|
|
FAQs on Carpet Anemone Disease/Health, Pests
Related Articles:
Carpet Anemones, Stichodactyla spp., Use in Marine Aquariums
by Bob Fenner,
Carpet
Anemones, big, beautiful and deadly by Mike Maddox,
Bubble Tip Anemones,
Tropical Atlantic Anemones,
Anemones, Colored/Dyed Anemones, Cnidarians,
Marine Light, &
Lighting, Related FAQs:
Carpet Anemones 1, Carpet Anemones 2,
Carpet Anemone Identification,
Carpet Anemone Behavior, Carpet
Anemone Compatibility, Carpet
Anemone Selection, Carpet Anemone
Systems, Carpet Anemone Feeding,
Carpet Anemone Reproduction,
Anemones in General,
Caribbean Anemones,
Condylactis,
Aiptasia Anemones, Anemones and
Clownfishes,
Anemone Reproduction,
Anemone Lighting,
Anemone Identification,
Anemone Selection,
Anemone Behavior,
Anemone Health,
Anemone Placement, Anemone
Feeding, Heteractis
malu, | 
Doomed |
Stichodactyla haddoni
problems – 11/03/09
Hello there, you have a great site and it has helped lots of times but i
haven't found anything on my problem yet so i was forced to email. My
Stichodactyla haddoni, which i have had for around a year now and has
seemed to do fine the whole time, is seeming to do something odd which
im not sure is normal. I got home from work tonight to notice that it
was pushing bits of brown/black "trash" out of its mouth.
<Mmmm, is something "missing" livestock wise?>
It doesn't seem like normal discharge and its been a bit since last time
i fed it so i don't think that's it. also the ocellaris that has been
housed in it the entirety of its stay looks a little beat up so to
speak. There are
several marks around its head and its just swimming by the base of the
anemone on the bottom of the aquarium. I cant do a water change until in
the morning unfortunately so i can only wait it out until then but if
you could answer my question it would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
Bryce
<Mmm... I would add some activated carbon in the meanwhile... Can't tell
what has caused the changes you list, but they are not positive. Bob
Fenner>
Carpet Anemone/Health/Systems 9/23/09
Hey guys,
<Hello Jose>
I just purchased a beautiful blue carpet anemone and it looked great
going into the tank, but after the first day it deflated with the mouth
open and all kinds of weird substance is coming out. It still has full
color and tentacles look good, but very flat. Its been like that for 3
days. What do I do?
<You read here and see if you can provide the requirements to even have
a shot at keeping one alive. If not, I would return/exchange ASAP.
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_6/volume_6_3/capranem.html
James (Salty Dog)>
Jose Cartagena A.A. Maintenance & Repair Inc.
Sick Carpet Anemone, S. Haddoni – 3/14/07
Hello to the crew
of WWM.
<Hello, Brenda here>
As many before me have praised,
I thank you for the invaluable information and service you provide
to this community.
<You’re welcome>
90 gallon tank, compact
lights (2-60w, 10,000k + 260w actinic= total 520w),
<I’m not
sure how you came up with 520 watts total. Power Compact lighting
is not enough for this anemone. I suggest Metal Halide lighting.>
water tested within parameters; nitrates=10ppm,
<Nitrates need
to be zero.>
ammonia and nitrites=0, ph=8.2-8.4.
Yellow
tang, powder brown, scopas, mandarin goby, damsels, and cleaner
pack.
My husband and I have recently bought a carpet anemone
from our LFS with whom we are very familiar with and have come to
trust. We had watched it in the store for the last 3 weeks to
confirm health before we decided to purchase him. We brought him
home and for the first two days did wonderfully. He would blossom
first thing in the morning before the lights came on and shrink back
a little throughout the day. Almost immediately our maroon clown
hosted him and they seemed to be doing well...until the maroon clown
disappeared. We have been having this maroon clown over a year and
he always came out for feedings and social play. We have concluded
from reading your articles and gut feelings that the anemone ate our
clown. Now comes the problem. When we first bought him, he was
super sticky, now he isn't at all. In the first picture you can see
that his mouth started opening very wide. This was about 7am, right
after we deducted he ate the clown. By 3pm he started having huge
fleshy bubbles exude from his mouth (pic 2), though his footing
looked fine and was still firmly grasping his rock. By 7pm a white
opaque bulb came out of his mouth, which quickly started to cloud
our tank. Our yellow and powder brown tangs and well as the damsels
picked at the substance. We could only conclude that this was the
regurgitation of the clown. During this time my husband tested the
water again, which showed an ammonia spike of 0.2.
<Yikes!>
By 9pm my husband put him in a bag to transport him into a hospital
tank and he has started to turn inside out (pic 3). We have read
many of your articles where many of the anemones have recovered from
this. We can only imagine that he is sick from eating the clown,
which was too much for his system.
<Not likely. Is this a new
setup? I don’t see any coralline algae on the rocks.>
Can you
give any advice?
