I got a Macrodactyloa Doreensis?

[loveaddressbox]

A friend send me this as a Halloween gift...
https://41.media.tumblr.com/ba70df6542c0b883708905623fb9bab9/tumblr_nx4bmt7Rhd1t4b6g2o1_540.png
My issues is that I don't know if she is happy...
I haven't research enough of them.
My tank is maybe too small...
Why she is like that... So... Flat...
Is she alright?
I obviously did a slow and hopefully proper acclimatation (with a hose and about 45 minutes-1 hour... I lost track of time easily... But 45 minutes at least)

[ThRoewer]

It looks like a very stressed out and somewhat unhappy LTA.
Though given that you just got it and put it into the tank this is somewhat to be expected. By tomorrow it should have attached to something and look better.
I would only start worrying if it doesn't attach to something soon.

You may want to make sure it can't drift into a pump. You could also place it somewhere where it can easily attach to a rock.

[loveaddressbox]

It looks like a very stressed out and somewhat unhappy LTA.
Though given that you just got it and put it into the tank this is somewhat to be expected. By tomorrow it should have attached to something and look better.
I would only start worrying if it doesn't attach to something soon.

You may want to make sure it can't drift into a pump. You could also place it somewhere where it can easily attach to a rock.

Thank you very much for reply!
Well... So I will start to worry tomorrow (I'm already worry thought)

The rock behind her is just a couple of inches away... If she didn't move by tomorrow morning I will try to move her closer to it.

Now that the lights are off she seems a bit thicker on the base and the tentacles seem to have... Retract? I guess is the word for it :l

[Dkuhlmann]

Your tank is much too new for an anemone. You need to bring it back to where it came from and wait until your tank is at least 6 months after it's cycled. Your tank at best has just finished it's cycle judging from your other thread in the Reef Discussion forum.

Anemone's need very good high intensity lighting as well as stable water parameters. Until you get to that point and know more about your tank, water chemistry the anemone's need to stay in the store. Not being mean just trying to save you from losing the life of an animal.

[chefbill]

Also LTAs are sand dwellers, not rock. You could try burying the foot.

[ThRoewer]

Your tank is much too new for an anemone. You need to bring it back to where it came from and wait until your tank is at least 6 months after it's cycled. Your tank at best has just finished it's cycle judging from your other thread in the Reef Discussion forum.

Anemone's need very good high intensity lighting as well as stable water parameters. Until you get to that point and know more about your tank, water chemistry the anemone's need to stay in the store. Not being mean just trying to save you from losing the life of an animal.

Host anemones need primarily good light, the right flow and decent water quality and stability. The age of a tank is of lesser importance IMO. I have a gig in a 10 gallon tank that does just fine. And that tank was just converted from a hospital tank to a holding tank by adding a skimmer, some gravel and two (rather fresh) pieces of live rock. I would consider that a completely fresh tank. At the same time I also added a pair of clownfish...

That said, a well stabilized tank definitely won't hurt.

Also LTAs are sand dwellers, not rock. You could try burying the foot.

Even most sand dwelling anemones prefer to attach their food to a hard surface as sand isn't any good to hold on to.

[Dkuhlmann]

Host anemones need primarily good light, the right flow and decent water quality and stability. The age of a tank is of lesser importance IMO. I have a gig in a 10 gallon tank that does just fine. And that tank was just converted from a hospital tank to a holding tank by adding a skimmer, some gravel and two (rather fresh) pieces of live rock. I would consider that a completely fresh tank. At the same time I also added a pair of clownfish...

That said, a well stabilized tank definitely won't hurt.



Even most sand dwelling anemones prefer to attach their food to a hard surface as sand isn't any good to hold on to.

I'm pretty sure his tank has hardly finished it's cycle just guessing from his thread in a different forum He still has yet to answer questions where I'm trying to help him.

I agree with you the age of the tank isn't the issue per se' it's more about stable parameters and we have no clue what they are. I don't know if he even has test kits for the basics.

Hopefully he will answer the other thread and this one as well. I'd hate to see that nice anemone not make it.

[chefbill]

Host anemones need primarily good light, the right flow and decent water quality and stability. The age of a tank is of lesser importance IMO. I have a gig in a 10 gallon tank that does just fine. And that tank was just converted from a hospital tank to a holding tank by adding a skimmer, some gravel and two (rather fresh) pieces of live rock. I would consider that a completely fresh tank. At the same time I also added a pair of clownfish...

