New Rock Flower Anemone Garden - One concern...

Sashaka · Oct 27, 2019

Day 1 and the nems are starting to color up. All 6 nems attached right away to the rock as soon as I placed them. The problem is that one of the nems won't hold on for more than a few hours. I think its foot might have a slight tear, but I don't see any goo or strings coming from it. The nem just keeps the foot in a ball with the center of the foot sunk in like a hole. As these are my first rock flower anemones, maybe the way it's holding the foot is normal for a nem \getting used to a new tank? The lack of stickiness is a concern though. It seems to only hold onto the rock with one tip of the foot right now. I've had to replace the nem on the rock three times. Should I super glue the nem to the rock? Maybe I'm just worrying needlessly? I know iodine is recommended if I do positively identify a rip on the foot. I'm just not sure what the problem is since all the other nems have attached securely without issues. Any insight from those who have owned these types of anemones before? The nem in question is the small one in the center directly under the larger nem in the center of the picture. Thanks!

flsalty · Oct 27, 2019

Do not superglue an anemone to anything. Leave him be for now and let him get used to the tank.

Sashaka · Oct 27, 2019

flsalty said:
Do not superglue an anemone to anything. Leave him be for now and let him get used to the tank.

That's what I thought. I know it would not hold for long anyway because of the nem inflating and deflating. I just thought the glue might seal an injury long enough for the nem to heal on it's own...sort of like we do with corals when we cut them. Dumb...idea, I know. Just worried ;Facepalm. Thanks for bringing me back to sanity. I'll just observe for a few days and see what happens.

vetteguy53081 · Oct 27, 2019

Attach with a LOOSE rubber band - don’t strangle it

Sashaka · Oct 27, 2019

vetteguy53081 said:
Attach with a LOOSE rubber band - don’t strangle it

GREAT IDEA! I didn't think of that.

Now I don't have to worry about it being sucked down into the sump when I'm at work or sleeping.

reef lover · Oct 27, 2019

I would recommend a dish with rubble to hold him in or do as ron reefman does and place in a pvc end cap and place in the sand.

Sashaka · Oct 27, 2019

reef lover said:
I would recommend a dish with rubble to hold him in or do as ron reefman does and place in a pvc end cap and place in the sand.

The rubber band did not work. The nem's too small. The band covers the nem's mouth. I ended up putting the nem in a floating container to keep it safe. I'll add a piece of rubble in tomorrow. The pic is a top-down picture, so you can see how tiny the nem is-all deflated-in the floating container. Neither its foot nor its tentacles have any stick to them. I hope it recovers with a little TLC.

reef lover · Oct 28, 2019

Me too! Theyre very resilient creatures!

jd371 · Oct 28, 2019

Try the PVC cap like Ron Reefman does. I use them whenever I have a wayward RFN and it doesn't attach to anything. So far when I put one in the cap they stay put.

Sashaka · Oct 28, 2019

My hope is to get it to stick to the rock with the other RFs. I'll try the cap trick this weekend if the nem does not grab onto some rubble in the floating holding tank. The reason I want it to adhere to the rock is not just for looks. My maroon clown is always kicking up sand and covering any coral in/on the sand. My guess is the cap would be filled with sand in no time. On the rock, the nems will have better chances of avoiding being buried alive by my bulldozing clown. LOL

Sashaka · Oct 28, 2019

jd371 said:
Try the PVC cap like Ron Reefman does. I use them whenever I have a wayward RFN and it doesn't attach to anything. So far when I put one in the cap they stay put.

Glad to hear that they are hardy. That's what I've heard too. I've had bubble tips over the years, but never Rock Flowers. I've heard RFs grow fairly quickly as well. Is that your experience with them? When might I expect to see them full grown? The smallest is about the size of a dime. The largest is about a half dollar size. Thanks!

jd371 · Oct 29, 2019

Yes, they are fast growers. Some of the RFA I put in caps are too small and the cap is still visible when they expand, but within a month or two they grow enough to cover the whole cap.

Sashaka · Oct 29, 2019

Well, it's pretty clear. The foot was torn. I came home after work to check on the new nems and all were doing great...except for the one in the floating container

. I'm so bumbed. At this point, I have to accept that it's not going to make it. I've only had it 4 days. I guess I knew from day one there was not much hope when it wouldn't stay attached to the rock. I just wanted to be wrong. ;Inpain

Sashaka · Oct 30, 2019

I've decided to try to cut the nem to hopefully salvage a healthy piece. If the nem is not too far gone, it may just give it a chance at survival. It's so small that making sure I get a piece of the mouth and a healthy piece of the foot will be difficult. I believe I have some Vibrance still around to soak it for 5 minutes after cutting. It will be the first time cutting any nem (my bubble tips just split on their own in the past), and I'm not even sure if propagating a RFA is as sucessful as it is for BTAs, but at this point, it's worth the shot in the dark.

Update: I took the pick of the torn foot last night at about 8:30pm when I got home from working late. The face of the nem had a bad spot, but most of the top still looked good. After remembering that some anemones can be cut to remove damaged parts and have a chance at survival (this was about 4:30am), I couldn't go back to sleep without trying to save it. I got out the vinegar and cleaned my work space and my razor blade, rinsed the work space and razor blade with RODI water, grabbed my bottle of vibrant, and finally pulled the nem to try and slice a healthy piece. The time was at about 5:am. The following picture is what I found. I remembered about cutting nems to try and save them too late...

reef lover · Oct 30, 2019

Wouldnt have mattered...rfas dont reproduce like that.
Sorry he didnt make it.

Sashaka · Oct 30, 2019

reef lover said:
Wouldnt have mattered...rfas dont reproduce like that.
Sorry he didnt make it.

Thank you. I've read conflicting information about cutting RFA. I didn't think trying to cut it could make things any worse, but I was too late to try cutting anyway. At least the other 5 RFAs I purchased are happy and healthy, though it's tough losing the one.

Well, time to get ready to go to work. Thanks for the support. I appreciate the kind words.

.

reef lover · Oct 30, 2019

No problem i love rfa!

This pic shows some

babies...

homer1475 · Oct 30, 2019

Sashaka said:
My hope is to get it to stick to the rock with the other RFs. I'll try the cap trick this weekend if the nem does not grab onto some rubble in the floating holding tank. The reason I want it to adhere to the rock is not just for looks. My maroon clown is always kicking up sand and covering any coral in/on the sand. My guess is the cap would be filled with sand in no time. On the rock, the nems will have better chances of avoiding being buried alive by my bulldozing clown. LOL

You do realize that in nature they are typically found on the sandbed, or on the end of rocks where the rock meets the sand often times covered in sand(yes I realize they are called ROCKflower nems)? This is a natural defense mechanism. When frightened or threatened they simply close up and sink in the sand where no one can find them. Mine are all pretty much in the sand and constantly get covered in sand. If they get covered up too much they simply close up, shrink down, then reopen all clear of sand.