<Return it to the LFS. I suggest trying a
large Entacmaea quadricolor for your maroon, if your system is well
established (6 months to a year) and you have researched their
care. The E. quadricolor should be 3 times larger than the maroon,
as maroons can be aggressive towards the anemone.>
<Brenda>
<<Too late. RMF>> | 
|
carpet anemone... Poor English 1/29/07
hello, ive never
wrote before but I need some assistance. I have a 35 gallon tank and a
large carpet about 10in across. I have had it about 3 months and never
had a problem. he made himself a spot by the heater and stays there
always. I keep the tank at 80 degrees. through the night the heater
went out, it got down to 70. I slipped the old heater out from right
next to the carpet and slid in the new one.it heated up very hot to my
touch so I moved it away from the carpet. now it keeps shrinking up and
then spreading out. the mouth keeps opening and closing to. it dosen't
look right. the tentacles that were near the heater look kind of burned
or something. is that possible? do you think I burned it? if I did will
it be o.k.? is there anything I can do to help it?
<I's, not i's...
beginnings of sentences are capitalized... Read here:
http://wetwebmedia.com/carpetanemones.htm
and the linked files
above. Bob Fenner> gigantea anemone is limp... so is English,
information, reading... 12/4/06
i
<I>
have
recently about 2 weeks ago bought a gigantea anemone, it was doing
really well in my 200ltr tank, i noticed yesterday it didn't open, and
today on further inspection i found a what looks like a rotted section
on the edge of the tentacle area, it is also very limp, with little or
no reaction to touch, its mouth appears to be inside out, and my male
clown has started to pick at it.
<...>
i recently had a
pufferfish and a decorator crab die for what seems like no apparent
reason,
<....>
i cant
<can't>
find the puffer fish in
the tank and was wondering could this be a cause for my Anenome being
ill? or given the symptoms, is there anything you could suggest could be
the cause and what can i do to help get it back on the mend. please
help!!!
<... Puffers and anemones are incompatible... you provide no
useful information re your system, water quality, tests... and obviously
haven't read what is posted re Stichodactyla in captivity: Read:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/carpetanemones.htm
and the links
above... and please, correct your English before sending... Bob Fenner>
Anemone Mouth is "Inside-Out" - 10/15/06
First of all thank you
for all the valuable information you have provided on this website.
<<A collective effort...you are quite welcome>>
I have recently
purchased a Stichodactyla haddoni approximately 9" diameter at full
extension.
<<Do have a read here and among the linked files at the
top of the page:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemones.htm>>
First of all my tank is a 90 gallon, lighting provided by dual 150HQI
10,000K dual 110W actinic PC and moon lighting.
<<Sounds good>>
Temp is 77-79, SG 1.025, NH3-0, NO2-0, NO3-0 or not detectable, Calcium
410ppm.
<<Good again>>
Approximately 120lbs of live rock and 3"
sand bed.
<<Mmm, would recommend a bit less rock and more open
substrate with an inch or two more depth for this species>>
Flow is
provided by the 1200GPH return pump corrected to 700GPH and dual
outlets, also a SEIO 1500GPH. Inhabitants include:
-Bubble Coral
Medium-Small Size
-Green Star Polyps
-Large Montipora
capricornis
-A few SPS frags Acropora mostly
-A few various
frags
-Small bright green candy cane
<<Am sure you are aware of
our feelings re mixing sessile and motile invertebrates???
I have
been careful to allow appropriate distance between all corals and
allowing growing room.
<<One can hope...>>
Fish include:
-Pair of Percula Misbars
-Atlantic Blue Tang
<<The tank is too
small for this fish>>
-Solar Rentis Wrasse
<<...? Solorensis
Wrasse?>>
-Blue Spot Goby
-Two Cleaner Shrimps
Filtration is
provided by a 160 (at least can't remember exact) gallon capacity
Euro-Reef skimmer and a reverse light cycle Chaetomorpha refugium.
<<Great skimmer, great macro-algae/application>>
All water is RO/DI
and weekly 10% water changes. Needless to say I am aware of the high
demands of an anemone and did quite a bit of research however this has
been a specimen I have been searching for.
<<Then you are aware they
are best kept in species/specimen specific systems>>
The tank is
approximately 9 months old and has been very stable with no deaths after
initial cycling except for the occasional overturned snail.
<<Yet
still a bit "young" for an anemone system>>
This is not my first
tank though I am no professional aquarist
<<Me neither <grin> >>
I do however care to learn as much about an animal as I can prior to
purchase and now I am trying to figure out a way to care for this animal
given its recent behavior.
<<I see>>
I have been reading about
the problem I have and have found conflicting information regarding it.
<<Ah yes...is a hobby based on much "opinion">>
Apparently some
sources say that when an Anemone exposes its insides so to speak it is
near death likely caused by poor acclimation out of the ocean and
constant transport.
<<Not uncommon>>
This makes sense for me, I
have had this anemone for 6 days and it was transshipped from the ocean
probably the week before that or less.
<<Likely a stressed animal
then, yes>>
However I read some posts by Anthony on this website and
his concern for problems similar to this were not this serious.
<<Perhaps differences in circumstance/symptoms>>
I am wondering is
there anything I can do. The anemone will eat PE Mysis if I feed it
however I feel like feeding is not necessary more than once a week from
what I have read.
<<A couple "light" feedings a week would be fine>>
The anemone is still sticky to touch but not as sticky as when I
purchased.
<<Not always symptomatic of something bad as long as the
anemone can still capture/each foodstuffs>>
He deflates at night and
re-inflates, as it gets closer to lights on in the morning staying
inflated throughout the day. Often it is night when I see this inside
out mouth behavior, you can almost see what resembles 'guts' bulging out
of the mouth.
<<Mmm...at this point/based on your previous info I
think this anemone is likely recovering from the stress of
capture/handling/transport and getting "settled-in">>
During the day
the anemones mouth is usually tight and closed.
