See here... Sea hare 5/3/04 Tube Anemone
Good evening my
wonderful reefers! lol
<live it, swim it, smoke it... er, well..
two of those things at least>
I won a Aplysia dactylomela the
other day at a raffle. I won it on purpose out of sympathy, I
didn't want it to end up with some poor bloke w/out a clue where it
would starve to death.
<interesting... perhaps a polite mention
to the club/donors to be more conscientious about submitting items
of challenging needs for random win/purchase by others>
After a
bit of hunting around my tank for some red algae (which proved
non-existent, the info on the specific type of algae these guys eat
is rather lacking, a lot of authors say they eat red algae they just
don't specify what kind! I think it must also take them awhile to
adjust their diet to green algae)
<I do not spy it quickly at
hand... but we have a link in our bibliography for our Reef
Invertebrates book to a web page that lists the exact foods for many
species of opisthobranchs>
I tried putting in some red/purple
Nori by Two Little Fishies (Julian Sprung & Co) and my guy started
to chow down.
Since then all it does is eat and sleep. hehe
<ahhh... good to hear>
I was wondering if you could tell me
approx how long this sea hare lives? I've read from 1-2 years is
all.
<hmmm... I am not certain, although I recall the larger
temperate species living somewhat longer than the typical 24 months
or less>
Do they live longer if they don't mate?
<nope...
not to my knowledge. There is precedent to support this in other
mollusks (like the famous octopuses with a defined lifespan, breed
or no)>
It's funny, I live in Miami and went snorkeling the other
day and saw a mated pair of Dactylomelas. I didn't know mine was
the same even though I've seen them many times when I snorkel.
Also, treading into dangerous waters... are there any colorful
Nudi's that can be easily kept in a reef tank or is this a lost
cause?
<hmmm... sort of. The key to any Nudibranch is identifying
and supplying their food source. Many will keep and breed easily if
you can do this. I keep an active colony (several hundred!) of
beautiful blue Berghia (Aiptasia eaters). Other folks keep and breed
Elysia sp algae eaters... some folks even dabble with the Zoanthid
eating species. The problem with keeping in reef tanks is that most
such systems have excessive powerheads and overflows. If you plan
well though, you can keep some beauties>
I always feel so bad
when I see these really amazing looking, doomed Nudi's at the
LFS. There should be a campaign on to stop the collection of
specialized feeders such as these.
<no formal campaign is needed.
Educated aquarists simply vote with their dollars and do not buy
them. They die in the dealers tank, and when it happens enough
times, the dealer stops ordering them <G>. You might help this along
with a polite mention of the reality (supported by a helpful list
of web links or photocopied documents) that you give to the LFS. If
that doesn't work... tell us their name and we'll post them on the
wall of shame <G> Ha!>
Oh, about how big will a tube anemone get
in a reef tank?
<it won't... because it does not belong in a
reef tank and will never be placed there by a conscientious
aquarist. If you know of anybody tempted to the contrary, please
direct them to our extensive archives at wetwebmedia.com for an
explanation why not <G>>
Will I need meters of sand eventually?
lol I hope not. (
<8-12" would work nicely... let it mature for
6-12 months before putting a Cerianthus in a species specific tank
(no corals or other anemones unless you intend to sacrifice some)>
Ah, the pot calling the kettle black I know, but I'm going to try
and provide for it) It's only 3 inches long at the moment and eating
fine.
<sigh... disappointing>
Thanks for all your help! Love
you guys, Morgan
<sob...sob... another anemone destined to be a
statistic. Anthony :p> See here... Sea hare II 5/3/04 Tube
Anemone
Blast! hehe Why is my tube anemone doomed?
<the
problem is not so much the anemone (Cerianthus are aposymbiotic and
actually can be kept well if fed well enough - several times weekly
with a variety of finely minced meaty foods in substitute for
plankton... a plankton reactor in support better yet). The real
problems here are that most people are not willing or able (busy
lives) to target feed these anemones by hand several times weekly
for a lifespan that exceeds the family dog (anemones live decades
and some seem to be "immortal", as in "no tissue degeneration",
read: no definable lifespan). Without speaking to the extreme end of
the potential lifespan, my argument is that few people will commit
long enough to get the anemone to live more than just a few years
(and that's being generous). We see most of these animals die very
slowly of starvation. Add to that the fact that they are extremely
aggressive and pose a direct and serious threat to fishes and other
cnidarians in the confines of aquaria. I frankly think they are
excellent choices for anemones (well... maybe not "excellent for
their ability to sting people fiercely... but still a hardy
candidate)... IF, one is willing to keep them in a proper, species
specific display>
I've read a lot of faq's on people that have
kept them for years.
