New bta anemone split. Should I be worried???

[bodie]

Hello, I purchased a rose colored bulb tip anemone (BTA) two days ago and I noticed yesterday that it split. Normally, I would think this is a good thing, but I just purchased the bta a day earlier and I didn't think it would or should split so soon. I placed the anemone on some live rock about mid level height in a 35 gallon tank where it received plenty of light from my 192 Watt PC bulbs. It ate a whole silverside fish on it's first night in the tank and i thought everything was going well, but it suprisingly kept moving towards the back of the tank in a dark cave. After it split, the larger part moved back down underneath the cave again, but the smaller one moved up top and has continued to move around the tank since splitting. The base of the smaller one looked a tad deflated after it split, but the tips are still inflated. The larger one appears to be fine (the bulbs and base), but it keeps hiding in the dark. Is it normal for a bta to split so soon? Is it normal for the bta to hide in the dark? Also, I have two percula clowns that seem to have formed a relationship with my colt coral, but they seem to ignore my bta. Will they ever form a relationship with the anemone? Thanks for your help!

 

[MT79]

Is it normal for a bta to split so soon?

Splitting can be induced by stress, so I would say although not common it's not surprising.

It ate a whole silverside fish o

Over feeding can be very harmful to an anemone. I would suggest feeding very small pieces of krill every 2-4 weeks at most, until the tissue heals. If you have fish there is no need to target feed the anemone after this. It will do fine w/ their "left overs" and good lighting.

Is it normal for the bta to hide in the dark?

Yes when getting acclimated to a new tank or after splitting. Let it go where it wants, don't attempt to move it.

Clowns...Will they ever form a relationship with the anemone?

It's up to them Give it some time. HTH

 

[bodie]

Thanks for the tips MT79. The smaller one appears to be less deflated at the base and the larger one seems to be doing fine. I haven't moved them and they appear to have found spots in the tank where they are comfortable (not necessarily spots that I would like them to be, but as long as they're happy). I'll also hold off on feeding for awhile. Now if only those clowns would forget about the colt coral and go into the anemone....

 

[Hara]

mine goes into a rock cave on a regular basis...it has been doing this for over a year. I had thought I lost it after the hurricane, but it was just under a rock.

 

[bodie]

That's so frustrating when they go underneath a cave. I wish I could enjoy watching it, but I guess I have no one to blame but myself for making the big cave for it to hide in. Hara, does your bta still move around the tank regularly? I thought that after they had been in the tank for that long they would settle in one spot. I hope my bta doesn't keep moving all over the place.

 

[Hara]

it moves but in one area only...up and over and under this one rock.