<<A good sign>>
I first though maybe a cleaner shrimp got to his mouth and started
digging however seeing the anemone return to normal eased these
concerns. The cleaner shrimp do often steel food from the anemone with
no concern of getting stung.
<<Indeed...though rarely do they do any
real "harm">>
The anemone does not host the clowns currently and the
clowns ignore him as far as I can tell.
<<Actually, this is better
for the anemone at this stage. Clownfish can get pretty rough at times
with their host anemones and this is hard on (sometimes fatal to) an
already stressed specimen>>
I realize there is little I can do for a
sick anemone but I am curious to rather or not he is dying or I am to
expect this behavior for a new acclimated anemone or if there are any
steps I can take?
<<Keep a close eye on it, maintain pristine water
conditions, and keep feeding...>>
Also the anemone is attached to
the rock not the sand.
<<Hmm...is there room on the substrate? This
species does like to retract/hide in the substrate when disturbed>>
The foot looks healthy and the anemone is retaining his light green
color with no sign of bleaching.
<<Keep up the good care and there's
a good chance this anemone will recover>>
Thanks again, Wyatt
<<Happy to assist, EricR>> Carpet Anemone/Gorilla Glue ...
health 5/4/06
Hi there and thanks for all the help
you give to all of us out here.
<You're welcome.> I have a carpet
anemone and today I was feeding it and I dropped a piece of scallop, so
I reached in to grab it and my clown kept on attacking my hand so
I used my net to pick up the piece of food. When doing so I
accidentally brushed along the carpet and it stuck to the net. I
didn't pull it off of the net but kind of let it dangle. Since then it
has been shriveled up and the tentacles don't look as healthy as they
were. so my question is, say that the problem is I damaged the
tentacles, are they likely to repair themselves, or what can I do?
<You did the right thing by not forcing the net from him. The anemone
should have released the net by now. No damage should occur. Keep in
mind this anemone is
very difficult to keep alive for an extended
period of time. Do search/read articles/FAQ's in regard to this
anemone. In future queries, do cap all your
"i"s and beginnings of
sentences. It saves us work as we have to do this for you before
posting.>
Thanks a bunch.
<You're welcome. James
(Salty Dog)>
Justin from PA
Anemone Systems/Green Carpet
Anemone Death 5/2/06
Hi guys and gals. I just
had a carpet anemone pass after having him for a little longer than a
week. I did a large water change and added some carbon
to try and
prevent any noxious elements from harming the rest of the
livestock. Here are the specs on the tank:
36 gallon, 30" wide, 20"
tall bowfront reef tank. <Much too small a tank for keeping this
anemone.> The tank has 45 pounds of
liverock, 40 pounds of sand, a
hang on the back - 3 gallon refugium with multiple macroalgae (no
Caulerpa). The refugium lighting is on when the
tank lighting is
off and vice versa. The livestock is two perc clowns, one coral beauty
angel, one star polyp, one pom pom xenia, a few blue-legged
hermit
crabs, two turbo snails and a cleaner shrimp. The tank is lit by a 130W
powercompact, one 65w actinic and one 65w 10,000K/6700K SunPaq.
<Not
nearly enough light for keeping this species.> (I have two 150watt,
10,000K MH bulbs on the way). The lights are on for 10
hours a day.
The anemone arrived and looked to be in very good condition. I placed
him on the live rock and he moved to a location in the back of the tank
lodged
between some rock and the glass. A day later he moved a
couple inches away and then moved back. I fed him three 1/4" chunks of
silverside during the
first week. Two days ago I fed him a 1/4"
chunk of raw shrimp to vary the diet. Before I fed him the raw shrimp
he was staying expanded about half
the day and contracted the
rest. Sometimes when he was contracted it would look as though his
insides were coming out or his mouth was shaped like a
ping pong
ball. After feeding him the shrimp he never expanded again.
I
ordered him from liveaquaria.com so I'll get a full refund, but that
really isn't the point. I'd like to prevent this from happening again.
What parameters besides ammonia, nitrites, nitrates can I check? I
ordered some reef plus to add vitamins to the tank and also some Selcon
to dip food
in. Are there any other suggestion for improvement?
<Your system is very non-supportive for this animal. Carpet anemones are
sensitive to changes in water parameters. This can happen fast in a 36
gallon tank. A
minimum tank size of 100 gallons would be my
recommendation. Live Aquaria states a minimum of 30 gallons, yet they
tell you this animal is for expert aquarists only.
Doesn't make much
sense to me as these anemones can grow close to two feet in
diameter. With your size tank I'd forget about carpets completely. I
might point out that all the anemone species the percula clowns prefer
are difficult to keep for any length of time.>
Thanks for the great
website. I literally have three web browsers open at any given time
because I don't want to lose my place once I follow a link!
<James
(Salty Dog)>
Ryan Mullinax Re: Anemone Systems/Green
Carpet Anemone Death - 5/2/2006
Thanks Salty. I'll
be sure to do more research before any more purchases.
<You're
welcome and yes, do research all animals before buying.>
Can you
recommend what marine testing kits NOT to get?
<I'm not real fond of
the Red Sea Test Kits (personal opinion)> I've been reading the testing
kit FAQs and they're pointing to Lamotte and Hach, but I'm reading that
they're very expensive.
<Yes, I've used Lamotte kits, very nice and
accurate. I'm sure Hach follows the same order.> I also didn't see
calcium test kits on their sites.
