Is our Anemone dead?

[Reefnewbie21]

Our tank is 6 months old. The bubble tip anemone was doing fabulous until we completed a water change. It has shrunk to a quarter of its size. Salinity is 1.025 ph is around 8. No nitrates or nitrites in the water. Also before the water change he was closed but not nearly this tight. Is he still alive or have we lost him?

 

[Mark Novack]

It is alive although it does not look happy. They decompose without delay upon dying.

 

[Jekyl]

Nitrate being zero is an issue. What's your phosphate and alkalinity? What lights are you using? For a 6 month tank the rocks just don't look right.

 

[Reefnewbie21]

It is alive although it does not look happy. They decompose without delay upon dying.

Ok any tips on what I should do for him? He is starting to open now. But he’s definitely not as big as he was. Our tank has been stable for some time. Fish are happy and we feed frozen food to the tank. We turned lighting from white lighting to blue to see if that helped him.

 

[Reefnewbie21]

Nitrate being zero is an issue. What's your phosphate and alkalinity? What lights are you using? For a 6 month tank the rocks just don't look right.

The rocks were dry rocks originally. We used a brown algae super starter day one of the tank. We just recently cleaned up from a green algae take over which involved us scrubbing the rocks to remove the green algae. The lighting is fluval light, pump is fluval, protein skimmer is also fluval.

 

[Mark Novack]

Make sure the anemone is eating. A bubble tip can eat every few days. Use artemia or mysis for now. It needs soft, easy to digest foods. Does it have a clown? They do well with A. Clarkii.

 

[Jekyl]

The rocks were dry rocks originally. We used a brown algae super starter day one of the tank. We just recently cleaned up from a green algae take over which involved us scrubbing the rocks to remove the green algae. The lighting is fluval light, pump is fluval, protein skimmer is also fluval.

Fluval lighting isn't going to be sufficient for an anemone. As said before, nitrate being zero is an issue, need to know phosphate and alkalinity readings.

 

[Jekyl]

Make sure the anemone is eating. A bubble tip can eat every few days. Use artemia or mysis for now. It needs soft, easy to digest foods. Does it have a clown? They do well with A. Clarkii.

I haven't fed my anemone in over a year. BTA get what they need from proper lighting.

 

[Mark Novack]

I haven't fed my anemone in over a year. BTA get what they need from proper lighting.

Has it divided at all?

 

[vetteguy53081]

Our tank is 6 months old. The bubble tip anemone was doing fabulous until we completed a water change. It has shrunk to a quarter of its size. Salinity is 1.025 ph is around 8. No nitrates or nitrites in the water. Also before the water change he was closed but not nearly this tight. Is he still alive or have we lost him?

unhappy but not dead/ Low nitrate has little effect as its a nem and not a coral. Several factors stress out anemones such as lighting- water flow- lack of feeding as well as HIGH nitrate/phos/salinity/temperature and tank not mature offering constant chemistry changes.
The tentacles can change based on the anemone’s environment. Below the splay of tentacles is the anemone’s foot. The foot is delicate. Yet, it has simple muscle fibers that help the creature move and anchor onto rocks.
Assure that tank conditions are stable and safe. Water should be on the alkali side as well. Monitor water conditions regularly to avoid any major changes. Ammonia and nitrate levels should be in safe ranges (see below) at all times using a good quality test kit and Not API either.
Here are some water parameters to follow.

• Water temperature: 77°F - 80°F (stay close to the middle of this range)
• pH level: 8.1 to 8.3
• Alk: 8 to 11 dKH
• Salinity: 1.024 to 1.025
• Nitrate < .5
• Phosphate < .04 - .06

If your anemone starts to move towards any coral, simply direct your water jets to the coral. This will discourage the anemone from anchoring near it. It will move to another area to attach.
Anemone lighting is a very important aspect of their care as they need a lot of light to thrive because they’re photosynthetic which means that they absorb light to produce food and growth. The anemone has zooxanthellae in its body, which are symbiotic microorganisms that they feed on. Without proper lighting, the anemone will expel the zooxanthellae and turn white. This process is called bleaching and often leads to death. Just not Bright light.
A moderate amount of flow is recommended as too much flow will cause the anemone to stretch out and look stringy. Keeping things moderate will help avoid this from happening. Avoid directing your flow directly at the anemone. These anemones enjoy subtle movement at all times but too much direct flow hitting the anemone will force it to move.

