Tipped Over Condy Anemone - Revisited - 04/25/05
Thank you for this information.  If you would like to see a picture of it
now: go here: _http://pokemon706.com/sick.jpg_ (http://pokemon706.com/sick.jpg)
< Doesn't look promising my friend >  
I was telling you that it was clearing up, but now more is coming out, and that picture is starting to look good compared to what it looks like now.
< Not looking good, likely this animal will not survive. >  
Could it be doing this because I fed it too much?  (I put in a cube of frozen food and my clown just carried it to the Condy for him to munch on)  I have learned my lesson to put smaller pieces in my tank.  
< Indeed, feed diced, meaty food stuffs.  THAWED Mysis shrimp/plankton. >
Also how do you recommend feeding them brine shrimp?
< I don't.  Mostly water, very little to no nutritional value. >  
When I let the cube thaw in some  water it just breaks apart.  
Should I use a syringe and inject it near it,  just like you would use the project "MicroVert"?
< Yes, use a syringe (Turkey baster) to "gently" release food to the anemone, although this one looks
to be beyond that. >
Also today I did a water change, I hope it helps it.  Also, you said these aren't the easiest to take care of.  Should I try a bubble tip anemone instead?  
My LFS always has the green ones in.  They seems to look very healthy.
< I wouldn't, I don't usually recommend anyone acquire an anemone.  None are "easy"
to keep in my opinion, and should only be attempted by the most experienced of hobbyists.
Regards, Eric R. >

Tipped Over Anemone III - 04/26/05
Hello it's me one more time.   
< Hello again! >
This morning when I woke up, the Condy  was done excreting that orange stuff.  It is actually looking up.  This morning he is
semi-inflated and his foot looks like its regaining its shape.  So maybe with proper water quality (and the help from my clown) things could turn around?
< All good to hear, hopefully you will prove me wrong and be able to save this animal <G>.  Do have a read starting here to glean more info << http://www.wetwebmedia.com/condylactis.htm >>.  Also try doing a Google search re captive care/husbandry for this animal.  Good luck, and do let us know how things go.  Eric R. >

Tipped Over Condy Anemone IV - 04/26/05
Me again, anyway, I got home from school today and I noticed that he is deflated. He still looks alive though, and it seems that his foot is stuck to  the glass a little bit today.  Maybe things are starting to look up.
< We can hope. >
But maybe not.  My mom also said that during the day his foot got really big.  I don't know what that means.
< Possibly a manifestation of some physical injury. >
For a 10 dollar thing this thing sure is a lot of trouble.  *looks at bubble tip anemone through store window* *drools*
< Wrong attitude my friend!  You obviously have some concern or we wouldn't be having this conversation, but do reconsider how you view the life under your care. >
Also I have heard that anemones must have iodine in their water.  What is the purpose of this?
< All living creatures require iodine to live.  Some aquarists will dose iodine due to its rapid depletion from skimming/uptake by the animals, but dosing iodine can also be easily overdone.  Best to replenish nutrients/trace elements through frequent partial water changes, many benefits to this. >
Thanks as always.
< Welcome as always, Eric R. >

Tipped Over Condy Anemone - It's Alive! <evil laughs>) - 04/27/05
Hello, right now it is fully inflated, and it is stuck to the side of the glass (may be moving now) But best of all its pointing upward, its not on its side or anything.
< All good signs. >
It seems to have responded to when I gave it some micro-vert.
< Not likely.  Micro-Vert is geared towards FINE FILTER FEEDERS, not appropriate for this animal.  You need to feed fine meaty foods as discussed previously. >
I am so happy and wish to share you with a before and after photo... But it is night time and I don't want to disturb it. (Plus its  much better during the day.) Anyway does this make me an expert now? You said only experts can take care of them).
< Not what I said, but close enough for the sake of argument.  Are you an expert?...hardly my friend.  But if you're serious about learning to take care of this animal, and are willing to dedicate the time to research and study, you could become "expert".  Regards, Eric R. (who doesn't consider himself an expert after more than 30 years of keeping wet pets) >
 

