Should I get a carpet anemone?

[Jekyl]

I do have a magnificent foxface in the tank.

As I said, my lights are cranked way down. I could get the par on my sandbed up to 300-400 by turning the lights up, but then my corals won’t be happy. Don’t people keep carpets in a mixed reef?

Or - aren’t some carpets happy on rock? If I put one up in SPS neighborhood, that’s at around 400 PAR. I could even crank up the light over there for part of the day, if that’s all it took. I just wouldn’t want to burn out any corals though.

Why not just do BTA? Some beautiful varieties out there.

 

[Dave-T]

Why not just do BTA? Some beautiful varieties out there.

Well I do have one BTA. It’s a reef tank, but I was hoping to add a carpet. They’re big, beautiful, cool, and they host clowns. And they tend not to move once they find their spot, and won’t wander around the tank. I was all set to get one when I started worrying about their predatory tendencies. And now the PAR issue. It’s never easy in this hobby!

 

[OrionN]

I do have a magnificent foxface in the tank.

As I said, my lights are cranked way down. I could get the par on my sandbed up to 300-400 by turning the lights up, but then my corals won’t be happy. Don’t people keep carpets in a mixed reef?

Or - aren’t some carpets happy on rock? If I put one up in SPS neighborhood, that’s at around 400 PAR. I could even crank up the light over there for part of the day, if that’s all it took. I just wouldn’t want to burn out any corals though.

Carpet like light at least in the high range if SPS rather than LPS. You may want to get BTA or Malu or LTA.

 

[Jekyl]

Well I do have one BTA. It’s a reef tank, but I was hoping to add a carpet. They’re big, beautiful, cool, and they host clowns. And they tend not to move once they find their spot, and won’t wander around the tank. I was all set to get one when I started worrying about their predatory tendencies. And now the PAR issue. It’s never easy in this hobby!

BTA can get quite large. One of my rainbows was about 13" at one point

 

[Rtaylor]

Agree the lighting would need supplementation. Gigs usually end up on the rocks whereas haddoni will be in the sand. Either can get fish, but haddoni are much more aggressive. I had a small one eat a small clown once. It was in a much smaller tank and I’m pretty sure the clown had never seen an anemone before. Your clowns are more likely to take to a gigantea than haddoni, but often they will adapt to either. Haddoni are much easier to get a healthy specimen. Gigantea have much higher light and flow requirements. If you don’t actively feed them they won’t usually get much over 12” or so. No need to feed them directly if you feed your fish enough, they’ll grab stuff when you do.

I agree any fish that likes to steal food from anemones is at the biggest risk. Risk also decreases if the clowns take to it as they’ll help keep fish away.

 

[srobertb]

Short answer: No.

I had a large well established tank. All parameters were stable and the tank was 3 years old. It was a shallow reef with a lot of Radion XR30’s. I forget PAR at sand bed but it was insane. Flow, nitrates, temp, salinity, dosing, and PH all beautiful.

I had always wanted a carpet anemone (sound familiar?). So my wife sourced one from an incredibly reputable boutique seller who claimed to have had the anemone for several months.

The thing arrived. It probably weighed 10lbs+. Put it in the tank. Opened up. Looked happy. Then it receded and started dying.

Yes, people keep them. Yes, they live. They more often than not do not. It is a magical combination of luck and circumstance we don’t understand that grants success.

Based on the number that die, one must wonder if the ones that do live are even living good lives.
They are not meant for aquariums. As far as I know they’re brought here in gray market if not black market circumstances. Carpet Anemones are (one of) the very specific creatures that gives this hobby a bad name. I didn’t fully realize it until I was standing there holding a dead creature in my hands to realize this was a horrible mistake. Let me save you the money and karma.

There are TONS of other anemones that do very well in home aquaria. I have a maxi/mini that’s on its way to 9” that’s living its best life. Eating and spawning.

You wouldn’t buy a penguin or a seal because “you have always wanted one.”

 

[Dave-T]

Agree the lighting would need supplementation. Gigs usually end up on the rocks whereas haddoni will be in the sand. Either can get fish, but haddoni are much more aggressive. I had a small one eat a small clown once. It was in a much smaller tank and I’m pretty sure the clown had never seen an anemone before. Your clowns are more likely to take to a gigantea than haddoni, but often they will adapt to either. Haddoni are much easier to get a healthy specimen. Gigantea have much higher light and flow requirements. If you don’t actively feed them they won’t usually get much over 12” or so. No need to feed them directly if you feed your fish enough, they’ll grab stuff when you do.

