I took, they're there. Believe me, I've seen this anemone from just about EVERY angle possible, as it's moved with the current from one side of the tank to the other.

I have another anemone that I THINK is a BTA. (Not the one up and to the left of the LTA. That's a rock anemone. It was a hitch-hiker on some live rock.) It doesn't have the bulbs on it's tips, though. It IS attached to some rock. Looking at it's foot and the way it is attached really make me think it's a BTA. And, my gold stripe maroons love it, too. (Actually, the male loves it.)

I think it's going to be fine where it is. Thanks!

[bigmoe21]

lta's are also distinguishable by the base right? they only have the red/orange

[Mr_Cool]

You cannot see the base in the pic, but this one is more white or pinkish. In fact, the guy at the LFS said the base would most likely turn a really nice shade of purple.