Carpet or Mag anemone?

Davy Jones · Dec 13, 2017

I am looking to try my hand with one of these as a show piece in my tank. It will be a custom 125 gallon, and i have not tried either species before.

I have been successful with BTA's (shocker right..) RFA's (had them spawn in my last tank before tear down) and Maxi Minis.

With that said i would love if someone could link me to some good info on them and what kind of care they require/ common pitfalls/ things to look out for and avoid..

Likely will wait until i can pick one up on live aquaria's DD. Hopefully they are sub $300 there as i dont thin i could bring myself to paying more than that for a single specimen.

tdileo · Dec 13, 2017

While I absolutely LOVE carpet anemones, I wouldn't really recommend them. They are by far my favorite anemone species, but IMO are too aggressive for captivity unless the tank is dedicated to it and you don't care about fish/inverts in there. They get very large and will have no problem eating anything that gets close enough.
If you do get them, here is some basic info. They will live low down in the tank near/in the substrate. They are pretty fast growers and are very aggressive and love to eat. If you do get it make sure to share pictures and make me jealous lol!

Bob Loblaw · Dec 13, 2017

I've had poor results with LA/DD carpets. IMO, they don't complete cipro treatment or possibly add other sick nems to same tank and the infection never fully clears. Treating with cipro a second time yields poor results ime.

Biggest hurdles with both is getting a healthy one. If healthy, 1.026 SG, high flow, high light for Gigs and Mags. Gigs prefer higher temps 80-82. Low to moderate flow for Haddoni but also high light.
Haddonis need to be in sandbed. Gigs in rock/sand interface or rock crevice. Mags prefer smooth rounded rock high up.

Dr Mac currently has a blue Gig- bleached and slightly open mouth in pic w/ 2 clowns for $500. They have a few lime green Haddonis for 120-150. Haddonis look pretty good but have slightly open mouth in pics. I'd treat all as a precaution if I were to order.-- Best to catch infection early

Davy Jones · Dec 13, 2017

tdileo said:
While I absolutely LOVE carpet anemones, I wouldn't really recommend them. They are by far my favorite anemone species, but IMO are too aggressive for captivity unless the tank is dedicated to it and you don't care about fish/inverts in there. They get very large and will have no problem eating anything that gets close enough.
If you do get them, here is some basic info. They will live low down in the tank near/in the substrate. They are pretty fast growers and are very aggressive and love to eat. If you do get it make sure to share pictures and make me jealous lol!

Bob Loblaw said:
I've had poor results with LA/DD carpets. IMO, they don't complete cipro treatment or possibly add other sick nems to same tank and the infection never fully clears. Treating with cipro a second time yields poor results ime.

Biggest hurdles with both is getting a healthy one. If healthy, 1.026 SG, high flow, high light for Gigs and Mags. Gigs prefer higher temps 80-82. Low to moderate flow for Haddoni but also high light.
Haddonis need to be in sandbed. Gigs in rock/sand interface or rock crevice. Mags prefer smooth rounded rock high up.

Dr Mac currently has a blue Gig- bleached and slightly open mouth in pic w/ 2 clowns for $500. They have a few lime green Haddonis for 120-150. Haddonis look pretty good but have slightly open mouth in pics. I'd treat all as a precaution if I were to order.-- Best to catch infection early

Both of you mention Cipro or treating infections in these larger species.. I am glad i made this post cause now i have to go read up on that and the process. I think i would honestly prefer the gig or mag over carpet but the carpets are dang cool when it takes up a third of the tank. Interesting to hear fish dont steer clear of them though. Wasnt expecting that either. What kind of infections do they get/have that i would want to treat? Also i am assuming this is to be done in a QT tank? Ive never done that with a nem before, any special requirements for setup that is different from a fish qt?

dbraun15 · Dec 13, 2017

Follow Bob Loblaw's advice...he has steered me a few times. I currently have a S. Gigantea, S. Mertensii, and S. Haddoni in same 220 tank. Follow up on Cipro treatment as most new nems(except if you find one that has been in someone's care for an extended period) will need treatment. Once treated and acclimated, they're not difficult. I have lost numerous fish to my S. Haddoni and have trouble keeping new fish as they disappear/get eaten etc. When doing treatment, setup a QT and follow the protocol. Keep us posted and Good Luck. I personally like the nems more than the fish and find them to be the most interesting animal I keep.