<yes, agreed. Still... most die within just
a few years. That's not responsible aquarium keeping IMO>
I will
be moving it to a 180 in a few more months and we keep 4-5 inch DSB,
it'll probably be deeper when we get the 180.
<I'm truly glad to
hear it... but we hear this story all the time. Everyone expects to
move into a bigger tank. Some folks do, and other folks "life
happens": job change, house move, children, finances change, etc.
And this anemone does not need a bigger tank... but rather, an
isolated species tank. Perhaps a DSB refugium at the very least
(still will not temper allelopathy)>
It eats really well and I
feed it meaty foods, DT's, Cyclop-Eeze, etc, etc.
<the DTs is
interesting... and likely not needed at all... these are zooplankton
feeders>
I am also willing to give it plenty of breathing room so
it doesn't sting stuff when it gets larger.
<focus instead on not
mixing unnatural species my friend. You and your animals will fare
better for it>
Why is it doomed??
<as per above>
All the
WetWeb faq's I read made it sound okay to keep.
I don't want it
to die!! sniff, sniff...
<understood... no worries. Hopefully
clearer now :) >
I've kept my flame scallops and tunicates, etc
for almost 2 years now.
<very nice to hear... but to consider
it against their actual natural lifespans. We can't claim victory
yet>
What do I have to do so it doesn't become a doomed
anemone???
<you've got the right mindset my friend! And the
solution is really simple and inexpensive. Could be a 29 gall or
38XT tank with 8" of sand. Preferably offline of the main display,
but tapped in if you must>
Cheers, Morgan
<best of luck,
Anthony> See here... Sea hare III 5/3/04 Tube Anemone
I'm back about the tube anemone. ;] I reread all of the WetWeb
faq's and general info about these guys and there is nothing in
there that says these guys are doomed.
<no worries... as per
prev e-mail, this is a matter of risk to other inhabitants for their
aggression and concern that most folks do not have the time to
hand/target-feed this azooxanthellate feeder several times weekly
for all the years of its lifespan>
Quote: <From my experience, if
you provide the tube anemone with enough space, it is not a threat
to your aquarium. However, some people have noted that their tube
anemone has eaten some of their smaller sized fish. Although this is
uncommon, it can happen. Overall, I would keep it -- It's a very
colorful and hardy addition to your aquarium.>
<yes... agreed>
Let me clear up a few things: I keep a DSB 4-5 inches of very fine
Southdown, have a huge EuroReef skimmer and a refugium, lots of flow
in the tanks, do monthly-bi-monthly water changes, and provide
plenty of space for the anemone so it doesn't sting other creatures.
<excellent to hear all, except the latter presumption that space of
mere inches/couple of feet will spare allelopathic aggression from
unnatural tankmates in the confines of a closed aquarium system>
The small one I have is temporarily (one month) in an 11 gallon tank
w/ pc lighting, 3 inches of fine CaribSea live sand, two powerheads,
and a hang on the back refugium w/ Chaeto, Caulerpa, and miracle
mud, and bunches of decapods all over the glass (no fish).
<OK>
I have various other corals in the tank which are doing fine, no
obvious signs of chemical warfare.
<we have two different
perspectives here my friend... I am talking long term>
The
anemone is very responsive/retracts quickly and opens up fully at
night. It also eats well.
<a beautiful animal indeed>
I also
spoke with some people on ReefCentral that keep tube anemones and
they said chemical warfare does not seem to be a problem. Of course
they had larger tanks like I will have this guy in soon.
<neither
they nor I can quantify the impact of allelopathic aggression in the
confines of a variable 3-d environment (your tank/husbandry/stock).
Unless they cited scientific papers that you can kindly point me too
to add to my collection/perspective?>
Is it still doomed?