<I'm sure both companies make this
kit. The Sea Chem Calcium Test Kit is one of my favorites, don't care
too much for their pH/alkalinity kit though. Is accurate but clumsy to
use, especially the pH. For pH and nitrate I use Aquariums Systems
kits.
James (Salty Dog)>
Ryan Mullinax <Ryan, do not place
phone numbers, mailing addys or other personal info in your queries. I
just delete them anyway for your own privacy as gazillions of people
read the dailies.> <<And they are archived, viewed for all eternity...
RMF>> Carpet Issues?
>Hi everyone,
>>Hello
Andrea. Marina here.
>I hate to do this but I am truly worried about
the carpet anemone I got about 5 days ago.
>>What do you hate to
do? Ask a question or three? It's why we're here!
>I have a 100 gal
tank with approx 125 lbs LR and a 2 1/2-3 inch LS bed. It has a Remora
pro skimmer, a canister filter and multiple power heads. The
inhabitants are: 3 pajama cardinals, 1 algae blenny, 1 mandarin goby, 1
Percula clown, 1 stripped shrimp goby of some sort, 1 fairy wrasse,
various types of polyps, a bubble tip anemone, a smaaaallll piece of
gorgonian (less than an inch), various types of mushrooms and now a
carpet anemone and the
crab that lives on it. Oh yes, and a couple of
hermit crabs and a billion baby snails.
>>Ok.
>It has looked fine
up until the day before yesterday when my husband forgot to turn on the
lights in the morning. We had a timer system, then he got me a Coralife
light with 2 10,000K and 2 actinic bulbs that wouldn't work with the
timer (too powerful for it) and the lights were off until about noon
when I came home.
>>This is absolutely NOT a problem. The problem
with carpet anemones is much more so that they seem to do dismally
poorly in home systems (require pristine water quality, from what I
understand feeding is more important than lighting, though lighting IS
important).
>The anemone was lying on its side for hours but finally
stood up again by the end of the day.
>>It is not unusual for any
anemone to spend a few hours to a full day, day and a half deflated and
looking as though they're recovering from a bender.
>Now it has laid
down on its side a couple of times since then, and at this moment it is
slumped over its rock and is totally deflated!
>>It is at this
point that I'm more concerned about water quality, HOWEVER, you are not
outside the window of normal behavior, especially if you do directly
feed. (Have you seen it exuding waste? Does it appear to be
disintegrating anywhere at all?)
>I feed a mixture of frozen Mysis
shrimp, BioPlankton and invert food but it has never really looked like
it has eaten anything that I can tell.
>>Try chunks of fish, squid,
krill, shrimp. These anemones have such powerful nematocysts precisely
to catch and kill larger creatures.
>The tank is 24" tall and it is
on the sand bed.
>What am I doing wrong?
>>See above, test
results are important, and when in doubt, DO A WATER CHANGE. (That's my
mantra, along with QUARANTINE)
>My bubble tip has done so well that
it has split about 5 times since I got it more than 3 years ago.
>>Wow, well it's good to know that you're not completely new at this
anemone thing, but BTAs are a bit easier than carpets.
>I am totally
at my wits end. please help...it would be sooo appreciated. thanks in
advance. Andrea Brown
>>Don't panic just yet, remember, all animals
are shipped in darkness, this DEFINITELY won't cause harm, especially
only a few hours' worth. Try the feeding, and do watch the water
quality closely. Marina Carpet Anemone with crab problems -
12/9/03
oh yeah, your reply on the carpet.... no nibbling from
the crabs. I had a large crab, and it took a huge chunk out of it, as
well as swallowed a feather duster one lonely night. <Hmmm. What kind of
crab??> As you might think, the large crab is no longer with
me......<understood if you are sure the crab was a the likely
suspect> Since then (about 4 weeks), the carpet anemone has stared
growing it's tentacles back. <Fantastic! ~Paul>
GR
Carpet
anemone problem 11/26/03
I just bought a carpet anemone two days
ago and today it started to form a bubble in its mouth and its body
didn't look so good it was kind of leaning over and my boyfriend thought
it was dying but I told him to leave it in the tank just to see what
would happen but I wanted to know is that normal to get an anemone and
have the mouth puff up or no. I need to know so I don't come home and
have everything in my tank dead Please write back thanks Lori
<hmm... the symptom does not elicit any specific concern with me. Let me
guide you to our articles and FAQs where something might catch your
attention:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemones.htm
please notice the many links at the top of this page to follow for ever
so much more information. Best regards, Anthony> Anemone questions
10/18/03
Hi Bob, Anthony, et able...
<Hola>
I have read a
lot of different things on your site about anemones and inverts, amongst
other topics and much of what you say makes sense, and some things you
have spoke about I have experienced first hand. I hope you can forgive
me for the length of this, but there is a lot to tell you so you can
better answer my questions as I have many.
<Okey-dokey>
I have a
haddoni carpet, and I must say it has been through a lot of things, but
in the year and a half I have had it, I am pleased to say it has grown
from when I bought it.
<FWIW, do realize that many anemones and
corals appear to "grow" but instead are simply panning for light as
bulbs age and water clarity darkens from lack of weekly carbon/ozone
over time (months)>
If you could get the thing to lay flat, the
diameter would be somewhere around 9-10 inches (or what I can ascertain
through the glass with a tape measure) and it was around 7 inches before
when I got it. Despite my success on that aspect, and given the fact
that many hobbyists can't keep a given species of one of these creatures
for that long, my success has not been without problems in between. Here
is October, since May or so I have had some problems with my tank, and
my anemone "seems" to be OK, and I don't know if the way it has been
acting was due to any single one thing or a combination of problems.