That said, a well stabilized tank definitely won't hurt.



Even most sand dwelling anemones prefer to attach their food to a hard surface as sand isn't any good to hold on to.
True enough my anemone has stretched his foot down and now is attached to the bottom glass

[loveaddressbox]

Guys... Hey there... Well I don't buy the test kits yet, but I got my water test at the store for about 1.5 dollars... The test here is around 40...

I didn't buy it... It was a gift and my friend is about two states away from me.
He usually send me other stuff... But he read on my blog about the tank and probably buy me the anemone... I don't want her to be in bad conditions... So I tried to take her with me to a local fish store... But in all there was dieing anemones and corals.
I post on a local forum if anyone could have a home for her. But no one has reply.
They think I'm a troll... I guess no one has offer a free anemone ever on here...

If any of you could take it I would be more than happy that she is on a good home...
Anyone knows anyone near Mexico?

I move it between two rocks and put some sand around it carefully...
She still looks a bit flat. Some tentacles got thick but didn't last long thick...
Her body is like swelling and then going flat again.
Is this something in the water that bother her maybe?
So she refuse to keep the tank water in her?

[Dkuhlmann]

Tell your friend thank you but your tank is't ready for fish, corals or anemones just yet. Start with the test kits I mentioned to you in the other thread you need PH, Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate. You will also need something to check the salt content of the water. There are two different devices to do this one is a Refractometer and the other is a Hydrometer. The Refractometer is much more accurate but you can make the Hydrometer work if necessary. I used one for years with my tanks back about 10 years or so ago. Just make sure there are no bubbles on the swing arm when you test with it. Also read in the link I gave you about the nitrogen cycle and what happens in the process. This way you will know when your tank is cycled and ready to start adding the clean up crew of snails and hermits. After that you can start to add one or two fish per month as to not overload the biological filter created by the nitrogen cycle that will consume fish waste and keep the water free of ammonia and nitrites.

Hopefully you can find someone to take the anemone and if not I pray that your tank has finished it's cycle and at least it will have a chance to live. Water parameters need to be stable and you will get practice with this doing water changes and doing your tests when you get them. Don't do anything fast, take your time and when you do a water change make sure the SG specific gravity of the water is the same as your main tank and also the same temperature. A good digital thermometer is very important also to make sure your water is at the right temperature. All of this is in the link I gave you in the other thread.

Good luck and if you need help don't hesitate to ask. Many people are here to help to make your tank a success.

[loveaddressbox]

Tell your friend thank you but your tank is't ready for fish, corals or anemones just yet. Start with the test kits I mentioned to you in the other thread you need PH, Ammonia, Nitrite and Nitrate. You will also need something to check the salt content of the water. There are two different devices to do this one is a Refractometer and the other is a Hydrometer. The Refractometer is much more accurate but you can make the Hydrometer work if necessary. I used one for years with my tanks back about 10 years or so ago. Just make sure there are no bubbles on the swing arm when you test with it. Also read in the link I gave you about the nitrogen cycle and what happens in the process. This way you will know when your tank is cycled and ready to start adding the clean up crew of snails and hermits. After that you can start to add one or two fish per month as to not overload the biological filter created by the nitrogen cycle that will consume fish waste and keep the water free of ammonia and nitrites.

Hopefully you can find someone to take the anemone and if not I pray that your tank has finished it's cycle and at least it will have a chance to live. Water parameters need to be stable and you will get practice with this doing water changes and doing your tests when you get them. Don't do anything fast, take your time and when you do a water change make sure the SG specific gravity of the water is the same as your main tank and also the same temperature. A good digital thermometer is very important also to make sure your water is at the right temperature. All of this is in the link I gave you in the other thread.

Good luck and if you need help don't hesitate to ask. Many people are here to help to make your tank a success.

Thanks a lot!
I'm doing all possible to be sure everyone is safe!

I got this:
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/images/Categoryimages/thumbnail/th-72981-54305-fish-supply.jpg

I got also a regular termometer that doesn't seem to work at all... I'm freezing and it says we are at 21 under water and 20 out of the water...

I'm reading the article you sent me! But is long... It will take me a couple fo days... I'm working on starting a new business so I'm pretty stressed... (wish me luck)

I will be sure that I'm annoying you guys often!

[ThRoewer]

...
I got also a regular termometer that doesn't seem to work at all... I'm freezing and it says we are at 21 under water and 20 out of the water...
...

You can't go by how the temperature "feels" to you. For humans 20 degree C may very well feel cold.

