Anemone closed!! :(

[allendehl]

Hello guys,

Not sure this is normal so I am kinda freaking out with my new anemone. I brought it home yesterday and It was super happy and fully opened until I turned off all equipment (pump, skimmer and powerheads) for feeding time today. It right away started to close. It must have been less than 10 minutes when I turned everything back on and it is even more closed now (more than an an hour later).
Is this normal?...did I do wrong by turning flow off? It didnt have any flow when I brought it and it wasn't as upset as it is now.
Will it open up again.....hope so!!!

[LeJeune981]

Prolly just spooked it is all... all ya can do is wait it out and see what it does..

Mine did the same thing when I first got and turned on my metal halide lights... hell the whole tank freaked out...except the corals...
Nem was about 90 percent closed for a few hours after.. but then it was all good... I still haven't tried the halides again though...and I really wanna run them...they were expencive! Lol

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[allendehl]

Photo here...poor thing is all foot.

https://i.imgur.com/2W2kEA8.jpg

[LeJeune981]

Has there been any changes in your tank.. new fish.. anything get in the tank?
What's your parameters?


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[OldReefGuy]

how old is your tank?

[JUNBUG361]

Looks stressed out

[LeJeune981]

Looks like it's puffing it's insides out of its mouth actually.. not a good thing

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[LeJeune981]

I just reread... you said it closed up at feeding time... did you by chance try and feed it?

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[allendehl]

It looking a lot better this morning :thumbsup:, though not totally open yet. I did a water change on the morning before I brought her so parameters should be ok. Test kits for alk, mag and calcium are on their way but the others have been very stable and in check for a while so I don't have any reason to believe they went crazy right after a 20% WC.

It happened right when I turned off the pump and powerheads at feeding time, I did put a piece of thawed raw shrimp on her when I turned everything back on as I thought that would make her happy.

Now, she definitely didn't like the sudden change in flow...but on the other hand if I don't turn equipment off the food would get all blown around the tank. How do you guys do it?

[pfan151]

Do you have a pic of it when it is looking good?

[allendehl]

Do you have a pic of it when it is looking good?

I do have one from before, here it is. Haven't taken from after...can do this afternoon when I get home if you're interested.

https://i.imgur.com/gfa9n4j.jpg

[BlueMoods]

Nems can be touchy about flow, they tend to dislike it being turned off. There is really no reason to do so for feeding, the fish can chase food just fine.

[sde1500]

It looking a lot better this morning :thumbsup:, though not totally open yet. I did a water change on the morning before I brought her so parameters should be ok. Test kits for alk, mag and calcium are on their way but the others have been very stable and in check for a while so I don't have any reason to believe they went crazy right after a 20% WC.

It happened right when I turned off the pump and powerheads at feeding time, I did put a piece of thawed raw shrimp on her when I turned everything back on as I thought that would make her happy.

Now, she definitely didn't like the sudden change in flow...but on the other hand if I don't turn equipment off the food would get all blown around the tank. How do you guys do it?

Fish can swim after their food, it won't hurt them. Leave flow on. Just a heads up nems are sensitive creatures, more so than most corals. Not advised really to add them without having proper test kits and knowing your tank parameters. But obviously you are past that now, be sure you are testing very regularly. They benefit a lot from stability.

[ReeferNoob4ever]

IME they are finicky but also tougher than people give them credit for. I have one that inflates and deflates all the time. More than anything i think it upsets my clown who loves to lay in it when it's open. This has been going on for 6 months+

[Small Heavens]

When flow is changed radically, they easily react as if a giant predator is hovering over them; and hide.

They also tend to need some time to stabilise their inner chemical releases as they adjust to new conditions, during which they might retract and rearrange the amount of algae inside their tissue; and that can be a freaky thing to watch for new Anemone keepers.

After they feed they can easily be unhappy looking while concentrating on what happens in their "belly". The "unhappy" feeding look can also return when they need to expel waste later.

When using target feeding and you want to avoid the food spreading, you just feed the Nem first (if it needs feeding that day), and let it close up with the food already inside and then feed the rest of your aquaria and turn the flow back on.