When I moved from FL to where I am now, I put everything in 5 gallon
buckets, and from an 80+ temp, the water temp dropped to a chilly 68. I
noticed some white spots around the crown of my anemone, and I was
scared as I knew this was not good. I immediately got my tank setup,
started the power heads to get some O2 going, and of course turn the
heater on. The anemone started to settle in its place in the tank, and
it would move around, so it did survive. It took some time for the
tissue to heal, and in time its tentacles even came back.
<good to
hear>
When it eats now, I notice as parts of the crown (that were
damaged) act as arms, and that part of the anemone inflates to grab
food, it looks clear, and the tentacles tend to disappear. However at
rest, you could not tell that there was damage to the same parts of the
crown. Other parts of the crown that were not damaged sometimes appear
to be the same in appearance, so I wonder if the damage done is
permanent, or its just going to take forever to heal?
<it will heal
in time>
Is it just my imagination and I am in panic mode? It took a
few weeks or so for it to look normal and as each day went, it showed
improvement. It ate like you would not believe.
<healing an
reproduction tend to be slow in these animals>
After that, I had
another issue. The center of the critter inflated like the oral disc
does during feeding, but I was not feeding. At the time I added a sebae
clown to it, and I noticed this swell. Time went on, it got worse and
not better. I did a water change, and it got worse quicker. I had 4
theories as to the cause of this, 1 was reproduction as I was seeing
signs consistent with what is noted in the breeders registry and my
water params are close to what Dr. Shimek (sp) has (which I know you
disagree with),
<indeed... high reef temps are dangerous to recommend
to most aquarists.>
the other theory was infection from my sick clown
I just added,
<nope... not communicable to this/any cnidarian>
and
the third theory said the classic Ca/alk issue,
<irritating if
inconsistent>
and the 4th said I over fed the thing. This thing has
at times eaten as much as a quarter of a pound of cleaned squid in a
week!
<this is a common mistake... feeding chunks that are too large.
Harmful to even some large anemones. Fine minced meats akin to
phytoplankton only please>
Possibility 1 is rare, so I was not
leaning so much towards that. I figured later on that a spoonful of fish
for a critter twice the size of mine a day was sufficient let alone a
quarter pound of squid a week. I then decided to explore the other
theory of the Ca and alk problem. My Ca was off the test kit chart, my
alk was next to nothing, and my pH was in the high 7's, and had been for
a while.
<yikes!>
So I figured this could be the issue,
<don't
make this a habit>
and as far as eating, the thing could not take in
food as much as it wanted to because the oral disc or gut was so
inflated it was unreal.
<there is also the matter of the clownfish
itself simply being irritating. There is no benefit to keeping a
clownfish in well fed anemones. Some are quite irritating>
After a
few weeks I got my alkalinity under control and eased up on the Ca
considerably, and all appears to be well on that. My alk is
around 9
dKH, and Ca unknown. The coralline is growing, so something must be
right. So anyway, this thing is still inflated to hell, and it is not
getting better but worse. The oral disc and the lips for lack of a
better description inflated to softball size. I read some things on the
breeders registry that said for that specimen consistent with what I was
seeing. My critter stood erect, and the softball size inflation was
consistent with this. I also noted that a nylon or silky looking
substance was excreted from the oral disc, and it was tilted at an angle
as it excreted this. These findings have been documented in the breeders
registry for male specimens of haddoni carpets in captivity.
<understood/agreed>
My water parameters were the same as noted, and
after the excrement, the tissue began to shrink.
<stress induced
perhaps?>
It took some time for the tissue to shrink and get back to
normal, and then my lights went. I replaced 3 of my bulbs (240W of
fluoros for a 55 gallon), so that was about half of my lighting. I
upgraded from 1 actinic blue and 2 10,000K bulbs to 2 18,000K bulbs, and
one appears to be a 6500K but I thought it was a 18,000K bulb.
<if
your lamps were over 10 months old... I assure you that this was the
biggest stress of all, and contributory to the size of your
anemone/growth>
It showed an increased amount of improvement after a
brief color change after this. It then looked a little pale in color
until I moved a rock to let it open more, and its color came back really
fast. The mouth on it is still open, but I can see the gut is closed,
and lately the mouth is not nearly as open as it was, and I would not
consider it to be gaping. It seems to be more narrow and more elongated.
I am thinking this could be a sign of it closing. It is sticky and it
has accepted smaller feedings of cleaned squid for the past few days
now. It is more open than it has been in a while. It seems to be closing
more with the clown than before, but it is not totally closed. Is this
normal with symbiotes?
<I question just how symbiotic the
relationship is in many. Studies I have read show that less than half of
all anemones that can host clowns even do. Again, not needed and
possibly a source of irritation>
I have also noticed in the past when
it would not eat that there seems to be a direct correlation between the
stickiness and the correct alkalinity of my water. What have your
experiences been on that aspect?
<no but interesting>
I am also
noticing that some tentacles are becoming significantly larger than
usual or in comparison with the rest. The tentacles near the oral disc
look like baby tentacles of a Condy anemone. Is this a sign of growth
perhaps?
<perhaps>
When these things grow, do they grow from the
crown out or how?