[loveaddressbox]

You can't go by how the temperature "feels" to you. For humans 20 degree C may very well feel cold.

So I don't turn on the heater or I do?
It seems cold to me... :(
But well the termometer doesn't say it is that cold...

[Dkuhlmann]

I believe that ThRoewer thought your thermometer wasn't working with the way you worded your post about it, and with what you said I can see the misunderstanding I thought the same thing when I first read the post. Your English is pretty good, but there will always be some confusion on your part and ours because what you learned about English was good but there are not direct translation from Spanish to English of many words. So it gets a bit confusing.

You need a heater if your water is colder than what is required temper-ature wise just normally sitting in a room. So keep your temperature steady between 75-80F and you will be good. Yes it does feel a bit cooler than that because we are 98.6 normally so it would feel a bit cool to the touch.

I can't wait to see what your water tests show when you get them. This will tell a lot about your tank and if you can add corals or fish. It could be that your tank is finished the cycle and that would mean that you add snails and hermits to keep the algae clean and after a week or two you can add one or two fish. After you are good at keeping your water stable with parameters you can add a few corals. I would still wait until your tank has been stable for at least 6 months before you add an anemone. There are many different types of anemone and the clown fish will be hosted by them but different clowns will host in different anemones. So you have to decide on what clown fish you want, if you even want them.

How is the anemone doing today? Can you give an updated picture?

[loveaddressbox]

I believe that ThRoewer thought your thermometer wasn't working with the way you worded your post about it, and with what you said I can see the misunderstanding I thought the same thing when I first read the post. Your English is pretty good, but there will always be some confusion on your part and ours because what you learned about English was good but there are not direct translation from Spanish to English of many words. So it gets a bit confusing.

You need a heater if your water is colder than what is required temper-ature wise just normally sitting in a room. So keep your temperature steady between 75-80F and you will be good. Yes it does feel a bit cooler than that because we are 98.6 normally so it would feel a bit cool to the touch.

I can't wait to see what your water tests show when you get them. This will tell a lot about your tank and if you can add corals or fish. It could be that your tank is finished the cycle and that would mean that you add snails and hermits to keep the algae clean and after a week or two you can add one or two fish. After you are good at keeping your water stable with parameters you can add a few corals. I would still wait until your tank has been stable for at least 6 months before you add an anemone. There are many different types of anemone and the clown fish will be hosted by them but different clowns will host in different anemones. So you have to decide on what clown fish you want, if you even want them.

How is the anemone doing today? Can you give an updated picture?

Hello! Roger that! I'm sorry if it seems confusing at times... But thanks for your comments :3

I will check it and slowly (maybe in 3 to 5 days?) Try to get it between 75F to 80F

I talked to a local guy and he promised to take the anemone to his tank and will look that she was healthy in the future, he has a few candy corals (Caulastrea Furcata?) and soft corals like Palythoa, Actinodiscus (How to know if it's Discosoma?) and a beautiful Xenia... Which he refused to say where he get it... Since it's not common locally...

Well... I talk to like 20 different persons... He seem the best of the options... Doesn't know anything about latin names (When I say... "That's a beautiful Xenia" He was like "What?" I point at the coral and he reply "It's a pum pum polip... This is why your anemone is this bad, you should research before buying anything") I really feared to leave the anemone on his hands a that moment, but still of all the local guys he is the only one that had real coral lights and not "home made" stuff and also I thought... If the other corals are growing so much, probably his tank is in good condition, he did a water test with me to see that his water was at good levels, he has a skimmer and his tank is big, custom build but big, so I suppose the water conditions are stable.

He acctually promised me any coral I wanted of his tank, since their corals have reproduce over time, but he end up not giving me any... I really wanted a stone he had on the bottom of the tank with a small Xenia that was kind of very happy looking...

I have a strange mix of feelings... I just want the anemone to be happy.

[Dkuhlmann]

Sounds like the best you can find and without knowing the whole tank at least we know it's growing corals. That is at least a good sign and the anemone should do fine.

Remember as soon as we can get the tests on your tank and help get it stable you can get either that anemone back or a different one.

If you plan on keeping clown fish which one do you like best? This will help determine what anemone to get for best chance at hosting.

[loveaddressbox]

Sounds like the best you can find and without knowing the whole tank at least we know it's growing corals. That is at least a good sign and the anemone should do fine.

Remember as soon as we can get the tests on your tank and help get it stable you can get either that anemone back or a different one.