<not at all... just needs specialized care. No casual keeping of
anemones in mixed reef displays. Its neither natural nor practical>
As you can see I'm a bit stubborn. hehe
<not the word I would
have used... but OK <G>>
If you tell me something's doomed I work
harder to make it not doomed, like the flame scallops. ;]
<sigh>
Thanks for any and all advice! Morgan
<Anthony> Sea
Hare IV 5/3/04 Tube Anemone
Hi Anthony!
<cheers>
Nice
to get your reply so soon.
<we eat sleep and breath our
hobby/passion :) >
Well, I nor my husband are casual reefkeepers,
we are along the line of obsessed reefkeepers. hehe
<Hmmm... to
clarify, what I mean by casual keeping is/was the state of keeping
organisms in "garden style" mixed displays (species mixed randomly
or in unnatural combinations... diff parts of the reef [sand flat
anemones, reef crest corals, lagoonal fishes, etc] or those form
entirely different oceans. For better or worse, that is your tank
(mix of anemones, e.g.) and what I meant by casual keeping (versus
specialized care)>
He's kept saltwater systems for 9+ years and
I've only been in it for 2 yrs and I'm almost more obsessed than
him. I got hooked when I looked up an Acro of his to see if it was a
valida or loripes.
Since then I've done my best to become an
unschooled marine biologist. lol
<heehee... very cool>
To
reassure you, I have four other anemones (ha! how did I end up with
so many??!! I'm going to have to train several generations in
saltwater aquariums now) two flowers, a green bat, and a rose
BTA. Therefore I'm used to feeding at least twice a week w/ a
mixture of Proplan/Frozen brine shrimp/bloodworms and
DT's/BioPlankton. I'm trying to keep my Tubastrea alive/not
receding and I think that will prove to be much more of a task than
keeping the tube anemone alive.
<Hmmm... same frequency of
feeding (3-5 times weekly), but indeed tougher as the Tubastrea
needs each individual mouth fed>
I usually dose DT's every other
night and feed a variety of foods to my fish/creatures during the
day (Cyclop-Eeze, Spirulina, pellet). I also feed live brine shrimp
about once a month.
Now you can see why we have a 2 1/2 foot
EuroReef on a combined 135gals of tanks. hehehe And it does a great
job.
<a very fine skimmer... one of the best>
I definitely
will do all that I can to provide for this anemone as with all of my
creatures. I have lost a few corals since I began and learned from
it, I've had a very good teacher too. I understand that there are
some things that just cannot be kept under any circumstances. We
don't have any choice but to move into a 180. We have a 75 and 58,
between our two tanks there is literally no more rock space to put
corals, including on the sand! haha My husband would get a larger
tank if I let him, but then our living room would be reduced to a
closet. lol I know you guys never worry about esthetics, only about
bigger is better. hehe
<its a pervasive thought for the masculine
gender>
As for the flame scallops, I know I haven't reached the
victory point yet, but I can taste it. ;] Okay, onto another strange
subject. The 11gal is strictly an invert tank and I have several
tunicates in it. Some even came w/ the LR, which was a surprise, I
guess it really was cured! ;] Anyway, I go snorkeling in the Florida
bay a lot and collect a few encrusting colonial tunicates that live
on turtle grass/Halimeda/other stuff. They're small, very colonial
(like pilgrims), and come in various cool colors (mainly orange and
red). Here's the question, well leading up
to it... I've tried
to keep them before, but my hermits always found them and said "Ah!
Desert!" after a few days. Now I have no hermits in my invert tank.
Bwahahahaha! So I bring them home and glue the Halimeda leaf to the
rock. Then in a matter of days the tunicates walk over to the rock
and completely desert the
plant leaf. I've seen it happen
several times now. Here's the question: How do these colonial
tunicates know to move onto the rock?
<chemosensory response...
water flow... dunno>
How smart are tunicates?
<1300 on the
SATs... beats me>
Do they have unknown sensory organs?
<if
so, we don't know of them ;) >
I know that they're pretty
sophisticated, but hmmm... The tunicates that I collected recently
were on Halimeda leaves and in about 4-5 days almost all of the
tunicates have moved onto the rock and deserted the vegetation.
<my guess would be seeking optimal water flow places/patterns for
optimal feeding opportunities>
Well, that's my big stumper for
the night/am. Always enjoy talking w/ you. Maybe one day I'll go to
IMAC and meet you guys.
<excellent... looking forward to it :)>
Goodnight! Morgan
<ciao, Anthony> |
