AnemIDFAQ15

FAQs on Anemone Identification 15

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Anemone Success
Doing what it takes to keep Anemones healthy long-term

by Robert (Bob) Fenner

R2: Tank Upgrade/Equipment Additions/Stocking Choices -- 09/16/07 Hi there! <<Hello Kerstin!>> Writing back with some pictures attached -- <<Excellent'¦thank you for this>> I do think the 3 I have gotten of this, off the Carolina coast, from the Atlantic - are anemones. Other than the first time we put one in the tank (really cool to watch as he found a spot to live in), they have never extended big feeder tentacles or grown much - very peaceful coexistence, tolerate tank temps between 78-82, like to be fed, will move if the mood strikes them (and even that is just one of the three - he'll move if I change how the water flows in my tank, always amazing how they can move for having no limbs). What do you think? <<They do appear to be a species of anemone. Is the one on the right in the second photo one of the anemones in question? This certainly looks to be a species of Aiptasia (note the long slender filamentous tentacles and the white margin around the mouth opening). The other anemones in the photos bear a resemblance (to me) to small specimens of Bunodosoma cavernata'¦the Warty Sea Anemone, found along the North Carolina Coast'¦but this is only a guess>> I think they look like non-colorful versions of some short-tentacle anemone I have seen at the Newport Aquarium...but still fun to have. <<Maybe so'¦and if they aren't becoming a nuisance/overpopulating your system (possibly related to their 'sub-tropical' origin while being kept in a 'tropical' system), then by all means, enjoy them>> Thanks, Kerstin:-) <<Always a pleasure. EricR>>

R3: Tank Upgrade/Equipment Additions/Stocking Choices -- 09/17/07 Hi Eric! <<Hey Kerstin!>> Actually, on the second picture it shows 2 anemones - same type, from same location, just 1 year apart in age. <<I see>> On the right is a head-on view of the anemone, and on the left is a side view of the second anemone. The South Carolina coast is the point of origin - I had a friend who collected things after the tide was out (tide pools) - they would keep them in a bowl for a few days with a bubbler to watch, then release them at the end of the week. She thought these were neat, and so brought them to me. I had never seen them in a book - so it's cool if you know what they are. But no, they have never proliferated...and considering I once had an Aiptasia infestation (75 just being the ones I could count from the front), I definitely know they are not Aiptasia! <<Ah...very good>> Thanks for the identification, Kerstin:-)
<<Be chatting, EricR>>

Anemone ID -- 09/08/07 Hello there, Love this site! I've been obsessing over the ID of my anemone for days, and can't seem to get any work done- anemone search is just too tempting. I discovered this hitchhiker about a month ago on a piece of live rock (unknown origin) I bought from my LFS. His initial color was uniform pale gray, his tentacles were long and stringy, and he stayed closed almost all of the time. I moved him close to my MH and started feeding him shrimp with Cyclop eeze every day to try to save him. After about a week he turned a beautiful pink and blue, and his tentacles thickened. Now, a month later, he has tripled in size ( from smaller than a golf ball to bigger than a softball) and he stays open all of the time! I did think it was possible that he was a LTA, <Possibly> but he seems quite happy attached to the rock even though I do have a nice deep sand bed. Please help, my boss would love you for it! Thanks, Christie <Do try to get a pic of the base/pedicle, and send this along. Bob Fenner>

Re: Anemone ID 9/9/07 Here is a picture of his pedicle. <Very nice... Might I ask, where you got the live rock from? Or do you have other organisms with hard material/bases that hail from the Mediterranean? This looks more and more like Anemonia viridis to me. BobF> Thanks, Christie

Re: Anemone ID, Chromis/Damsels in the wild 9/10/07 Good Morning Bob, <Christie> I got the rock from LFS and don't know the origin- there are many tube worms on it as well (very thin, white and long) and a couple of small fan worms. I looked at the pics of Anemonia viridis, and I definitely see a resemblance, but my anemone has tentacles that taper without tips- is it possible that it lost it's tips? <Yes... or hasn't developed them... much has to do with lighting, feeding...> No telling how long it suffered in the dark live rock bin at the store. He does appear to be very happy now (thanks to all the info I've gotten on your site) <Welcome> I did have one quick comment on a different topic. I recently went diving in Cozumel and was surround by huge schools of green Chromis and blue reef Chromis- as I followed the drift I noticed that these little fish occupy a huge area of the ocean- ( they swim seemingly for miles) What I learned on my trip was that fish size should not be the only factor considered when determining appropriate tank size- <Ah, correct> I am sure most people already know this, but it was new to me-- an experience I will not soon forget and I wanted to share this with everyone. Thanks so much- and keep up the good work. <Thank you for sharing. Bob Fenner>

Anemone ID -- 09/08/07 Hi WWM Crew, <Chris> I have an anemone that I cannot positively identify. It is an interesting one that s really beautiful, but I am not sure what it is. <Mmm... think I know> Can you please see if you have any luck with this one. I have included a picture. The white one is a Sebae (I know that one...lol), but the one in front looks like a morphed Bubble. <Yes...> Please let me know your thoughts. Thanks Chris <Is likely an Anemonia species... perhaps A. sulcata... maybe cf. majano... on a few clues... the color and shape of the pedicle (base), and shape and number of tentacles, and lastly position near the Heteractis... BobF>