I agree any fish that likes to steal food from anemones is at the biggest risk. Risk also decreases if the clowns take to it as they’ll help keep fish away.

Thanks! I had pretty much decided that it wasn't going to work for me, but this gives me some hope. Maybe a gigantea could work, if it could go higher up on the aquascape. Higher light there, and more flow. I could even turn up one of the lights on the side of the tank where it was. But maybe still not enough light - what's the minimum par to keep a healthy gigantea? I tried googling and can't find the answer. I do have a PAR meter, so I could play around with it a bit...

I could also get a pair of more aggressive clowns, to be hosted by the anemone and keep other fish away. I suppose that technique could also work with a haddoni, but I'd still have the issue of lower light on the sandbed, especially as my SPS grows in.

So it looks like, for this to work, I'd need to either be able to keep a Gigantea at the top of my scape at around 400 PAR, or a Hadonni on the sandbed at 150 PAR. Gigantea would be getting more flow.

 

[MartinM]

Short answer: No.

I had a large well established tank. All parameters were stable and the tank was 3 years old. It was a shallow reef with a lot of Radion XR30’s. I forget PAR at sand bed but it was insane. Flow, nitrates, temp, salinity, dosing, and PH all beautiful.

I had always wanted a carpet anemone (sound familiar?). So my wife sourced one from an incredibly reputable boutique seller who claimed to have had the anemone for several months.

The thing arrived. It probably weighed 10lbs+. Put it in the tank. Opened up. Looked happy. Then it receded and started dying.

Yes, people keep them. Yes, they live. They more often than not do not. It is a magical combination of luck and circumstance we don’t understand that grants success.

Based on the number that die, one must wonder if the ones that do live are even living good lives.
They are not meant for aquariums. As far as I know they’re brought here in gray market if not black market circumstances. Carpet Anemones are (one of) the very specific creatures that gives this hobby a bad name. I didn’t fully realize it until I was standing there holding a dead creature in my hands to realize this was a horrible mistake. Let me save you the money and karma.

There are TONS of other anemones that do very well in home aquaria. I have a maxi/mini that’s on its way to 9” that’s living its best life. Eating and spawning.

You wouldn’t buy a penguin or a seal because “you have always wanted one.”

I’m sorry about your loss, but a single isolated incidents isn’t precedent for lack of success. Neither is my success, but just like with any species, there are proper methods to care for the different species of carpet anemones.


OP, when you say “carpet anemone”, you’re talking about three different species, two of which are more commonly found in the hobby (S. Gigantea and S. Haddoni). However, they require radically different conditions (in fact, opposite conditions). My expertise lies with Haddonis, not Gigantea, and I’ve been keeping them on and off for 20 years.

I personally find Haddoni anemones easy to keep as long as 1) they don’t have an infection or you’re prepared to treat the infection with Ciprofloxacin 2) as long as you have about 8cm+ of sand and 3) they aren’t getting much flow. 150 PAR is a bit low, but not a dealbreaker as long as you feed it regularly. I’ve had six Haddoni at ~225 PAR, three of them for over two years, and they’re doing fine. I feed them a few times per week.

Haddonis, IME, do *not* like very much water flow. Since you’re keeping LPS, your water flow is probably fine for them. SPS levels of water flow could easily result in them dying, they just don’t like it. Mine get barely enough water flow to move them, unless the pump is on pulse mode and generating a gentle surge wave (like a tidal zone).

I wouldn’t worry about them ‘feeling cramped’, they can and do adjust themselves into all kinds of shapes and sizes that change constantly.

They definitely want to be in the sand, with at least half of their body surrounded by rocks but with their foot in the sand, attached to a rock that’s buried or the bottom of the tank. I’ve never had a single Haddoni that was happy until it was in this kind of a position, and typically they prefer even more of their body surrounded.

In summary:
1) Get a healthy one (or treat with Ciprofloxacin, this might help: https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/p...reatment-of-s-haddoni-carpet-anemones.888426/)
2) Place in 10cm of sand in a spot where the foot can attach under the sand, AND the body is surrounded at least 180 degrees with rock or the sides of the tank
3) Low flow!

 

[Dave-T]

Short answer: No.

I had a large well established tank. All parameters were stable and the tank was 3 years old. It was a shallow reef with a lot of Radion XR30’s. I forget PAR at sand bed but it was insane. Flow, nitrates, temp, salinity, dosing, and PH all beautiful.

