ID and tips please

[xbrentx]

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I picked this up on the weekend, my tank is 6 months old and healthy, I placed the anemone down near the sand where it sits now, it immediately grabbed onto the rock and has stayed there for 3 days now. It has not moved, but it gets a good balance of light and flow. Does it appear to be healthy and happy? Also, what is the official name for this BTA?

Thanks!

 

[Trex]

It appears to be a slightly bleached E. quadricolor -- BTA.

What size tank?
What lights?
Current water parameters -- with numbers please.

 

[xbrentx]

125 Gallon, 72 inch long with 2x 36 inch marineland reef led's across the top, so end to end.

Nitrates 5-10
8.2-8.3 PH
0 Ammonia
1.026 Salinity

Should I cut back on the white lights a bit?

 

[xbrentx]

Is it an issue with the lights being too strong, or just on too long?

 

[Loki]

I highly doubt it is getting to much light. They require intense light and it will move to a spot that is acceptable to it. If it is attached to a rock do not remove it or try to move it. That means it is at least okay with the placement of it.

I do not know about your lights so I can't say if they are enough light to keep a BTA alive.


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[xbrentx]

From the research I have done online the Marineland Reef LED's are strong enough for most SPS, and I have them ssecured on the top of the tank so they are fairly close to the water. The default time settings on these lights is a lot though, like 12 hours of actinics and 10 hours of white.

I think I will reduce it to 10 hours actinics and 8 hours white.

 

[peterthegamer]

Seems like there a bit of diatom.

 

[xbrentx]

Yeah my GFO needed to be replaced, and I added some bio load to the tank recently so its all catching up. I also didn't have, but just got some nass snails to work on the sandbed.

 

[xbrentx]

After some research, I feel that my light schedule is too long each day. 12 hours of blue / 10 hours of white. I have reduced it to 10 hours of blue / 8 hours of white.

 

[PAreefguy]

I would be surprised if the Marineland LEDs are too much light for a RBTA, but idk. btw looks like a rose bubble tip to me. a little pale but it doesn't look terrible.

 

[PaulKreider]

Lol a marineland LED would never be too strong for a rbta... I'v seen them, and I think they are highly over rated, especialy for a 125 I bet you don't have enough light.

 

[xbrentx]

My LFS sells the same strips he uses on his anemone tank, maybe I should get a 4 footer and put it across the middle, so only 1 foot gap on each side?

 

[xbrentx]

why would the anemone appear to be bleached if i dont have enough light though?

 

[SeahorseKeeper]

Anemones get their color from the zooaxanthellae in its tentacles. Their is a symbiotic relationship between the zooaxanthellae and the anemone. The zooaxanthallae gets its nutrients from light through photosynthesis. The zooaxanthellae in turn provides nutrients to the anemone. When there is not enough light, the zooaxanthellae will not survive and you will notice bleaching.

 

[xbrentx]

I see, so it is the same term as bleaching corals, but reverse in this case where there is not enough light. I will get another LED strip tomorrow which will fix the issue.

 

[Trex]

Make sure to acclimate the anemone to the increased lights. If the LEDs are not controllable, I would place a couple of pieces of window screening b/t the lights and tank (( can be supported by egg crate )).

Think of it this way --- during the winter your skin gets pale (( bleached anemone )), when summer comes and you go out in the sun for 12 hours, without sun screen you are going to burn like crazy. The sun screen is akin to the window screening.

If you look at the right side of my old 75, you can see the screening.

 

[bct15]

If its tentacles are sticky don't worry about blasting it with a ton of light right now. If it is staying at the bottom that is where it wants to be, it is fully capable of climbing up to the top but is probably just trying to adjust to your tank right now. Just leave it alone and watch it, if it gets up real high and still doesn't seem happy then hit it with more light. You may want to feed it in a couple days, I fed mine cut gulf shrimp cut into about 1/2x1/2 inch pieces. Just touch the food to the tentacles using some tweezers and it should grab it, if tentacles are not sticky it won't though.

Your lighting schedule is a tad bit long, you can cut it back to six hours white and 8 hours blue and do just fine. You'll actually get better growth, most growing happens with lights out.

As far as identifying that anemone, I've seen color combinations like that with all sorts of names...rainbow, rose, green pink tip and all sorts of other creative names. In the end it's a bubble tip anemone and a nice one at that.


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[xbrentx]

Yeah I go to the same LFS and I have always gotten solid service and suggestions, he pointed this one out as a quality anemone. He had it in his high quality tank on a separate system, a couple nice corals and anemones.

It seems content where it is, I'll leave it be and reduce the light schedule a bit.

 

[PAreefguy]

xbrentx, keep us posted. Im curious about this. I personally don't think reducing light is the way to go but its your tank. FWIW I have a RBTA at the TOP of my 80 gallon tank under two 1st gen Radions (about 3 times the wattage of LED light you have) and hes very colorful and happy. Im not sure why yours is not trying to move closer to the light. I would think it would, but like I said, keep us posted. Im just a hobbiest, not a marine biologist

 

[xbrentx]

Here is a photo from last night, shortly after lights out.

I am going to reduce the lights from 12 hours blue to 10 hour blue, and from 10 hour white to 8 hour white, and I will pick up an additional 4ft LED strip today. So I have more powerful light but a little less time. I feel that I may be underpowered currently.