<fissionary indeed>
I see no other abnormalities
with my critter. I am seeing larger folds in it when it sits in the
tank, and depending on how it folds when it eats, I can see another
cyclical fold on occasion. I can only presume that it is starting to
grow even further, but it will take some months before there is anything
more measurable.
As far as tank parameters go, this is a 55 gallon
Berlin filtration tank and I have experimented with Dr. Shimek's advice
with no real adverse affects that I can contribute to the temp issue.
<heehee... other than low dissolved oxygen and a sick looking anemone on
a tank with a weak skimmer and a high DOC level. Sorry... I couldn't
resist <G>>
I have a DSB, about 50 lbs of LR, 240W of fluoros, a Sea
Clone 100 hang on skimmer, and 4 300gph power heads. My water temp used
to be near 86, I have since backed it down to about 84, and everything
in that tank has been like that for over a year now. The SG is typically
between 1.026-1.028 pending evap, pH between 8.3-8.4, alk yesterday was
9dKH and in excess of 15dKH today (but I expect that will erode tomorrow
as my lights will go off, and we know what happens).
<ahhh... got the
dKH. Now... your RO water is definitely admitting minerals... or... your
test kit is inaccurate... or ... you are adding way too much buffer>
I have never had a nitrate or ammonia problem since I moved the tank,
but after that I have not had that issue. The fish look great, the clown
is no longer sick, and the anemone looks really good now as it ever has
for the most part. I am trying to get your insight at least on my
anemone, and I know you don't agree with what Dr. Shimek says, however I
have found some catches to it, and both your site and Shimek make valid
and even overlapping points. If you do use a warmer temp (which I used
as his haddoni carpet has bred in captivity in like water params), you
can have
a disaster if you don't do other things correctly. However,
if you keep your alk in check along with your Ca, that is one issue. The
other issue is that you need some very serious current. As both you and
Shimek point out, the rate of metabolism doubles with every 10 degrees
centigrade increase in temp relative to a given temp.
<but why would
you want to speed up an animals metabolism in a closed aquarium system
with low DO and high DOCs not to mention a tank that is honestly too
small for this animals and the amount of food fed/attempted each week
plus other livestock. Add to this the high salinity (even lower
DO/oxygen) and you have a problem IMO>
To compensate for such, you
need more current to accommodate the speed of which the processes of
your biological filtration are metabolizing at. If you don't, yes you
will have a disaster on your hands. My anemone is still growing, but
as I have stated problems have come about. Luckily I intervened to
prevent it from dying. I am just wondering what (if any) long term
affects may be, or if there is not enough information to say either way.
<shorter lifespans too for the higher water temps>
Thanks for reading
my novel of an email and in advance for your opinion. Thank You, Joseph
<very thoughtful Joseph... wishing you the best of luck. Anthony>
Carpet Anemone Help
I have a 55 gallon invert tank with 2 Percula
clowns. I bought a green carpet anemone last night from the LFS. This
morning the anemone is not looking too good. His mouth is somewhat
spilling over.
<the anemone appears to be dying of shipping induced
trauma as it is all too common with many anemones. This and all animals
furthermore need to be brought home to a quarantine tank first to
prevent the transmission of disease, improve survivability of new stock
and in this case... prevent the chance of wiping out your entire tank if
this animal should die and be unattended for more than a couple hours
overnight or while you are at work. Please read up on proper quarantine
protocol>
I tested my levels this morning and it seems okay. PH-8.2,
Ammonia-0.0, Nitrate<10, Nitrite<0.22. Nitrate and Nitrite readings are
the lowest my test kit can go. The tank is powered by a 800gph power
head. Filtration is through live rock/sand with an AquaC Remora Skimmer.
I took some pictures. Please let me know what I can do to heal my
anemone!
Thanks.
<please do a Google search of WWM (check bullet)
from the Wet Web Media.com home (index) page. Do a keyword search of
"carpet anemone" and other like terms (sick anemone, etc). There is a
tremendous amount of content written on this topic waiting to
help/advise you my friend>
Robert Benitez
URGENT carpet help?
Bob -
<Anthony Calfo in your service>
I have been reading all thru your materials on anemones and carpets.
here are some pics 12 hours apart from my new carpet in my third
tank. I was very disturbed to find that a day after my clown took to
the anemone (very aggressively for the female), I came home from
work and the mouth was all swollen (like it had turned inside out).
I separated the clowns and 12 hours later it looks like the second
pic - e.g.. now more swollen looking and moving its foot. third pic
- the mouth is more under control but don't have enough experience
with carpets to know if this is a rebound or not? Carpet has been in
the tank for 5 days now and I know it is still acclimating - just
don't want it to be dying.
<alas... by any definition you have a
severely stressed animal that is dreadfully close to dieing. For
starters, the very pale cream yellow color to the animal indicates a
specimens that was bleached from stress or dyed. It should be dark
green and/or brown most likely. For how notoriously sensitive these
animals are upon import and for how quickly a dead anemone of this
size and wipe out an aquarium, I am honestly and especially
disappointed that this anemone was not placed first in quarantine to
acclimate without the additional stress and imposition of clownfish>
from the first pic you can see that the clowns were most interested
in eating from the expelled food from the mouth. I believe this is a
Stichodactyla. gigantea - can you confirm this?
thanks for any
helpful insight you may have here.