New aquarium questions? Anemone ID w/o pix... 8/27/08 Greetings, <Salutations> I recently started my first significant saltwater aquarium.? It is 125 gallons with a DSB, live rock, some hermits and snails.? <?> It is lit with 2x 175W 10kK metal halide lamps.? <??> I originally had decent PC actinics but a bad ballast broke a bunch of expensive bulbs.? There is only 1x 96W PC actinic lamp running. :( I will be leaving for a while, and I'm having someone else maintain the tank. I have a few questions. 1.? I seem to have a plague of very tiny anemone-like creatures all over my glass.? The pedal disk is about 1mm in diameter, and the whole animal is about 2-3mm in diameter.? They are colorless and transparent except for the pedal disk, and they seem to be growing.? They have been there for about a week or two.? There must be hundreds of them on the glass, but I have not spotted any on the live rock yet.? I've noticed that copepods don't seem to like to be near them, and my astrea snail would retract and move around them.? <Some sort of polypoid animal???> Do you think they will grow to be a significant pest?? Should I wipe them with my magnet scraper? <Maybe and not likely?> 2.? One of my pieces of live rock has what looks to be a giant version of the anemone described above.? <... Maybe a species of Glass Anemone... Aiptasia...> It is about the size of an Aiptasia anemone, but it only comes out at night.? <Mmmm, perhaps not> It looks like a more delicate version of an Aiptasia only completely crystal clear and speckled with white dots.? Should I worry about it? <Apparently you are. But will this change the future?> 3.? Should Ulva sea lettuce be in slow moving water or very fast moving water? <Slower... BobF?>

Anemone ID, no pic 8/6/07 Hello WWM! First off let me say thank you for the wealth of knowledge you have assembled on your wonderful site, it's very useful and has helped me tremendously. And now my question, recently I purchased what was labeled as a "carnation" anemone. <?> It had been in the tank at the LFS for a week or two and looked very healthy for anemone standards. However when I got home and did a through search for a carnation anemone I came up with little to no results. I understand the basic needs of an anemone but was wondering I could get any information on where they originate from and the best way to care for them. Thanks in advance! Patrick <Don't know either... "What's in a (common) name?"... Please peruse here: http://wetwebmedia.com/anemoneidfaqs.htm and the linked files above. Send along a few pix and maybe we can narrow down your search. BobF>

Re: Anemone ID 8/6/07 here is a picture http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-9/826985/carnation.JPG No luck on the ID page. <I make this out as an artificially dyed Entacmaea quadricolor... See WWM re... not likely to live much longer w/o careful attention to supplemental feeding. BobF>

Re: Anemone ID... Entacmaea... 8/7/07 I fed it a silver-side last night, it deflated immediately and consumed the entire silver-side. Can I do any thing else to increase the chances of it surviving? <... Please read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/bubbletipanemones.htm and the linked files above. BobF>

Unidentified problem anemones? 7/30/07 Some guy gave me something he said was an anemone to give to my out of town brother when he came in for a visit. When he came into town and saw them he said "I don't want that #@*%" So I removed it from my aquarium as well, or so I thought. These little critter are round with tentacles and somewhat reddish and somewhat fluorescent green and they procreate like a rabbit! <Heee, Lagomorphs don't do scission... at least as far as I'm aware> I now have an aquarium overran with these anemone looking like creatures that are killing off my desirable corals and clogging up my plumbing and pumps. I have a 90 g tank with a 20 - 25 g sump. I have a picture of these creatures (although not that clear) I am attaching. I'm sure others have had a problem with these if ever introduced into their tanks they just take over everywhere. How do I rid myself of these pests? what will eat them? Should I still consider this "guy" a friend? Should I introduce this "guy" to flesh eating bacteria? Please help me! These things are creating havoc in my tank. Thanks in advance - Spence <These are very likely Anemonia... cf. majano... Please see WWM re. Bob Fenner>

I am looking for the true identity of this anemone!-- 7/10/07 <Hi Darren> I purchased this anemone about three months ago. The fish store told me it was a Rose Bubble Tip that actually spawned in their coral tank? As it has been growing I am doubting that it is a RBTA, can someone please identify it for me? <I.D.~ Entacmaea quadricolor, Rose bubble tip anemone> It was smaller than a Quarter when I got it and it has tripled in size. I think I was overfeeding the first two months? After reading around WWM I cut the feeding from every two to three days to once a week. I have been feeding it mini Mysis. As I said the anemone has grown but I do have a concern about the tips. Some of the tentacles are twisted at the ends and are not fully extended? <E. quadricolor doesn't always possess bubble tips on their tentacles. The reason for this is not known but things from flow to lighting to nutrient levels have been suspected. The lack of bubble tips has no effect on the health of the animal. Many people have purchased RBTA's with excellent bubble tips and then a month later the tentacles resemble yours.> It seems to like to keep the tentacles to the side and stick it's body out. Is this normal behavior. The anemone took hold the rock where I placed him and has not moved since. He is about 12" from the lights, two 39 watt T5 and 3 70W MH on a 45 gallon tank. <your anemone "planted" it's foot and it has chosen a place in your tank where it appreciates the flow and light. This is a sign of a happy anemone. The puffy body is usually associated with high light levels. If it begins to lose color and become translucent then it has too much light and is bleaching. Please keep an eye out for that type of problem, otherwise I saw a healthy anemone. Bubble tips come with a greenish body and reddish tips. These are referred to as Bubble Tip Anemones. When the complete anemone lacks green pigments and is all red it is referred to as the Rose Bubble Tip Anemone which is usually more expensive so good find!> Thank you in advance for all of your great info!!!!! <No Problem! Remember to keep feeding it and observing it's overall health. Hopefully it will split/divide and give you offspring!> Darren <Rich aka Mr. Firemouth> <Some additional reading... http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/bubbletipanemones.htm http://www.wetwebmedia.com/btanemjimb.htm>

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