anemone help..!!!!!!!!!

[mcardenas]

I just purchase my first anemone yesterday and today it started to move. I got home and saw it closed up... but now its opened up and it looks like its attaching to another rock...not sure.. Couple hours ago some weird blackish stuff was coming out of its mouth...

[Good_GReef]

as long as it will still attach to something, that is a good sign, and the pic of it looks fine. Just make sure it can't get sucked into a powerhead overnight if it decides to turn into one big bubble and float around. It was likely just getting rid of waste.

[Mitchell_2004]

It was probably just getting rid of it's waste. Nothing to worry about.. If it starts to close up and then disintegrate, that's when you have a problem. Looks like a nice nem!

[mcardenas]

Is it true .. that when they change to a white color... that they are dying?

[Mitchell_2004]

Originally Posted by Good_GReef

as long as it will still attach to something, that is a good sign, and the pic of it looks fine. Just make sure it can't get sucked into a powerhead overnight if it decides to turn into one big bubble and float around. It was likely just getting rid of waste.

^^^ He beat me to it!

[mcardenas]

how do you feed them?

[Good_GReef]

Nems turning completely white can be a sign of them losing all their zooanthelle (sp?) and would be bad. As long as they still at least have color to their tips, you're alright. A healthy nem is going to try to find the best flow and lighting spot if can, for its needs, not necessarily yours. They will often pick a spot you don't want (back of the tank, under a rock). It may take a couple days for them to peek out again or settle. My GBTA has been in my tank a few weeks and just the other day found its fave spot (for now). Every time I move the lights or a powerhead, he moves again.

[Good_GReef]

About feeding - if the nem is getting plenty of light, it doesn't need feeding per se, but lots of us do feed. If it's not hungry, it will let the food fall, and if you fed a big chunk of something, you will need to remove this. Happened to me last night when I dropped some scallop/shrimp mixture on mine. Some feed whole cocktail shrimp, mysis or clam pieces. Depends on the size of the nem.

[hossa81]

I'll usually feed my nem the few pieces left of the meaty stuff i feed my preds. After he takes the food usually with in the next day or two he shrinks real small as if he is sick or dying or something and gets rid of all the waste, the black stringy stuff coming out of the mouth as mentioned above. But then the next day he is all back to normal. Just another day.

[mcardenas]

What does it mean when the mouth is open?

It's my 2nd day.. What should expect to happen? So I don't start freaking out lol

[Boston21]

Anemone's are weird man. My RBTA hated my 120W LED fixture, was cool for a week then started only opening for 4-5 hours a day during the photoperiod, then it stopped inflating so I moved it and the rock to the back of the tank where light isn't as intense and it seems to like that more. I also fed it a ton of food and it let out waste multiple times, but I was told they really dont need direct feeding as they can easily catch what they need.

[Good_GReef]

Anemones have a slit in the middle that is where they both eat and excrete waste. Generally referred to as the mouth. When you feed them, they move their tentacles to place the food there.