anemones

[clowninround]

I bought 2 bubble anemones and each died about 4 or 5 days later. I have a 55 gallon and I was told I have enough light (130 watts at the time, I now have over 4 watts per gallon), they were also placed mid way up the tank, on the highest rock I had. My clown took to them right away and was pretty distraught when they started shiveling up! I didn't take them out until they started falling apart. My tank had been moved about a month prior to the 1st anemone. I am about to purchase a 150 gallon that is already set up. We are using the 55 gallons we have in the old tank to help the fish adjust easier. When can I purchase a new anemone and how much light do I need? What are some of the common mistakes people make attributing to their death?

Clowninround

 

[Anemoneman]

What are some of the common mistakes people make attributing to their death?

Purchasing wild caught anemones rather than tank cloned. Anemones have an extremely low survival rate in captivity to begin with. Add to that injury during collection, then the trip to the US, another trip to the LFS, and then to your tank. These are mysterious aniimals. Not everything is known about them. There are lots of opinions on how to keep them successfully. Some peoplle are lucky and get them to live for years. Most people have an experience similar to yours. I would look for alternate hosts for your clown fish. Search the site. There are many suggestions and success stories using alternate hosts. Many corals can be tank raised and therefore having one doesn't require supporting collection the wild. If you absolutely must have an anemone, please only purchase a tank raised one. An internet search will find a couple suppliers of these. Here's one:
http://www.drmaccorals.com/sys-tmpl/anemones/

 

[clowninround]

thanks!

I have heard similar advice...however, I am not sure what type of corals to look into that my angel won't gobble up???