T5 Questions

[melosu58]

High lighting requirements for anemones is misleading as they can do just fine under lower lighting.
Dr. Shimek stated that lower lighting can be supplimented with extra feeding and not just for the short term.

Maybe you can show us this documentation. An article or something.

 

[rayjay]

Someone always comes through with a story about how they provide the minimum possible and their anemones, corals, etc. live fine.

But then people wonder why one day their anemone or coral just shrivels up and dies too.

Things can be alive, but they wont be as vibrant, grow as large, or live as long unless given proper care.

Is you sebae bleached out yet?

First of all, I wouldn't have been stating what I did, without knowing it works, and, with Dr Shimek's confirmation then I feel comfortable in making that statement.
Dr Shimeck also stated that if the zooxanthellae had been expelled, the anemone will still survive alright if water conditions are acceptable AND if it is fed sufficiently.
If an anemone shrivels up and dies while those conditions are met, then something else is the cause of their demise.
Stop and look at the records of anemones on all the forums. There are more anemones that die under high light conditions, than there are dying under low light condition.
Light is NOT the main thing, water conditons and total food input are the main thing.
My anemones do not bleach out, but my sebae was bleached when I bought it many many years ago, but it coloured up within a short time.
That all being said, I did one time, loose a RBTA shortly after purchase but it was in the same tank as the sebae and it definitely was not due to lighting.

 

[rayjay]

High lighting requirements for anemones is misleading as they can do just fine under lower lighting.
Dr. Shimek stated that lower lighting can be supplimented with extra feeding and not just for the short term.

Maybe you can show us this documentation. An article or something.

Well, being that it was on Reef Central on his old forum, I don't think that would be possible anymore unless somehow it got saved in the archives.
However, if you wish confirmation, you could post on his present forum on Marine Depot.
For pictures of my sebae, see my website under "profile".

 

[roka64]

rayjay, please do not take offense, I believe they were just asking for an article, of course personal experience is very important, as well. Sometimes animals can adapt and thrive, as they have in yours...BUT, for the beginner, I feel I (other's might not agree) should err on the side of caution, otherwise folks might lose livestock and become discouraged. I am by no means an expert but I do like to be cautious, and I generally go by the majority. As we know, there are always differences of opinions and some folks can get things to work in their tanks, where other's can't. I have my own theory about ich, that many others don't share....

 

[Devilishturtles]

Just goes to show the difference in opinion. I wouldn't want to keep anemones under NO lights simply because I want to try and receate something as natural as possible. And...the majority need bright lighting to survive, especially those wild caught. I hope that the anemones in your tank, rayjay, were captivebred and more able to adapt to lower light levels. I've admired your clams before, I remember from browsing your site.

 

[rayjay]

Definitely no offense taken over any differences of opinion. Personally, I learn many times from investigating others opinions.
Speaking of beginners though, would you believe, that in January 94, I switched my first tank from fresh to salt, and the very first inhabitants I purchased were a sebae anemone and a sebae clown. (sebae clowns were common back then, at least around here)
I had to eventually get rid of the clown because he drew blood every time I put my hands into the tank, but, years later when I got a computer, and, eventually started my website, that anemone on the website is the same anemone I started with. Anyway, enough said on that I think.
I really wish there were an article on the light issue, and, I guess it is possible that Dr Shimek may have written somewhere, the same info, but the only time I've come across it was in that thread on Reef Central.
I don't understand why putting it in an article though would make it any more convincing than if they were to inquire on the same topic on his present forum.
Next time I'm on Reef Central I'll try to see if there are archives of his old forums and try to locate the thread.

p.s. When I got my anemones, there were no captive bred ones available.
Also, the seabae is in the same tank as the crocea and squamosa clams.

 

[Asher]

Rayjay,

Would a seabae anemone be too large for my 29gal tank? Also, did you grow all of those corals under Non-Hallide lights?

 

[Devilishturtles]

Shimek's book "Reef Invertebrates" states that anemones "do best under bright light" and MUST be fed meaty foods. I tend to disagree with that. As is obvious, all the pieces must fall into the right spaces, as is the case with rayjays tank. He often argues that at MACNA where he says that it's neccesary to feed foods to your anemones and corals. But other pros there state that light is the biggest factor to corals and anemones. I love it.

I kept a sebae for a while under PC lights with no problem, but the clowns wouldn't leave it alone when it wanted to move, so it eventually died/took a trip to the impellor god. There are many anemones that you can keep withouth halide lights. Sebae, BTA, RBTA, Rock anemone, Condy, etc.

 

[melosu58]

I kind of tend to agree with you on the feeding as I dont feed any of my corals except what they get in the water column. I do hand feed my sun polyps as they dont recieve anything from the lights. I can show you many before and after pics that show my corals 4x`s by not feeding nothing but phyto and lights. Here is an example. Also thanks for the "Does best under bright lights" clarification.

 

[rayjay]

Rayjay,

Would a seabae anemone be too large for my 29gal tank? Also, did you grow all of those corals under Non-Hallide lights?

In 13 years, I've never used anything but 40 w fluorescent lighting over any of my 10 tanks.
I have clams, anemones, soft corals, and LPS corals. I do not have sps because they do need more light than my NO's can provide. I have one piece and it exists but doesn't thrive.
Soon, I am going to break with my NO habit, and on my 65g tank, I'm going to go T5 HO.
At present it has 8 NO's with 4 of them overdriven with an IceCap 660 and I'm going to go with 4 T5 HO's using IceCap SLR's and the 660 ballast, and I'll still use two 40w NO lamps as well.
As for the sebae in a 29g tank, the sebae I mentioned earlier was in a 30g tank for almost 2 years before I moved it to a 90.
I believe that mine would have outgrown the tank if I had been feeding it, and that is one of the reasons I don't feed my anemones. (or my corals for that matter)
If you don't have sufficient lighting then you will have to feed it anyway, but you may be able to still control the growth by monitoring how much you feed versus how it grows over a period of time.