Yuki Rihwa · Dec 13, 2017

The carpet is nice and even nicer if you can get the blue or red color carpet.
They do eat fish though but happen mostly to fishes that new to the tank, old fishes will learn to stay at safe distance.

Lance M. · Dec 13, 2017

Dirtrider225 said:
prefer the gig or mag over carpet but the carpets are dang cool when it takes up a third of the tank.

Gig is a carpet.

Anemone QT would basically be a clean tank with no (maybe one piece) live rock, with a divider separating the nem from the heater and powerhead where you do 50-100% water changes daily during treatment. It does not need to be cycled as the antibiotics would kill all bacteria anyway (hopefully).

lluv24 · Dec 14, 2017

I have a mag anemone that I’ve had for about 5yrs. He’s been through 3 tank moves and two Mp40 massacres! But is still going strong

Davy Jones · Dec 14, 2017

Alright, after doing more reading i decided i would like a mag over a gig. With that said, what is the best place to source a healthy one? Im not too happy with my local LFS's so thats out.

dbraun15 · Dec 15, 2017

Find one local that's been captive for a while...otherwise, very good chance you will need to treat once received.

gig 'em · Dec 15, 2017

Mags are my personal favorite. Gigs get HUGE. Mags get big, but while diving I've seen gigs that would fill up a 125 g tank easily. A mag may grow to take up 2/3 of your tank, but can stay a smaller size if you don't feed them. I would recommend finding one that has been in captivity for a while. The hardest part of keeping mags is getting them acclimated to captivity successfully. They don't ship well, so after several trips coming from collectors to store their immune system declines and not many survive the transition. Cipro treatment can help them survive while their immune system is weakened. Once a mag is healthy and happy, they're very stable in a tank and don't tend to move unless the environment changes or they want more light/flow. I have one yellow foot mag I've had 3+ years I'm looking to find a new home from if you want to go that route. Just send me a PM if interested!

Idoc · Dec 15, 2017

tdileo said:
While I absolutely LOVE carpet anemones, I wouldn't really recommend them. They are by far my favorite anemone species, but IMO are too aggressive for captivity unless the tank is dedicated to it and you don't care about fish/inverts in there. They get very large and will have no problem eating anything that gets close enough.
If you do get them, here is some basic info. They will live low down in the tank near/in the substrate. They are pretty fast growers and are very aggressive and love to eat. If you do get it make sure to share pictures and make me jealous lol!

Since the carpet anemones are so aggressive and hungry all the time... Have you or anyone else noticed that if you hand feed them regularly (ie: chunk of shrimp, etc...) does this suppress their aggressiveness toward other tankmates? Kind of like a large commercial aquarium keeping their "big" fish really plump and happy and they ignore their smaller tank inhabitants... Or, are the carpet anemones just known to be bullies and will basically just attack and eat for the fun of it...or will kill out of protection anything that just happens to come close to it?

dbraun15 · Dec 15, 2017

IMO, it doesn't matter if you continually feed an anemone. It's not that they're hungry all the time--they're very sticky and if a fish brushes up against it, the fish will be in a bind.

gig 'em · Dec 15, 2017

dbraun15 said:
IMO, it doesn't matter if you continually feed an anemone. It's not that they're hungry all the time--they're very sticky and if a fish brushes up against it, the fish will be in a bind.

Depends on the species really. Docile species like BTAs won't do much to fish, I've seen tangs hanging out under the tentacles of a friends BTA. Mags are pretty sticky, but I've never seen any of mine eat a fish. Carpets on the other hand.... they're so sticky their tentacles will rip off before letting go. I would be hesitant to put a large carpet in a mixed reef tank with lots of fish you don't want to lose.

tdileo · Dec 15, 2017

Idoc said:
Since the carpet anemones are so aggressive and hungry all the time... Have you or anyone else noticed that if you hand feed them regularly (ie: chunk of shrimp, etc...) does this suppress their aggressiveness toward other tankmates? Kind of like a large commercial aquarium keeping their "big" fish really plump and happy and they ignore their smaller tank inhabitants... Or, are the carpet anemones just known to be bullies and will basically just attack and eat for the fun of it...or will kill out of protection anything that just happens to come close to it?

I pretty much second dbraun’s answer, however I will say that I’ve noticed daily feedings seem to make them a little more willing to let go. If you just fed it an hour ago and a fish accidentally gets stuck it may not try to consume it because it will be regurgitated.