<this anemone needs moderate
to strong water movement right now, and quite frankly the clowns are
a hindrance and possibly a harm. Please feed this anemone very fine
shredded meats of marine origin (nothing larger than 1/4 inch for
easy digestion). Feeding several times weekly is CRUCIAL for the
survival of this animal. Maintain very good light, clear water
(carbon, PolyFilters, water changes) and aggressive protein skimming
(dark daily skimmate collected). A darker color change would be a
good sign.>
ken
<best regards, Anthony> |
Re: URGENT carpet help?
also, even today it remains very sticky
to touch - should I attempt to feed even tho it looks to be spitting
everything out?
<yes... please do feed small amounts of fine food.
It may be crucial for its survival. Such anemones are hardly autotrophic
but rather need significant food daily on top of the products of
symbiosis (assuming the zooxanthellae are even working at peak health,
which they clearly are not at this point). Thus, an unfed weak anemone
is suffering a daily net loss of carbon and IS starving. Feeding is
critical for most coral and anemone at least several times weekly>
also, if you have an acclimation procedure that you use Id like to hear
it! ken
<do look over the following for Cnidarian (coral and anemone)
acclimation to light: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/acclimcoralslight.htm
as far as acclimating to water chemistry, any variation on a slow drip
of 20-40 minutes is definitely in the ballpark. kindly, Anthony> |
Re: URGENT carpet help?
ok - have told my wife to feed it
since I am at work - it still seems to have strings and small balls
expelling from its mouth ... I hope the food will help revive it - I
am quite concerned about the amount of expectorant - is this normal
for a stressing fish OR for a dying fish?
<alas... not uncommon
at all for a stressed animal>
well - it finally lost its foot
again, left a slime trail down to the lower corner of the tank, and
turned upside down.
<yes... bad>
at that point, it was
obviously done - so I took it out of the tank. thanks again for your
help - there really should be some pics like the ones I sent you
somewhere on the net so that others can SEE what is going on -
<they are on the net now and will be archived soon <wink> Thank you>
there are tons of questions from folks when these types of things
start happening that may help them see what could happen.
<yes,
agreed. And do consider the value of the "deposit game" that Bob
describes in his book as an invaluable tool to procure healthy
animals and keep dealers honest even before bringing an animal home
to a proper QT (bare bottom tank, one species per, 4 weeks, etc)>
thanks again! ken
<my very best regards, Anthony> |
Re: URGENT carpet help?
Anthony Calfo -
first off let me
say that I consider your help invaluable!
<it is a pleasure and
honor to be of help, thank you>
also, this is in actuality my
quarantine tank, with skimming - just a little more upscale than
normal. I shouldn't have let the clowns at it so quickly tho.
<indeed... the clowns are a significant problem. QT with mixed
species is improper but perhaps of little matter here after all>
yesterday the anemone was looking quite chipper (12 hours after
looking inside out) but the stingers of the oral disk were not
swollen but pointed.
<picture 1(?), yes... looked quite good>
but alas, this morning it was back to inside out again. also I have
been noticing small acorn shaped white cottony mucus balls that it
is expelling about the size of a peanut - have you seen this before?
<yes... sounds like regurgitation. Common with foods fed too large
(chunks). Although this animal can sting and kill a whole fish, it
is rare in nature to have something so large, dead or stupid free
fall through a reef full of other hungry/predatory fishes untouched
and land on any such anemone. They eat zooplankton and largely at
night. Thus, very finely shredded meats are appropriate: nothing
large than an adult brine shrimp preference (although brine shrimp
itself is a very poor food). Never chunks of meat, especially to a
weak anemone. Try Mysis shrimp, or Pacifica plankton... or shred raw
cocktail shrimp>
the anemone is actually green not yellow - that
could have been the flash on the poor digital camera I have.
<ahh... very well then and good to hear>
however, it definitely
looks bad at this point. there are stings coming from the mouth and
when it opens wider it looks bad. I have refrained from feeding over
the last 2 days because it obviously was trying to get stuff out of
its mouth not in - should I have done something different?
<all
is well is the food you were feeding was fine, else perhaps resume
feeding with small bits>
the first pic is 24 hours after the
yesterdays first pic, then the last two are this morning - 36 hours
after the first pic
thanks for helping ! ken
<I wish you the
best with this beautiful animal and beyond. Yet, for other daily FAQ
readers, this situation is rather common and almost the rule with
anemones... very difficult to acclimate into captivity: far more
dwindle than survive. IMO anemones are rarely to be recommended to
aquarists short of species tanks and study. So many other fine and
hardy animals to be had that ship well. Still, I do not begrudge you
for your efforts but rather applaud you for your very empathetic
attempts to save this critter. Again, best regards Anthony> |
Carpet Anemone emergency!!!
Hi all!!
<cheers>
I think the
underside of its foot has split open.
<unusual and does not occur
spontaneously. If it hasn't moved or been moved lately (2 weeks) then
look for a predator (like a crab, nipping dwarf angel of puffer, etc)>
I had noticed it move behind some rocks recently and today I tried to
see if it was okay and possibly move it to a different area. Well when
I was feeling around, I hadn't tried to move it yet, it seemed as though
I was feeling inside it. I carefully detached it from the bottom and it
looked like its inside are coming out the bottom!<indeed... mesenterial
filaments in defense perhaps. Worse... organ tissue>
There is a slime
coat that it usually has when has just expelled food from eating or
where it attaches at the base, but this looks different. It reminds me
of a dying anemone after it has been sucked in a power head.
<another possibility here is that it was fed food that was too large.