If you plan on keeping clown fish which one do you like best? This will help determine what anemone to get for best chance at hosting.

Yeah! I really want the best for the anemone.

That would be nice! I will focus on that today.

I would like a peaceful clown fish... I read that the Ocellaris seems to be the most peaceful, but I really like the pink skunk :) Is... A. Peride... Perideion?
A. Perideraion lol That one is hard to remember.
Are they mean to other fish?

[Dkuhlmann]

Since you want a Pink skunk clownfish you need to do your research and see what anemone they go with. I can promise you that the Skunk will be in an anemone in a very short time, the Percula and Ocellaris are hit or miss.

[ThRoewer]

... Percula and Ocellaris are hit or miss.

Never had much trouble with the ocellaris I had - they wer usually always very appreciative about every anemone I offered them.
But some percula are crazy picky. One of my current percula pairs (pair 1) rejected every anemone I offered them: BTA, malu and even a giant crispa. They rather stuck their noses into a colony of green star polyps as if to tell me what they really want: a gigantea. When I finally gave them a gig they quite literally jumped right in and have hardly left it ever since.
Another of my percula pairs (pair 4) accepted a malu (or crispa - the jury is still out on that) after a couple of days.
Though another pair (pair 2) just flat out rejected that same anemone.

If you want guaranteed success with percula you have two anemone choices: H. magnifica and S gigantea. All others are a gamble.

[Winwood]

Pink skunks naturally occur with macrodactyla doreensis.

[Dkuhlmann]

Never had much trouble with the ocellaris I had - they wer usually always very appreciative about every anemone I offered them.
But some percula are crazy picky. One of my current percula pairs (pair 1) rejected every anemone I offered them: BTA, malu and even a giant crispa. They rather stuck their noses into a colony of green star polyps as if to tell me what they really want: a gigantea. When I finally gave them a gig they quite literally jumped right in and have hardly left it ever since.
Another of my percula pairs (pair 4) accepted a malu (or crispa - the jury is still out on that) after a couple of days.
Though another pair (pair 2) just flat out rejected that same anemone.

If you want guaranteed success with percula you have two anemone choices: H. magnifica and S gigantea. All others are a gamble.

I agree and now I'm stuck with making a decision on getting the Mag or GIG albeit a small one 6" or so, but have a few reservations. My main one is them being able to eat other fish. How much of that is a problem should I decide to go this route. Then there is size that they become. I know I can keep that at a minimum by not directly feeding them. They will get enough just being in the tank. How fast do they grow?

My other option is to get rid of the Perculas in exchange for a more likely pairing. I'd prefer to get rid of the anemones and get a more suitable host but I really do like this Percula pair.

[Winwood]

I would say if you like the percs, keep em. Percs accept a wide variety of nems in captivity. Patience is the key to everything in this hobby.

[ThRoewer]

I would say if you like the percs, keep em. Percs accept a wide variety of nems in captivity. Patience is the key to everything in this hobby.

Some percula might not be picky and accept other anemones than their natural hosts (gigantean, magnifica and possibly crispa), but others might be extremely picky and only accept gigs or mags. You never know what you have until you try.

Then there is the risk that some percula loose most of their black with certain anemones and basically look like standard ocellaris.

For percula, especially the ones with lots of black, I would always chose a gigantean because that's where you find them in the wild.

[Dkuhlmann]

ThRoewer where is the best and cheapest place to find a small gig that can ship it.

[ThRoewer]

If you aren't too picky about the color I would go with a tan from Live Aquaria. Mine has recovered well and looks pretty green under a Kessil A360 (though not with camera flash):

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=332758&stc=1&d=1446873142

Just make sure to have Cipro on hand and a QT/HT set up.

[PirateLove]

That nem is doomed.

[Dkuhlmann]

If you aren't too picky about the color I would go with a tan from Live Aquaria. Mine has recovered well and looks pretty green under a Kessil A360 (though not with camera flash):

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=332758&stc=1&d=1446873142

Just make sure to have Cipro on hand and a QT/HT set up.

I'm thinking that I'd like a green one or possibly the yellow/green that I've seen a few of on here. Oh and I most certainly will have Cipro way before any gig is ordered. It's almost a given that it will need to be treated so a quarantine/hospital tank will be waiting for it upon arrival with cipro in hand if it's needed.

I've got to get my bta's sold as well as my Cherub Angel first before I get a gig. Like I said it's just a shame my Perculas won't have anything to do with my bta's