multicolor gigantea

[trueblackpercula]

Originally Posted by elegance coral

Most anemones do not split. Gigantea, the anemone in this thread, is one of the many that doesn't.

not true

[sonofgaladriel]

I think I may have aquired the same, or at least very similar, color morph as Gary's spectacular specimen. Depending on how the light hits him, there are many shades of colors throughout this nem. Most notable in the top down photo.

[Reefvette]

Your wrong most anemones dont split there is only two HOSTING anemones that split regularly.

Bubble tips and magnifica.

other wise the rest dont split.

[Gary Majchrzak]

very nice anemone, son!

FWIW, (as already mentioned) "splitting" (cloning) isn't a natural reproduction strategy of Stichodactyla gigantea.

We've seen this species form "buds" (budding) but I have yet to find a credible report of any "bud" growing into a living independent anemone.
(I'm sure that ec knows that I searched far and wide!)

Still... it wouldn't surprise me to find an example where a gigantea bud survived.
I'm always looking for such an example

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally Posted by trueblackpercula

Gary amazing set up and Love the Gigantea....I have many questions but for now just one. Do you dose vodka in your system because your tank looks super clean and I wanted to Know if you had any Ill affects with the Gigantea.

thanks and no- I've never dosed any carbon source. I do run GAC
I also run a good skimmer and perform regular partial water changes via 'wet skimmate water changes'. Sometimes I enhance a water change with a very small dose of Lanthanum chloride. I also run 10 and 100 micron filter socks alternately.

There is an excellent Anemone FAQ located at the top of Reef Central's 'Clownfish and Anemone' Forum.
I strongly suggest anyone considering attempting S. gigantea to research anemones before purchasing ANY anemone.

Regarding host ("great") anemone reproduction strategies, here's an excerpt from the aforementioned Anemone FAQ:

Very little research has been done on tropical clown anemones in the wild. In fact, the
only current biology manual covering anemones is out of print and copies are difficult to
locate. Because of this, detailed information on anemone reproduction and life cycle is
hard to come by. In general, clown anemones reproduce asexually (via cloning by
splitting, budding or pedal laceration) or sexually. Only some clown anemones have
been observed reproducing asexually, though it is believed that all may have this ability.
All clown anemones can reproduce sexually.
Splitting occurs when an anemone splits itself in half, creating two identical individuals,
while budding occurs when a small piece of the parent anemone breaks off and becomes
a separate individual. At least two species of clown anemone (E. quadricolor and H.
magnifica) have been known to split in captivity. S. gigantea has been seen to split once
– so it does occur. Budding is less common and has only been observed once or twice in
S. gigantea and S. mertensii. Pedal laceration has never been observed with clown
anemones (this form of reproduction is common in some other anemones such as
Aptasia) though it may occur with large E. quadricolors.
Anemones are sexual creatures, in that there are male and female individuals. They
reproduce sexually by releasing eggs and sperm into the water column, where larval
anemones mature and settle out to become juvenile anemones.

[trueblackpercula]

I Have kept S.Gigantea before with no real problems other then my own fault. Thank you for the information. The herdest problem for me is getting on again as they are a rare find. I remeber 5or 6 years when you were looking i even tried to give you help in locating one. For some reason they are just not comming into NY area anymore. I would like to thank you for a great thread and from what i have seen with this amazing Anemone as the brown variant colors up real nice. they love flow and lots of light ...and if course feedings ....

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

FWIW, there is a report in the scientific literature of a gigantea in the wild that developed into more than one specimen somehow, but some are skeptical about it. That may be the basis of the various strong opinions expressed above, in case folks are interested.

[Creetin]

Originally Posted by Randy Holmes-Farley

FWIW, there is a report in the scientific literature of a gigantea in the wild that developed into more than one specimen somehow, but some are skeptical about it. That may be the basis of the various strong opinions expressed above, in case folks are interested.

Thanks for the tip, Gary very nice nem indeed!

[elegance coral]

Originally Posted by Randy Holmes-Farley

FWIW, there is a report in the scientific literature of a gigantea in the wild that developed into more than one specimen somehow, but some are skeptical about it. That may be the basis of the various strong opinions expressed above, in case folks are interested.

If you're referring to the paper I think you are, their conclusion was far from substantiated, IMHO. There was one large anemone in one spot. They came back at a later date, and there were two smaller ones in that spot. That's not proof of asexual reproduction. The study area was full of gigantea. If there's a large animal on a prime piece of real estate, and something happens to it, it would not be surprising, in the least, for others to take its place. This can be seen with many different species, throughout the animal kingdom.

[elegance coral]

Originally Posted by Gary Majchrzak

(I'm sure that ec knows that I searched far and wide!)

