long tentacle anemone / is it dying?

[theyluvcari]

Hi everyone , so i’m new to this with having any type of aquarium my mother in law wanted a saltwater tank so we decided to get that. So we just had our water cycled and tested and got the okay to start putting stuff in the tank so we started off with a long tentacle anemone then added two clown fishes 2 days after. I’m a bit concerned for my anemone. sometimes it shrinks up and the tentacles deflate but when I switch some of the lights around it comes back to being full and not flimsy. Sorry if im using the wrong terms im new to this. Is it dying? it has some small shrunken tentacles should I be worried ?

 

[shakacuz]

it could still very well be acclimating to its new environment. tank may still be too new still for the anemone to do well.

 

[Sean Clark]

I can not tell from what you stated and the photos. Anemones will change dramatically in size and that can be normal.
A long tentacle Anemone is not a traditional host for Clowns so I do not think it is what you intended (assuming because that is all that is in the tank). I would give it some more time to see how the Anemone responds to its new environment.

 

[JGT]

Tank looks a little too immature and sterile to support a nem but give it some time to acclimate. Clownfish typically won’t setup shop in a LT nem so you may want to wait for your tank to mature a bit and try a bubble tip.

 

[RichReef]

It looks good in the pics. I've always had a LTA. Be prepared. Everyone I've had grew to basketball size. The one I have now is well on it's way. It will take a while but those clowns will eventually host it. Mine have hosted maroons and tomatoes. My current one has a Percula.

You know when they are super happy when the tentacles curl like a corkscrew.

When they are not they WILL detach before they show signs of death. That's when you worry. It may move around until it finds a happy spot though. Detaching is the cue for worry.

And they love super clean water.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

How was the tank setup? From long cycled live rock or fresh start? Saying you had your water cycled and tested and given the all clear makes me think this tank is way too young.

 

[Jekyl]

Agree with some above comments. More than likely your tank is far too young for an anemone. For best chances it's recommended to have a tank of around 9 months to a year old. This allows the biology of the tank to mature as well as you the reefer. My best advice would be to attempt to return the animal or find a local reefer with a system that is ready for it. If you do intend to keep it, we will need to know current parameters and lighting being used to help any further.

 

[melonheadorion]

corals depend on light since they are all living beings. anemone being a very active coral will actually move itself to a place that has the light it wants. i would suspect that its not entirely happy with the lighting that its getting, in addition to what everyone else has mentioned as well.

 

[theyluvcari]

How was the tank setup? From long cycled live rock or fresh start? Saying you had your water cycled and tested and given the all clear makes me think this tank is way too young.

I have the evo 13.5 and we put the live rock in and cycled it
for a month and we setup with saltwater never fresh

 

[theyluvcari]

It looks good in the pics. I've always had a LTA. Be prepared. Everyone I've had grew to basketball size. The one I have now is well on it's way. It will take a while but those clowns will eventually host it. Mine have hosted maroons and tomatoes. My current one has a Percula.

You know when they are super happy when the tentacles curl like a corkscrew.

When they are not they WILL detach before they show signs of death. That's when you worry. It may move around until it finds a happy spot though. Detaching is the cue for worry.

And they love super clean water.

Oh okay so the tentacles that are in curled in the picture is a good sign? I thought it was bad or dying

 

[melonheadorion]

I have the evo 13.5 and we put the live rock in and cycled it
for a month and we setup with saltwater never fresh

when you say live rock, are you referring to buying rock that was already in someones tank, such as at a fish store, you brought it home, still wet, and put it in the tank? i ask because there is confusion around here, by what is said to be live rock, it seems

 

[theyluvcari]

when you say live rock, are you referring to buying rock that was already in someones tank, such as at a fish store, you brought it home, still wet, and put it in the tank? i ask because there is confusion around here, by what is said to be live rock, it seems

no it was dry on the shelf in the store they told me it’s a live rock

 

[melonheadorion]

no it was dry on the shelf in the store they told me it’s a live rock

alright. just checking. its a rock that will eventually be live rock after the tank is cycled. in this instance, it doesnt really matter i suppose, since you cycled it for a month, and assuming that it finished the cycling process, you should be ok, but to be quite honest, it was too early to go with a anemone as mentioned. i would say that one thing that you will possibly struggle with, is the proper lighting for it, assuming that you dont have anythign other than just a "fish light"

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

Your store kind of screwed you, and I'm sorry to say it.

