Long Tentacle Anemone

[Jakerupe]

I have had this FOWLR established for about 9 years and have had up to 3 tanks like this going at once. I have never had any luck with anemones of any kind. Longest seems to make it about a year and a half the other between 6-12 months. After killing to many of these to stomach I just stopped killing the population for the last 5 years.

I bought a few new lights to get by until I rebuild the whole set up, decided that maybe I had lost that Kavorkian touch and bought a long tentacle anemone and my daughter tried to help give the fish a bath.

I know I am watching this thing like a hawk, and laughed at a few posts I read because I can relate. It looks great, it looks sick, then it looks dead! Then the cycle starts over just no rhyme or reason to this. Very much like my wife, never know what to expect.

So a few questions since I don't think the light is getting to the bottom.

First if any one has any insight on what will key me on when I KNOW something is wrong that would be great.

Secondly, I was thinking about building a shelf of sorts, or just a small plastic container (1/2 cottage cheese container) to get some substrate for it to put it foot in so I can place it higher in the rocks. Anybody got any ideas here? Or should I try to get it to settle in the rocks, don't cherish the idea of it trying to float around.

Water seems to be good; nitrites went up a little from the fish bath but are getting back to nothing. Specific gravity 1.024.

Nothing fancy on the filters, tidepoll II and an eheim wet/dry. Both of which have been on there from the beginning. Eheim I clean out half the substrate once a year or so. So ith 3 powere heads and the wavemaker feature on the Eheim there is plenty of water movement, at least I would think so.

[lunatik_69]

What kind of lighting do you have? Lta's need good strong lighting.

[Jakerupe]

Originally Posted by lunatik_69

What kind of lighting do you have? Lta's need good strong lighting.

... 2x54 Nova and bought it for ...4x54 (10k/actinic) with moonlights. So in a nutshell 6-T5 54watts.

I had posted a question about these and depth and you had even said that MH's are probably better. Don't have the time right now to build a new hood and plan on using those when I move the tank within the year. So now I'm hoping to find a idea to keep from killing another anemone.

[lunatik_69]

Originally Posted by Jakerupe

... 2x54 Nova and bought it for ...4x54 (10k/actinic) with moonlights. So in a nutshell 6-T5 54watts.

I had posted a question about these and depth and you had even said that MH's are probably better. Don't have the time right now to build a new hood and plan on using those when I move the tank within the year. So now I'm hoping to find a idea to keep from killing another anemone.

Assuming that your para's are good, you should be fine with that lighting. Try moving him a little higher. Are you sure your water is good. Luna

[Jakerupe]

Originally Posted by lunatik_69

Are you sure your water is good. Luna

I think so. Amonia 0, Nitrate 0, Nitrites 0 Nitrates 50 ppm(this is higher then normal) and dropping. PH 8.4-8.5

Any suggestions to moving him up? My experience with LTA is that they will only settle in the substrate not the rocks. Don't want him fighting with the overflow or powerheads.

[lunatik_69]

Originally Posted by Jakerupe

I think so. Amonia 0, Nitrate 0, Nitrites 0 Nitrates 50 ppm(this is higher then normal) and dropping. PH 8.4-8.5

Any suggestions to moving him up? My experience with LTA is that they will only settle in the substrate not the rocks. Don't want him fighting with the overflow or powerheads.

No3 is a little high, try leaving him at the bottom and work on lowering your No3 first. If that doesnt work, then get him higher. Try using a bowl of some kind with some sand in it and place him in it. If he sticks to it, just move the bowl up and hide it by putting LR all around it so you cant see the bowl. Just a thought. Luna

[lunatik_69]

What about Alk, Cal and Mag?

[Jakerupe]

Originally Posted by lunatik_69

What about Alk, Cal and Mag?

What about them...j/k.

Could explain why I have problems with these in the past. Never have tested for Mag. These are parameters to worry about then I guess for the corals and anemones?

Salifert test kits any good for these?

[nemo1991]

i think there ok, but then again i dont have a whole lotta ecperience

[Phayes]

Being as I recently bought an LTA as well, and it is now settled in the substrate up against some LR... looking very good and it couldn't have chosen a better location. At first i tried clearing some substrate and putting him in that location so he could foot himself in that area..... but over the course of 4 days (long grueling days where I had no choice but to watch him constantly so he didn't get blended into a fish patté), I realized that it doesnt matter where you put this guy. The LTA, like most anemones will detatch from wherever you put them (I also tried using a PVC piece to host it in with some substrate around). They will look for somewhere with a flow that is right for them. And while they look they will likely float around your aquarium stinging anything it comes into contact with, and getting sucked up in any powerheads they come into contact with. For most of the day I had to sit there and be ready to pull the plug on my powerheads as it came near to them. Eventually it latched onto a piece of LR, and over the course of a few hours it moved downwards and plowed the sand around it and footed on the bottom.

All in all, there really is no such thing as trying to help these things out. Just have to let them do what they have to do. Don't try adjusting the flow for them, cause they'll just move again when you move the flow back. Good luck with the LTA. They're beautiful creatures

Edit: In addition, if you put it in a container that it cant get out of, despite it trying to float out of it, you're just going to cause it to stress and likely die.