LOL. Ya, I know you have. So have I, and many others. There's nothing wrong with remaining hopeful though.

[deangelr]

Originally Posted by sonofgaladriel

I think I may have aquired the same, or at least very similar, color morph as Gary's spectacular specimen. Depending on how the light hits him, there are many shades of colors throughout this nem. Most notable in the top down photo.

This is awesome..

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If you're referring to the paper I think you are, their conclusion was far from substantiated, IMHO. There was one large anemone in one spot. They came back at a later date, and there were two smaller ones in that spot. That's not proof of asexual reproduction. The study area was full of gigantea. If there's a large animal on a prime piece of real estate, and something happens to it, it would not be surprising, in the least, for others to take its place. This can be seen with many different species, throughout the animal kingdom.

See, told you it was controversial.

That said, it is not quite so clear it isn't true either. Two giganteas in one area was, IIRC, very rare in that study. So for a big one to be replaced by two smaller ones would be an highly unusual event. But then again, so might splitting. Any explanation invokes uncommon events.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

To not take up Gary's thread, for folks who want more discussion on spltting, we talk about this paper here:

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/sh....php?t=1803860

here's the teaser from the article:

At the end of the study, 43 anemones existed: nine had
disappeared, six had been newly found, and one actinia
had divided into three small individuals. One individual
(565 cm2) seemed to have moved about 3 m.....
The anemone that had divided into three
individuals inhabited the rock beds.

[elegance coral]

Thanks for the link, Randy. I'm on my way. LOL

[Fishy_Clown]

Sorry to bring up the tentacle length issue again - did you say you could control it based on feeding?! Sounds odd. My experience is that it is related to light intensity and flow only. Perhaps I missed something in a post so apologies if I did. (I have 2 Giganteas side by side with the same light and flow and their tentacle lengths differ too - but this could be sub-species related..) Also, have you noticed if the thickness to length ratio has changed? ie: same length but thicker tentacle vs thinner tentacle for longer or fatter shorter - did that make sense? Beautify nem though - please dont be shy to post a new pic every day Thanks.

[Gary Majchrzak]

when I get to the point where I can control the tentacle length of anemones I'm gettin' really good at this

fwiw tentacle lengths vary on my gigantea AND those same tentacles vary in length throughout the day.

Do you have a link to info on yours, Fishy_Clown?

[Fishy_Clown]

Originally Posted by Gary Majchrzak

when I get to the point where I can control the tentacle length of anemones I'm gettin' really good at this

fwiw tentacle lengths vary on my gigantea AND those same tentacles vary in length throughout the day.

Do you have a link to info on yours, Fishy_Clown?

LOL - Brilliant Although based on how healthy it looks - you are not doing too badly !

Dont have a link to mine unfortunately, dont post much on this forum - although its one of the best around - especially for nem addicts like us!

Cheers

[DrDNA]

Gary,

I watched your tank video that your RC homepage brings up. I saw you have/had a Klein's butterfly in your tank with the gigantea... ever have any issues with it nipping at it or your maxi-minis?

[Fishy_Clown]

Hey Gary,

Here is a quick pic of 2 of mine that are literally side by side - same flow and light as I mentioned earlier - but the purple has much longer tentacles.... The blue is 'thicker' though... Perhaps general nem strength and energy has something to do with it.... Heck, who knows - something I look at every day though so if I pinpoint anything, I'll let you now.
Cheers

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally Posted by DrDNA

Gary, I watched your tank video that your RC homepage brings up. I saw you have/had a Klein's butterfly in your tank with the gigantea... ever have any issues with it nipping at it or your maxi-minis?

yes- some of my fishes will nip at anemones and Klein's is the worst offender if not kept well fed. There was a point where I was going to remove Klein's but we all worked it out

for those that are wondering where the video is:

Originally Posted by Gary Majchrzak

no fancy production. TURN OFF SOUND!

[Gary Majchrzak]

Originally Posted by Fishy_Clown

Hey Gary,

Here is a quick pic of 2 of mine that are literally side by side - same flow and light as I mentioned earlier - but the purple has much longer tentacles.... The blue is 'thicker' though... Perhaps general nem strength and energy has something to do with it.... Heck, who knows - something I look at every day though so if I pinpoint anything, I'll let you now. Cheers

there must be something different between the two. Are both hosting fish?

[Fishy_Clown]

Originally Posted by Gary Majchrzak

there must be something different between the two. Are both hosting fish?

You would think so, but no - there is no difference - apart from their size and colour (the blue is quite a bit bigger than the purple). Both are hosting, and both hosting the same species of clowns too.

[ptr13]

very nice gigantea,cool colors

[Gary Majchrzak]

[Reef1589]

I....Love...Your...Tank.... end of story.