Bubble Tip Feeding vs. Condy Feeding - The Problem Child Hi WWM Crew, <<Hello Thuy. Marina this morning.>> I love your site. I literally spend hours reading through problems and advice to find the right mix of answers to solve my problem. I have a 20G, with LR/LS, 1 yellow tail damsel, who gets along fine with my “Nemo” Ocellaris, which I acquired from a friend that wanted a gold maroon he saw at an LFS that responded to nearly any anemone it encountered. It was pretty cool. (I wanted a blue tang instead of the damsel but I know it gets big and my tank is way too small for it). I also have A bicolor blenny that hides a lot, but is cute when he comes out; a cleaner shrimp; tiny hermit crab with plenty of empty shells, some snails, and a colony of button polyps. <<Sounds like a nice mix you have there.>> Anyways, I just recently acquired a BTA and a small Condy from an LFS that had to move out of the building. (these will be my last tank mates for this tank, I hope to take over a 55 Gallon soon =D to upgrade).  <<I sure do hope so, too. 20 gallons is too little territory for the two anemones together. The Condylactis, ok, but the BTA.. questionable.>> The Condy is so simple to feed, because it sits upright and eats anything I drop on its tentacles, and food seems to stick to it better.  <<Slightly stronger nematocysts. Plus, some animals are like weeds, it seems that the stuff you don't REALLY want is the stuff that does the best in a given environment. Take Aiptasia for instance.. or don't. ;-)>> But the Bubble is so much harder, since it likes to sit sideways on my rock.  <<Well, it takes a little more attention, but should accept small bits of food blown into its tentacles.>> I looked at your site and found awesome advice like the ones below. Food seems to fly away from the BTA when I try to feed it. I think I need to mash up the meat more to blow towards the BTA like you guys have said. This really isn’t a question, just liked your advice and wanted to make a distinction that my Condy is like the easy child, and my BTA requires more attention, but both are well worth it =D. <<Ah, yes indeed!>> The "Nemo" seems to like my button polyps... but is now curious of the Condy, noticeably acclimating to it, (seems painful to watch too). <<Not at all. It seems that clowns "know" that rules were made to be broken, don't they?>> The mouth is not to be fed, but rather the tentacles. Stimulate receptiveness by putting a very small amount of food or thawed pack juice (literally just a quarter or half teaspoon) into the aquarium about 15-30 minutes prior to feeding. Also, be sure to thaw frozen food in the fridge or cold water to retain nutritive quality... but strain and discard this liquid just prior to feeding (scrubbing excess nutrients from pack juice to avoid feeding a nuisance algae bloom in the aquarium). Once thawed, ameliorate the mysids/meats in a slurry of aquarium water and gently squirt this in a stream towards the anemones tentacles Try using a length of tubing connected to a turkey baster to gently direct thawed, frozen Mysis shrimp or plankton into the tentacles. <<I believe you're quoting here, yes? Another method that allows much greater control is to get, if you CAN, a large volume syringe, such as those used for equine/bovine care. Turkey basters and bulb syringes (a.k.a. snot suckers) require a really finely tuned hand to control well. I ALWAYS end up making a mess of things using those.>> Thanks for all the advise and hard work on this website. TT <<You and all others are most welcome. It seems our intended purpose do hit the mark. Marina>>

Condy anemone is tipped over
Hello
I have a Condy anemone I just purchase, it is doing well, and eating and such, but it is tipped over to one side. I touched the bottom of its "foot" that isn't touching the rock and I noticed it isn't sticky. Is it possible that part of its "foot" lost its stickiness. Or is this just a normal thing they like to do?
<Not normal... not healthy. Please read here: http://wetwebmedia.com/marine/inverts/index.htm.  Scroll down to the Anemone section... re anemones period, their systems, health... and particularly the Related FAQs on Condylactis in particular. Bob Fenner>

Re: my Condy anemone is tipped over - Stop Resending!
Hello, I guess my anemone lost all its stickiness, b/c when I woke I found it stuck in my powerhead. It was not a very good sight. Do you recommend bubble tip anemones? I have heard you say that they are hardy. If so does it
matter what kind? Or are all bubble tips good?
<Uhh, reading is even better... please stop writing... and read... what you ask is posted over and over on WWM. Bob Fenner>

Condylactis Anemones
Hello, 
<Good Morning>
My name is Savanah and my brother has recently started a saltwater tank. He got a Condy Anemone and it was doing fine. Then one night when we got back from dinner the anemone was in a ball and there was no tentacles showing at
all. Is it dying? What do we need to do? Please help us if you can. 
<Savanah, you don't list any specifics on the tank...size, lighting, etc. Condys do what you describe occasionally. Also, check your ammonia and nitrite levels. Do a Google search on the Wet Web, keyword "anemones". There you will find information on keeping these anemones. James (Salty Dog)>

My Husband the Condylactis
>I posted this on your chat forum site as well, but thought I would email you directly.
>>I personally don't usually visit the forum, let's see what you have for us today.
>My husband (who is like a little kid in a candy store at our LFS)...
>>As have I been in the wholesaler's.
>...decided to buy some clownfish over the weekend. We have a 55gal tank w/approx. 60-70lbs of live rock, and live sand. About 10 snails, and 10 crabs. The tank has completely cycled and we just started adding new critters last week. He brought home some xenia and a couple
featherdusters early last week. And then just like an impatient 2yr old, he went back and bought 2 clownfish and a Condy anemone a few days later. 
>>You do have your hands full, don't you? My fiancé and I are delaying a new tank because we keep arguing over stocking (what) and husbandry.
>He said he was told by a girl at the store that the fish would use the Condy as a host, which I have since found out, sounds highly unlikely. 
>>NOT unknown, but then again, Clownfishes have been known to host powerheads. This is not, however, their natural state, as the Condylactis as an Atlantic native, and Clownfishes are Pacific only.
>The girl also didn't bother to ask him what else was in the tank, and my idiot didn't offer the information to her either.
>>Well, she probably wouldn't have known what to do with the information had he given it to her anyway.
>My problem now is that the Condy is basically attacking our xenia!!! 
>>Uh oh! Time to sell it back to that girl, methinks.
>I don't know what to do. 
>>Remove it. We really do discourage people from placing motile, stinging inverts, such as anemones, with sessiles for exactly this reason.
>We move it to the opposite side of the tank, and the next morning, it's back on top of the xenia again. Is this going to kill my xenia? 
>>Very well could, or at least greatly limit its growth.
>Or what should I do with the Condy? 
>>Send it back.
>It basically sounds like the Condy is just going to be a nuisance to our tank. Are all anemones like this? 
>>Essentially, fundamentally yes.
>Do we even need an anemone for the fish?
>>Not at all! Also, many folks are finding that their tank-bred/raised Clownfishes don't seem to KNOW what to do with anemones. This won't harm or affect the fish negatively at all.
>I'm apologizing for my husband's childish behavior in advance.... He now understands why it is important to read up on everything before you buy it! Robyn Sampson
>>Short, swift, sweet lesson. Not so much childish as impulsive, and I suffer from the same malady on more than a few occasions myself. Marina