 

[Jekyl]

Has it divided at all?

Started as 1 nem about 2"

 

[Koty]

Your tank is way to young to support anemones. Need at least a year - 18 months-old tank.

 

[Reefnewbie21]

Nitrate being zero is an issue. What's your phosphate and alkalinity? What lights are you using? For a 6 month tank the rocks just don't look right.

I need to get a test for the phosphate level. My testing kit doesn’t have it so I’m going now to grab a testing kit for that

Fluval lighting isn't going to be sufficient for an anemone. As said before, nitrate being zero is an issue, need to know phosphate and alkalinity readings.

ok I had no idea. It was over $200 light they said would be perfect for the tank and corals later if we ever got to that point.

Has it divided at all?

no he’s the only one. When we originally put him in the tank he stretched out huge. Tentacles were nice and bubble shaped. Then he decided to wedge himself somewhat under the rocks so we worried the light was too intense for him. So we tried adjusting settings. He seemed happy in the new spot for awhile. One of the clowns would frequently interact with him. Then he started slowly shrinking. It was time for a water change on top of removing the massive green algae bloom that started to take over our tank. I was worried the algae was messing with him. So we scrub the rocks, done a 25% water change. Matched the temperate and salinity before adding the water. Slowly added the water. Then tested the water parameters and salinity. I don’t have a test that tests phosphates so I’m fixing that today. But all the fish, feather duster, starfish, and crabs have flourished. It’s just our anemone that is now struggling.

 

[Bucs20fan]

It is fine for certain beginner level corals, but nems require much more light than beginner corals do.

 

[Jekyl]

Welcome to R2R BTW. Don't get discouraged. Unfortunately nems are probably the most abused thing in the hobby next to "Dori". While they do require certain conditions, they are very hardy once those conditions are met. Do the best you can to heed the advice given. If things don't work out, try finding a local reefer to purchase an anemone from next time. Given the condition of your anemone I can tell it was in rough shape before you ever brought it home.

 

[Mark Novack]

That's what they are supposed to do!

Started as 1 nem about 2"

 

[Jekyl]

Also I believe this is an environmental issue rather than lighting. If lighting were the cause, the anemone would be as high as possible reaching for the lights. Tank maturity, nitrate, phosphate and alkalinity are the areas that should be focused.

 

[Reefnewbie21]

Welcome to R2R BTW. Don't get discouraged. Unfortunately nems are probably the most abused thing in the hobby next to "Dori". While they do require certain conditions, they are very hardy once those conditions are met. Do the best you can to heed the advice given. If things don't work out, try finding a local reefer to purchase an anemone from next time. Given the condition of your anemone I can tell it was in rough shape before you ever brought it home.

Thank you! Trying not to lol! But I’m so upset of this little fella! We knew going in a Dori fish wouldn’t be feasible as we only have a 30 gallon tank and they grow much too big to be happy in that. So we opted for 2 clowns to start. Then we added a neon dottyback, 2 filefish, a lawnmower blenny, a bicolor angel, 2 chocolate starfishes, one sandsifter starfish, and a feather duster. Everyone else has thrived so we decided to try an anemone. And now I feel awful.

 

[Jekyl]

Thank you! Trying not to lol! But I’m so upset of this little fella! We knew going in a Dori fish wouldn’t be feasible as we only have a 30 gallon tank and they grow much too big to be happy in that. So we opted for 2 clowns to start. Then we added a neon dottyback, 2 filefish, a lawnmower blenny, a bicolor angel, 2 chocolate starfishes, one sandsifter starfish, and a feather duster. Everyone else has thrived so we decided to try an anemone. And now I feel awful.

Where are you from if you don't mind me asking? If close enough and we can get your conditions in order I'll just give you a nem. Store bought are usually in bad shape, some requiring a cipro treatment just for a chance at survival.

 

[Mark Novack]

It could simply be the young tank has made a few too many swings for it. Its the first 6 months, especially if you are starting out and learning how to control parameters that its shaky. Some people will say a year.

Another water change perhaps. A 25% is great. If its a curative measure, two 25% changes within a few days is better. I will do a 40% change if I see things that look especially needy. I did a 25% and then 3 days later a 40% earlier this month after seeing some recession and it turned around immediately.