I had always wanted a carpet anemone (sound familiar?). So my wife sourced one from an incredibly reputable boutique seller who claimed to have had the anemone for several months.

The thing arrived. It probably weighed 10lbs+. Put it in the tank. Opened up. Looked happy. Then it receded and started dying.

Yes, people keep them. Yes, they live. They more often than not do not. It is a magical combination of luck and circumstance we don’t understand that grants success.

Based on the number that die, one must wonder if the ones that do live are even living good lives.
They are not meant for aquariums. As far as I know they’re brought here in gray market if not black market circumstances. Carpet Anemones are (one of) the very specific creatures that gives this hobby a bad name. I didn’t fully realize it until I was standing there holding a dead creature in my hands to realize this was a horrible mistake. Let me save you the money and karma.

There are TONS of other anemones that do very well in home aquaria. I have a maxi/mini that’s on its way to 9” that’s living its best life. Eating and spawning.

You wouldn’t buy a penguin or a seal because “you have always wanted one.”

Thanks for the input. I just saw your post after I replied to the last one. 10 pounds?? That sounds massive! Don't you think part of the problem was its size? I gotta think that a smaller, younger, anemone would adapt more easily to life in a reef tank than one that grown for a long time on a real reef.

I'd consider other anemones, but my concern is that with many (most? all?) other anemones, I'd run the risk of them moving where I didn't want them, and reproducing and spreading all over the tank. My tank is young, and although I could work around whereever an anemone chooses to live, once it found its spot I'd like it to stay there, and not later move to a spot where I'm trying to keep corals. And I really just one one anemone, or one anemone "island". I don't want them all over the place, my tank is intended to primarily house corals.

 

[MartinM]

Thanks for the input. I just saw your post after I replied to the last one. 10 pounds?? That sounds massive! Don't you think part of the problem was its size? I gotta think that a smaller, younger, anemone would adapt more easily to life in a reef tank than one that grown for a long time on a real reef.

I'd consider other anemones, but my concern is that with many (most? all?) other anemones, I'd run the risk of them moving where I didn't want them, and reproducing and spreading all over the tank. My tank is young, and although I could work around whereever an anemone chooses to live, once it found its spot I'd like it to stay there, and not later move to a spot where I'm trying to keep corals. And I really just one one anemone, or one anemone "island". I don't want them all over the place, my tank is intended to primarily house corals.

If you have an anemone, especially a big anemone (carpets are big, and get big) it takes precedent whether you like it to or not. It can and may move, and it won’t necessarily stay where you put it or where you want it to stay. If you’re not ok with this, then keep corals and not anemones

 

[srobertb]

Someone mentioned that my failure doesn’t define the entirety. True. However, You will find far more failure than success with any large wild caught carpet anemone. I won’t argue and neither will anyone else because the number of “hey guys, what’s wrong with my anemone?!?” Posts far outweigh the “look at my 8 year old anemone!” I stand by my statement: Responsible reefing is as much about providing the best environment as it is knowing when it’s irresponsible to try.

The justification of pulling it when it’s young would be awful when talking about any living creature. You live with yourself so ask yourself: Do you need to provide the BEST environment you can for living creatures where they are happy and thrive or just keep them alive for your personal amusement? This forum is not aligned on the subject and this isn’t a place for that debate…

On to your post! All anemones will walk. You can make them move through several methods but you can’t make them settle. In my larger tank I have 10-20 BTA. They go where they want and fortunately eventually settle. I keep my flow and parameters rock solid and stable.


Even with all that. I had a large beautiful black widow (she ate a tang to get a sense of size). She split into two daughters and herself. One daughter literally walked 6’ to the other side of tank from their “island” to the another rock formation (the other daughter stayed). There the daughter had daughters of her own and the mother had her own daughters and so on.

My anemones don’t sting corals. I had my tank leak and now have everything haphazardly thrown into a 125g while I arrange a new tank. I currently have anemones on rocks touching SPS, softies, LPS, etc and neither cares.

A carpet anemone is huge. Plan on blocking off a few feet (yes, feet) of space for it. It will also walk and is far more potent. You’re worried about a baseball sized BTA walking across your corals, imagine a 1-2’ wide anemone that can actually sting things.

Anemones are like dogs. Plan on cleaning up after them from time to time and dealing with some damage. I don’t own a dog for this very reason. Finally- Duncan’s or any frog spawn/torch will give you an awesome look and not move.

