Purple Tip Anemone, Questions...

[TheChad]

Hey all,

I just added a purple tip anemone to my 55g Reef Tank.

I have 2 Perc Clown fish, 1 Brown Legged Hermit crab, 1 Electric Orange Hermit Crab, 1 Camel Shirmp, 1 Cleaner Shrimp, 1 Fire shrimp, and a cluster of Zoo Polyps.



I added the purple tip anemone to the tank to hopefully give the 2 clown fish a home. They always swim around the tank looking lik they need a place to call home.

My question is, Does this anemone sting? The reason I ask, is because as soon as I put it in the tank my Shirmp ran up to the anemone and started picking at it. So It made me curious as so what exactly do they sting?

Is there anything I should know about this Anemone? Does anyone have tips?

Right now I am adding Calcium, Iodine, and trace elements to the tank.

Thanks,

-TheChad

 

[seaham358]

Im guessing its a Condy anemone? Yes the anemone will sting corals and fish. Invert dont seem to be effected by the sting, my guess is becasue they have a exoskeleton. (sp)
the clowns may or may not host with the anemone, not all clowns host with that type anemone.
Do you test you water with test kits before adding trace elements? iodine can wipe out a tank if overdosed.
Regular water changes is all you need for most tanks.
what type of lighting do you have?
who old is the tank
Nitrates in the water?

Good lighting is a must, stable water chemestry is a must for anemones, little to no Nitrates.
if you feed it shrimp make sure the shrimp is smaller then the mouth on the anemone.

 

[TheChad]

I don't know, the LFS said it was a purple tip anemone.

The Clowns at the LFS Loved the anemone, they had several in several tanks, and all were housing clown fish.

I test the water for, Nitrate, Nitrite, Amonnia, PH, and calcium.



Another Question: How do you get the anemone to stay put? No matter where in the tank I place it, with in a minute or two, its floating around the tank, and sooner or later gets pulled over to the canister filter intake. It wont stay anywhere I place it.

I've even turned off the PH to reduce flow, but it made no difference.

Thanks,

-TheChad

 

[Devilishturtles]

Is it a Sebae? Check the link.

http://www.4coral.com/invertebrates.htm and click on the Sebae link.

There is no way to get the anemone to stay put. You may want to consider turning the canister off for now or blocking the intake with a sponge of some sort. It'll move to where it wants to move and where it likes the best. Unfortanently there is nothing you can do to stop it.

I also agree with Seaham about the testing. If you don't have a test kit for Iodine, I'd stop dosing it for now. Overdosing iodine is not a good thing.

 

[TheChad]

Yeah It looks like it's a Sebae.

Does the Anemone have the ability to walk/move around on its own? I don't want to keep touching it, I don't want to hurt it, but It was face down in the sand once, and like crammed under a rock another time, So I moved it.

Is there any way to tell if its happy or not?

I am going to pick up a Iodine test kit today. What about the trace elements? are those save to dose? It "Kents Elements".

Thanks,

-TheChad

 

[roka64]

I have read, it is best to let him move where he wants. They will wander around until they find a place they are comfortable. Watch out, when you move him. If you tear the foot (that's what it's called right?), he will most likely be a goner.

 

[ntswift]

I agree with everyone. It will move around on its own. If it starts towards a powerhead or gets too close to one then I'd move it but other than that I'd leave it alone. What kind of lighting do you have? Like Roka said, becareful with it because if you tear the foot, your tank will be in some trouble. Trace elements are safe when tested for and added correctly, but you can still overdose your tank. You really don't need to add supplements at all. Everything you need will be replentished in your weekly PWC's. HTH

 

[stevefromga2000]

since you have a canister filter, i agree with trying to put some sort of sponge or something in the way so that your anenome cannot get sucked up against it. i had one that actually got stuck in my intake for my filter, not a pretty sight. but you should be alright as long as you have good lighting and just exercise some general caution. good luck

 

[Devilishturtles]

Agree with the others. Also, don't touch the sebae unless you must. It being upside on the sandbed is not a good sign, unfortanetly. The hidden fact about sebae anemones is that the white ones are bleached out. A healthy sebae is brown in color. It will take some TLC for a while for it to get healthy again. IME, this is one of the hardest anemones to keep and alot of people don't have luck with them. I've tried and failed twice.

How is it looking today?

 

[melosu58]

Agree with PWC`s all you need. No dosing needed

 

[TheChad]

What amazes me, is that all thease LFS carry is "Hard to keep fish" and they all tell you, oh yeah thease are easy to take care of. They all look great in their tanks.

What a way to take all your customer's money.


Today he is on the sand bed, face up, and the tenticals are fatter, like he looked in the store. So hopefully that is a good thing.


-TheChad

 

[melosu58]

Good Luck

 

[TheChad]

If If he is on the sand bed, he looks fine. If I put him up on the rockwork, he always falls off into the sand.


I figured it would be happier up on the rocks closer to the light, pluse it gives him something to attach to.


How long does it normally take the clown fish to pay any attention to it?

Thanks,

-TheChad

 

[seaham358]

days, wekks, months, years , never... there is no set time and the fish may never go into it.
My GMS took months to go into the BTA.

 

[No_Floaters]

Sometimes clowns don't know they are "anemone fish" until they are threatened by a bigger fish, etc. and they dive into the anemone by instinct for protection.