I agree with ReeferNoob4ever that they are finicky but also tougher than they get credit for.

Enjoy.

[Small Heavens]

Oh, also, in regards to "Frozen Foods", remember that humans add tons of things to our own frozen foods, including those called "Fresh Seafood".

If you don't buy food prepared for use in aquariums, make sure you get clean seafood and if needed freeze fresh meaty seafoods yourself, so you can have the frozen food available for feeding your aquaria without the additives used in foods for human consumption.

[pinnatus]

I just reread... you said it closed up at feeding time... did you by chance try and feed it?

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This^^

If food fell on it, it would tend to close up while it eats.

[pfan151]

Is that a Magnifica? I’ve never seen a BTA with any bifurcated tentacles like your anemone appears to have. If it is a mag you need to move it up to the top of your rockwork.

[allendehl]

Is that a Magnifica? I’ve never seen a BTA with any bifurcated tentacles like your anemone appears to have. If it is a mag you need to move it up to the top of your rockwork.

Not sure, it was sold to me as a "purple bottom maroon" and I was told by some it looks like a LTA.

[pfan151]

Not sure, it was sold to me as a "purple bottom maroon" and I was told by some it looks like a LTA.

Definitely not an LTA. Try posting a pic in the anemone section. There were some BTAs that looked a lot like mags that came in last year that fooled some people. I’m wondering if what you have may be the same. Nice anemone regardless of whether it’s a BTA or a mag. Those are the only possiblities IMO.

[LeJeune981]

This^^

If food fell on it, it would tend to close up while it eats.That and all I have read highly recommends NOT feeding a new nem for about a week

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[allendehl]

Thank you all!!...Nem shrunk today again...hopefully I'll find it better tomorrow. All I did was to turn ONE powerhear (the one blowing right on top of her) to see of the food stayed above her and the clowns would come check her out. Pump stayed on as well as one more powerhead. I kept it off less than a minute as I saw it starting to close slowly. It looks like this one is extremely sensitive.
I am not messing with the flow or the nem anymore at least until my next water change.

[Uncle99]

If you are sure your water is perfect and your lights not to strong (while he is getting used to the new environment) and he remains secure to the rock, I would just leave him alone.
They shrink when they eat, they shrink when the poop, if the piece of shrimp you feed was big it could takes days for him to digest. Keep the food small, 1-2 per week max, size of your baby fingernail, or better, shoot some frozen brine on him with a turkey baster. After they acclimatize, so about a month or so, they do less shrinking.

[allendehl]

If you are sure your water is perfect and your lights not to strong (while he is getting used to the new environment) and he remains secure to the rock, I would just leave him alone.
They shrink when they eat, they shrink when the poop, if the piece of shrimp you feed was big it could takes days for him to digest. Keep the food small, 1-2 per week max, size of your baby fingernail, or better, shoot some frozen brine on him with a turkey baster. After they acclimatize, so about a month or so, they do less shrinking.Uncle, I posted some pics from last evening of the nem closing for no apparent reason in my other thread. People believe it's sick. Do you mind taking a look and giving your opinion?
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2660531

Thanks!

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[ReefMaster48]

I do not turn off the pumps for feeding. The fish can work for their food lol

Also, you nem has only been in the tank for a day. I would expect it to do some odd stuff in the first day or two. You are drastically changing his environment, so he will be POed and scared. Nothing to worry about. I would be more concerned with covering your powerheads or doing something to make sure that he doesn't get blender-ed.

[lawdog]

How old is your tank? This is a magnifica Ritteri anemone!!!! Probably the hardest most delicate creature we attempt to keep in reef aquariums. You must have a mature tank (2yrs old minimum), perfect water and knowledge about this creature. This is an expert only type animal.

Most Mags come in sick and stressed and need antibiotics (cipro to be exact) before they should be introduced to an established tank. Even then they can have a low survival rate. Go to nem forum and post and read sticky about antibiotics treatment for them. Get cipro ASAP!!! And start treating..

