Black Widow BTA

Florida Man · Mar 3, 2023

Hello,

My Black Widow BTA is starting to look like this. I noticed it started to lose the tentacles or they started shriveling up. My Chi Sunburst is looking healthy. The flow hasn’t been changed, temps are good, pH is at 8.0/ I’m not sure of the of the params as I didn’t have time to test this morning.

Any insight would be much appreciated. Please see the attached picture.

Jekyl · Mar 3, 2023

Parameters or warfare would be my guesses. Need more information to go on though. Are you running carbon?

Florida Man · Mar 3, 2023

Jekyl said:
Parameters or warfare would be my guesses. Need more information to go on though. Are you running carbon?

Chemi-Pure Elite - 6.5 oz - Boyd Enterprises This is what I have in my tank. I changed it about a week ago. There aren’t any corals near it but, I am unsure about the exact parameters at this time.

Jekyl · Mar 3, 2023

@Lost in the Sauce @Rtaylor @Eagle_Steve

Eagle_Steve · Mar 3, 2023

Florida Man said:
Hello,

My Black Widow BTA is starting to look like this. I noticed it started to lose the tentacles or they started shriveling up. My Chi Sunburst is looking healthy. The flow hasn’t been changed, temps are good, pH is at 8.0/ I’m not sure of the of the params as I didn’t have time to test this morning.

Any insight would be much appreciated. Please see the attached picture.

what are tank params and any other corals or nems in tank/near the BW?

srobertb · Mar 3, 2023

Food. Trying feeding it. offer silversides, mysis, or table shrimp. Depending on how many tentacles they’ve lost you may have to spoon feed. Don’t shove the food down their throat but help it along- imagine feeding someone sick who only has one arm.

I had this issue when moving some anemones. I moved a few clones to a different tank for a few years where there was frequent feedings. When I moved them back over to the tank I don’t feed anemones in, they lost some tentacles. Food resolved the issue. The only other difference between my left and right anemones was the clown fish but I can’t see how they were causing tentacles to fall off.

food.

Lost in the Sauce · Mar 3, 2023

Any chance it found an unprotected powerhead? That's generally how I see nems look that walked too close and caught the impeller.

Florida Man · Mar 14, 2023

Lost in the Sauce said:
Any chance it found an unprotected powerhead? That's generally how I see nems look that walked too close and caught the impeller.

Sorry for the delay. I thigh I had posted a response to this. My MP10 has been covered ever since I have had it running in my tank.

Florida Man · Mar 14, 2023

Eagle_Steve said:
what are tank params and any other corals or nems in tank/near the BW?

No other corals below it. There is a Chicago SB on the other side of the arch.

I tested last week and Nitrate were high. Not sure how accurate it was but the Salifert said it was over 100ppm. Which is REALLY high. I tested tonight at and it was at 0.30ppm I will post the params to this.

Florida Man · Mar 14, 2023

srobertb said:
Food. Trying feeding it. offer silversides, mysis, or table shrimp. Depending on how many tentacles they’ve lost you may have to spoon feed. Don’t shove the food down their throat but help it along- imagine feeding someone sick who only has one arm.

I had this issue when moving some anemones. I moved a few clones to a different tank for a few years where there was frequent feedings. When I moved them back over to the tank I don’t feed anemones in, they lost some tentacles. Food resolved the issue. The only other difference between my left and right anemones was the clown fish but I can’t see how they were causing tentacles to fall off.

food.

It did eat today. It took a while. But, it is extending and retracting. Still no tentacles though.

Florida Man · Mar 14, 2023

Spare time · Mar 14, 2023

Nothing is wrong with it. Bubble tip anemones change shapes and sizes. Even if some tentacles were somehow damaged, its fine.

Florida Man · Mar 14, 2023

Spare time said:
Nothing is wrong with it. Bubble tip anemones change shapes and sizes. Even if some tentacles were somehow damaged, its fine.

Here is a picture of it from today. The fact that it’s still extending out and opening up gives me hope. The foot is securely attached to the rock. I plan on continuing to give it TLC.

bvanfish · Mar 14, 2023

I heard BTA / widows and Chicagos or high end nems will fight chemically to the death

reefiniteasy · Mar 14, 2023

I have a Black Widow and Rainbows together, no problem. I was under the impression that the BW was not compatible with Sunburst varieties as one will kill the other. But, I am no expert. My Widow will occasionally lose tentacles when it fights with my Bubble Coral. Sorry you’re going through this. My anemone’s are my babies.

Lost in the Sauce · Mar 14, 2023

This is Not a food or light issue. It looks like chem warfare to me.

*Oohhhh* someone said something that can't be proven.. let's pretend chemical welfare does not exist between nems.

This 100% looks like what happens to my black widows if I don't change the carbon soon enough Because if chem warfare. In fact, I have two in the tank right now with only half of their tentacles extending in exactly the same manner as this black widow, because I had my carbon turned off for a week and Didn't realize it.

JoJosReef · Mar 14, 2023

Lost in the Sauce said:
This is Not a food or light issue. It looks like chem warfare to me.

*Oohhhh* someone said something that can't be proven.. let's pretend chemical welfare does not exist between nems.

This 100% looks like what happens to my black widows if I don't change the carbon soon enough Because if chem warfare. In fact, I have two in the tank right now with only half of their tentacles extending in exactly the same manner as this black widow, because I had my carbon turned off for a week and Didn't realize it.

Since the nems are not in proximity, are you saying that the chem warfare is due to secretions from one nem attacking the other?

Lost in the Sauce · Mar 14, 2023

JoJosReef said:
Since the nems are not in proximity, are you saying that the chem warfare is due to secretions from one nem attacking the other?

Generally, yes. We are Unsure if it is terpenes or what, but chemical/bacterial warfare between dissimilar anemones has been observed way too many times, and still there are those that poopoo because the idea with screams of ""Where's the Science????""

Show me the money for the science and we would have the data. Outside of that, we have a lot of nem keepers, often reporting the same things.

Actively running carbon and lots of it is the trick for me. I have to change our both carbon reactors every 3 weeks, or I start to notice the effects on two different phenotypes I own.

bvanfish · Mar 14, 2023

Lost in the Sauce said:
Generally, yes. We are Unsure if it is terpenes or what, but chemical/bacterial warfare between dissimilar anemones has been observed way too many times, and still there are those that poopoo because the idea with screams of ""Where's the Science????""

Show me the money for the science and we would have the data. Outside of that, we have a lot of nem keepers, often reporting the same things.

Actively running carbon and lots of it is the trick for me. I have to change our both carbon reactors every 3 weeks, or I start to notice the effects on two different phenotypes I own.

This is such a sick tank oh my gosh haha