Flowers

Anemones Losing Colors

12.02.12

I have a newly set-up 35-gallon saltwater aquarium with two 55-watt power compacts (blue and full spectrum) that are on about 10 hours a day, 20 pounds of live rock from another mature aquarium and 20 pounds of sugar-fine aragonite sand (not live). The pH is 8.2, specific gravity 1.023, and there's no detectable phosphate or nitrate/nitrite. I have a 3-inch coral beauty, a half-inch boxfish, a 2.5-inch shrimp (unknown species) that hangs upside down and is rarely ever seen, and various black "slugs" that were on the live rock .

I purchased and introduced a red bulb anemone after the aquarium was running for four weeks (it's now about 3 months old). It moved all around the aquarium and found a spot in the upper corner on the glass. After a week, I put in a small clownfish. They seemed to be right for one another. Then the anemone started moving around again. Now, it is on the opposite side in the lower corner, and its tentacles have all but withered into little stumps. It seems to have lost some of its color, as well as leaving some slime where it was on the glass. The  clownfish is now ignoring it. What did I do wrong? ). The lighting you have works out to about 3 watts per gallon, which I think is on the low end of acceptable for keeping an anemone of this type. I would like to see it closer to 5 watts per gallon. The other aspect of keeping these animals is that they should be fed finely chopped shrimp, squid and fish two or three times a week. They will also eat flake foods, frozen black worms and krill, among other things. There is evidence to suggest that feeding can help offset lighting that may be insufficient. You did not mention whether you fed your anemone, so this may be one factor responsible for its condition.

Source: FishChannel.com