 

[Dave-T]

If you have an anemone, especially a big anemone (carpets are big, and get big) it takes precedent whether you like it to or not. It can and may move, and it won’t necessarily stay where you put it or where you want it to stay. If you’re not ok with this, then keep corals and not anemones

With a hadonni, I'd be ok with it moving as long as it stayed in the sand and didn't kill things as it moved around.

 

[Dave-T]

Any suggestions for a couple of guard clowns for a Haddoni?

 

[Jekyl]

Any suggestions for a couple of guard clowns for a Haddoni?

What ever one's you like. They're all jerks.

 

[MartinM]

Someone mentioned that my failure doesn’t define the entirety. True. However, You will find far more failure than success with any large wild caught carpet anemone. I won’t argue and neither will anyone else because the number of “hey guys, what’s wrong with my anemone?!?” Posts far outweigh the “look at my 8 year old anemone!” I stand by my statement: Responsible reefing is as much about providing the best environment as it is knowing when it’s irresponsible to try.

The justification of pulling it when it’s young would be awful when talking about any living creature. You live with yourself so ask yourself: Do you need to provide the BEST environment you can for living creatures where they are happy and thrive or just keep them alive for your personal amusement? This forum is not aligned on the subject and this isn’t a place for that debate…

On to your post! All anemones will walk. You can make them move through several methods but you can’t make them settle. In my larger tank I have 10-20 BTA. They go where they want and fortunately eventually settle. I keep my flow and parameters rock solid and stable.


Even with all that. I had a large beautiful black widow (she ate a tang to get a sense of size). She split into two daughters and herself. One daughter literally walked 6’ to the other side of tank from their “island” to the another rock formation (the other daughter stayed). There the daughter had daughters of her own and the mother had her own daughters and so on.

My anemones don’t sting corals. I had my tank leak and now have everything haphazardly thrown into a 125g while I arrange a new tank. I currently have anemones on rocks touching SPS, softies, LPS, etc and neither cares.

A carpet anemone is huge. Plan on blocking off a few feet (yes, feet) of space for it. It will also walk and is far more potent. You’re worried about a baseball sized BTA walking across your corals, imagine a 1-2’ wide anemone that can actually sting things.

Anemones are like dogs. Plan on cleaning up after them from time to time and dealing with some damage. I don’t own a dog for this very reason. Finally- Duncan’s or any frog spawn/torch will give you an awesome look and not move.

You’re not wrong. 100% of wild caught animals die in captivity (by definition) and the hobby has a 90% turnover inside of 12 months (industry statistics) so there’s only minuscule levels of ‘success’ in this hobby. That’s also not anemone-specific.

Regarding collection, legal collection of animals is an incentive to preserve that species and the habitat it hails from. Without financial incentives that come from wild caught animals, habitat destruction is inevitable, leading to far more loss than gain. An example would be the success story of the American alligator: it endangered and near extinction until commercial demand was legalized and farming was allowed.

As a former research scientist I still peruse publications related to my favorite species, S. Haddoni being one of them. I haven’t seen anything showing a decline in their population or habitat range, so I don’t think there’s any over-collecting occurring, at least none that’s been documented.

God gave us charge over animals, let’s be responsible stewards. I think the OP is doing the right thing by trying to educate himself on the proper care.

 

[OrionN]

Haddoni are very colorful. Brightest of all the host anemones. They do host a variety of clown fish. Most of the time Percula and Ocellaris will choose Haddoni if their natural host is not an option.
my Haddoni anemones.

 

[Dave-T]

Haddoni are very colorful. Brightest of all the host anemones. They do host a variety of clown fish. Most of the time Percula and Ocellaris will choose Haddoni if their natural host is not an option.
my Haddoni anemones.

Thanks. I do already have a pair of ocellaris in the tank, but they’re captive bred and I have my doubts that they’ll take to the anemone. I’m thinking of getting a pair of Clarkii to use as guard dog clowns to discourage other fish from entering the neighborhood.

 

[Dave-T]

I’m also thinking of getting a Kessel a160 to use as a spotlight to brighten up the anemone corner. Anyone have any experience doing that?

 

[secret_reefer337]

I have captive breed ocellaris clownfish and they all jumped in in the haddoni after seeing it. Their wild instinct are all still wired in their brain.

 

[MartinM]

4

I’m also thinking of getting a Kessel a160 to use as a spotlight to brighten up the anemone corner. Anyone have any experience doing that?

yep I have done it with some GrassyCore LEDs for that exact purpose, because they like corners so much!