Many aquarists make this mistake with whole pieces of shrimp, krill or
silversides (fish). Although the animal stings it and draws it in...
that doesn't mean that it is appropriate, safe or even smart. Tears
occur attempting to digest a whole chunk of food that would never make
its way through a water column of fishes on a wild reef naturally. The
rule is finely minced foods: 1/4 or smaller ideally>
I moved him to
corner where I can keep an eye, but I am getting nervous. Any
suggestions. I don't know what could have caused this since it was
moving while still attached under the sand bed.
<no worries for now
my friend... they can heal rather quickly, sometimes they will propagate
(split)... but know that they rot quickly (24 hours for lack of skeletal
mass)... and so... no matter how bad it looks, don't give up unless you
see it become necrotic at which point remove it immediately. Maintain
good water quality and very small feedings in the meantime>
Please
help, Kim
<best regards, Anthony>
Carpet Anemone
emergency!!!
So, if it doesn't become necrotic within, ...let's
say 48 hours, then I should be somewhat in the "clear"??
<without a
guarantee, we can say that after 48 hours... an injured anemone with
integrity is in a very hopeful/good position. Most would succumb within
that time if they were going to>
What I mean is, maybe it is healing
if a tear or wound is the case?
<yes... agreed>
This morning it
has swelled up to it's normal size, but it's foot has still not
completely gone under the sand bed like normal.
<no worries... all in
good time. An excellent behavior. Sounds good>
Since I normally on
feed once or twice a week, should I keep this regime or increase the
times per week and still keep the feedings small??
<under normal
conditions several times weekly with small minced foods would be
recommended. Almost daily for optimum growth/health if you like. Many
small feedings are better than occasional large ones>
How about
adding anything to the water, aside from water changes?
<normal
maintenance for now. Perhaps just a little bit of reef iodine if you do
not add it already. Small daily doses here too are better than large
weekly ones. Iodine is antiseptic, nutritive and improves water quality
slightly>
Thanks again for the help...Kim
<best regards, Anthony>
Carpet Anemones
Hi there,
I recently bought a carpet anemone.
Before I bought the anemone I checked my tanks water. Nitrates and
Nitrites were 0 and no ammonia etc. Water was perfect.
At the LFS
they removed the anemone with great care and she was not ripped or
harmed in anyway. She gripped the hand of the shop assistant extremely
well. The mouth on the anemone was also closed as it should be. I
watched the anemone before I bought it and it seemed stable and well
settled in the tank of the LFS.
I then placed her in my tank at home.
A week later I now have noticed that her mouth is open. Her tentacles
pull back if I try feed her. She hasn't eaten at all since she has been
in my tank. The LFS said she was beginning to split. I have not seen any
sign of her splitting, and I am not to sure that they do split.
I
checked the water now again and low and behold suddenly I have ammonia
etc in my water. Not at high levels but higher than what my tank is used
to. I am wondering if the anemone caused this.
I started this morning
with doing small water changes to combat the nitrates etc. I will do on
in the evening as soon as I get home as well. etc till the nitrates go
away. My tank has been running for the last 6 months extremely stable.
Usually if something is battling and you put it in my tank it comes
right extremely quickly. This anemone has been just the opposite it as
healthy and now it is going backwards. Any ideas as I am out of them
right now. Thanks, Rob.
<Continue to export ammonia and nitrite as
needed. 6 mos. is not a well aged or stable system. No mention of
lighting, flow rate, water parameters. Read
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemones.htm and
optimize conditions as provided here. These are demanding creatures for
new systems and aquarists. Good luck! Craig> Green Carpet
Anemone 6/29/03
Hi there,
<Howdy!>
I have had a green
carpet anemone for a few months now. It took him a while to settle into
a location, but he finally did. Now within the past couple of
days he
has not quit moving, and I have noticed one section of him looks like it
is infected or something of that sort. It is just a ball covered in
white.
<not uncommon... even with hardier species. Most in captivity
do not get the light and feeding that they need (they are far more
demanding than most cnidarians/corals>
I don't think he is going to
pull through, though the rest of him still looks pretty good. Is there
anything I can do?
<water changes, quarantine, closer examination of
water quality and lighting (metal halides here or VHO/PC over very
shallow water hopefully)>
I noticed the Nitrates had crept up a bit,
so did a water change and got the level back down.
Other than that
nothing is out of the ordinary. Ideas? Thanks, Dawson
<please do read
more here my friend:
http://wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemones.htm
kind regards, Anthony> Carpet Anemone - bad choice? 8/17/03
Hi. I purchased a green carpet anemone about three weeks ago. He was
doing fine, but now for the past three days he is shrunk and his foot is
not attached to anything. He keeps turning upside down. His mouth was
open for a while before that, but did not seem to eat, I fed him
phytoplankton, but anything larger he didn't eat. I have a clown fish
that is very stressed over the situation, and anemone crabs are still in
the anemone. I don't know if it is dying, or what to do at this point.
Any help or suggestions? Thank you. Alice
<there is so much to cover
here... let me direct you to our comprehensive archives of FAQs and
articles for starters:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/carpetanemones.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/cptanemfaqs.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemoneselfaqs.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemonehealthfaqs.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anehlthfaq2.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemoneplacemtfaqs.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemonelightngfaqs.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/anemonelgtgfaq2.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/anehlthfaq3.htm
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/cnidaria/anthozoa/anemonef.htm
best regards, Anthony>
|
|