They should not have cosigned on you Starting stocking a newly established tank, with an anenome. They clearly don't know better or don't care and neither are a good sign.

Anenomes generally don't do well in new start ups. 6mo to a year being commonly used as a metric.


It doesn't sound like you were educated on the anenome prior to bringing it home.

Time to do some quick research on long tentacle anemone care and husbandry as well as requirements.

 

[theyluvcari]

Your store kind of screwed you, and I'm sorry to say it.

They should not have cosigned on you Starting stocking a newly established tank, with an anenome. They clearly don't know better or don't care and neither are a good sign.

Anenomes generally don't do well in new start ups. 6mo to a year being commonly used as a metric.


It doesn't sound like you were educated on the anenome prior to bringing it home.

Time to do some quick research on long tentacle anemone care and husbandry as well as requirements.

i’m Seeing so many comments like this will definitely try to go return I hope they let me return it. What would you recommend us to buy instead ? for a startup tank

 

[melonheadorion]

i’m Seeing so many comments like this will definitely try to go return I hope they let me return it. What would you recommend us to buy instead ? for a startup tank

im not the original responder, but i will say that it is going to be slow going. a couple things that they probably wont tell you....dont add a bunch of fish at once. slowly add them to allow bacteria to stay caught up with doing its job.

at some point, probably in the near future, you are also going to go through an "ugly phase". i guess, be cautious about what you take from the LFS. the ugly phase is a part of the process that generally happens in new tanks, so iif they try getting you to do a bunch of stuff, and buy a bunch of junk to try combating it, dont go for it.

that store seems to just be there for a sale, and not in the business of selling pets, so to speak. all fish and coral are live beings. i personally cant bring myself to kill something intentionally, but they dont seem to have an emotional attachment to it as much as the owner of purchased items would.

if you can return it, great. if not, youre just gonna have to do what you can to push through it. i dont have any personal experience with anemone, myself. however, i know that they are difficult in new tanks. at the very least, you can maybe use the opportunity to try to power through it. i have found that these message boards are a great source, and most times, a better source that some LFS.

what kind of light do you have? someone else might chime in here, that knows more about it, but a quality light will probably benefit.

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

2 clowns, 13.7g correct?

Some great starter corals imo are Zoas, Duncans, mushrooms.. there are cool leathers that are simple. (skip gsp and xenia. It can take over half that tank in 6 months)

My first coral was a Duncan..I bought it on a whim with 3 splitting heads. Sadly lost it recently to an infection, but the skeleton has 32 heads.

 

[CanuckReefer]

Agree with above comments. Also when these LTA's grow, they often do so quickly in my experience, a 13.5 is going to end up very small for it, should it survive and it is not returned. You got a bit of bad advice from LFS, and that's OK, nobody blames you for it, all good. In the future once tank a bit more mature I would recommend a smaller rock flower Nem or even bubble tip. Both beautiful Nems in their own way, especially the vibrant colour. Wishing you the best on your decision.

 

[CanuckReefer]

i’m Seeing so many comments like this will definitely try to go return I hope they let me return it. What would you recommend us to buy instead ? for a startup tank

As per a potential return to store....

Did they know you have a 13.5 EVO? And also did they know it was a month setup? If either or both show them this
https://www.liveaquaria.com/product/626/?pcatid=626
Followed by this
https://www.aquariumdomain.com/SpeciesProfiles/MarineInverts/LongTentacleAnemone.shtml
And then this
https://www.whogivesafish.com/long-tentacle-anemone/

The bare minimum listed is 30 gallon, and a more mature tank. If they knew and sold it to you, demand a refund. I am all for purchasers doing their research, but I'm also sick and tired of the LFS that wants a quick sale, essentially killing livestock as they go.....

 

[theyluvcari]

Hi everyone just a little update! one clownfish has been in the anemone. Good sign? should I still attempt to return the nem?