Whoever sold this to you did you no favors at all... I have successfully kept Mags for years so I understand the process.

If it keeps doing the deflate, inflate cycle every 12-14hours or so it is losing the battle and will most likely not recover. Please get it into a hospital tank with cipro... it maybe able to be saved still.

[allendehl]

How old is your tank? This is a magnifica Ritteri anemone!!!! Probably the hardest most delicate creature we attempt to keep in reef aquariums. You must have a mature tank (2yrs old minimum), perfect water and knowledge about this creature. This is an expert only type animal.

Most Mags come in sick and stressed and need antibiotics (cipro to be exact) before they should be introduced to an established tank. Even then they can have a low survival rate. Go to nem forum and post and read sticky about antibiotics treatment for them. Get cipro ASAP!!! And start treating..

Whoever sold this to you did you no favors at all... I have successfully kept Mags for years so I understand the process.

If it keeps doing the deflate, inflate cycle every 12-14hours or so it is losing the battle and will most likely not recover. Please get it into a hospital tank with cipro... it maybe able to be saved still.


Yup...I'm on it. Trying to to get Cipro asap, not an easy task, and setup a warzone hospital.

Thanks

[lawdog]

Your vet can prescribe it but may not for an aquarium. You can buy Cipro online (Amazon) sells itunder fish medicine and fish antibiotics for aquatic use only. It’s the same stuff. I have successfully treated with the online cipro before. I would get it overnighted to you...

[allendehl]

Your vet can prescribe it but may not for an aquarium. You can buy Cipro online (Amazon) sells itunder fish medicine and fish antibiotics for aquatic use only. It’s the same stuff. I have successfully treated with the online cipro before. I would get it overnighted to you...

Nem is already in the hospital tank with her rock (geez, she picked the largest) a PW and air. A friend has Cipro and I'll go get it in a couple of hours to start treatment.
BTW I could not find it on Amazon at all, all I was able to find was Amox.

Light will be later today.

[lawdog]

Make sure you keep the intake covered on the Powerhead to avoid any issues and keep the heater guarded as well... easiest HT setup for nems is a 10g with an eggcrate divider and keep heater and PH on one side and nem on the other... definitely keep her on the rock to lessen the stress.

Make sure you do following the dosing instructions on the antibiotic treatment sticky in the Nem section and stay on top of the water changes to keep fresh water and remove the waste...

Once treated successfully and placed into an established tank i have found Mags tend to do well. But you have keep your tank water params rock stable or they will move and can get sick/stressed and start the inflate/deflate cycle. If it happens you need to pull them out and treat again.

Google Fish Flox and you can find the Cipro online.

[lawdog]

Also you don't need/want a ton of light while they recover... a nice 65w led grow light or flood light option works well with a clip on... you want to give some light but not too much that will stress out even more as they recover.

it is a beauty of a nem with that purple foot so i hope you can save her!

[pfan151]

Nem is already in the hospital tank with her rock (geez, she picked the largest) a PW and air. A friend has Cipro and I'll go get it in a couple of hours to start treatment.
BTW I could not find it on Amazon at all, all I was able to find was Amox.

Light will be later today.

You are definitely doing the right thing by treating it. Follow the protocol exactly and you have a very good chance of it surviving. Mags respond very well to cipro. Once you get past the initial sickness, mags are just as easy as any other Anemone to keep healthy.

[ca1ore]

Uncle, I posted some pics from last evening of the nem closing for no apparent reason in my other thread. People believe it's sick. Do you mind taking a look and giving your opinion?
http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2660531

Thanks!

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Magnifica anemones are legendary for inflation/deflation cycles when infected. They will typically look good in the morning, then all shriveled up in the afternoon and then look better the next morning .... thus 'recovering' to the novice keeper. Each successive cycle looks slightly worse and eventually you are left with a pile of goo. The folks in the anemone section are practiced hands and know of what they speak. I see that you are treating it, just make sure to do the full 7 days regardless of how good it may look before then. Mags are quite difficult to ship and acclimate, but once acclimated they are very enduring.