BTA help!

[LiveWire]

Welcome to the REEF!!

 

[Fish Think Pink]

So I’m fairly new to salt tank keeping. I was given an established 30 gallon tank with 2 clownfish and 2 yellowtail damsels, one feather duster worm and a “cleaning crew with some snails and crabs. I had a green bubble algae outbreak and bought an emerald crab. Emerald crab is doing his job and doing it well.. but while I was at the reef/fish store I also fell in love with a little green and purple BTA! I’ve done a couple of feedings with freeze dried brine shrimp and Kent Marine microvert.. the anemone doesn’t seem to be the same color and I wondered what I’m doing wrong? Or if this is normal?

Welcome!

Glad you joined. Already good info & questions about your (& store) lighting as well as water parameters. Regarding feeding, don't feed more than 1x week if you're trying to grow fast and monthly is fine. Too much food and anemone can't keep up with digestion. Most of its food will come with its relationship of special algae inside of it, so your lighting needs for a BTA is similar to coral.

 

[burningmime]

Welcome!

How long has the anemone been in the tank? What kind of lights are you running? Coloration is usually influenced by light and spectrum. If there are no other signs of distress (moving a lot, gaping mouth, losing tissue), the nem could be perfectly happy and well-adjusted, but your lights just aren't tuned to show off the color.

 

[revhtree Verified Admin]

Welcome to your new home for saltwater reef aquarium resources and fun! Welcome to the family! :D

 

[painfullycurious88]

So I’m fairly new to salt tank keeping. I was given an established 30 gallon tank with 2 clownfish and 2 yellowtail damsels, one feather duster worm and a “cleaning crew with some snails and crabs. I had a green bubble algae outbreak and bought an emerald crab. Emerald crab is doing his job and doing it well.. but while I was at the reef/fish store I also fell in love with a little green and purple BTA! I’ve done a couple of feedings with freeze dried brine shrimp and Kent Marine microvert.. the anemone doesn’t seem to be the same color and I wondered what I’m doing wrong? Or if this is normal?

Have you changed your lights/flow, and how large is it/how quickly did you feed it after putting it in your tank? I changed my lights trying to accommodate a duncan that didn't want to open raising the blues. Where the anemone had decided it liked was higher in the tank and it began the process of splitting almost immediately. I feed it once a week a piece or 2 of mysis shrimp, by dropping it on the tentacles and allowing the anemone to draw it in and it seems to really do well, but mines a smaller specimen. Once I lowered the lights back a little the anemone flourished again no longer looking like it wanted to split and bubbled out nicely. They're odd creatures who hate change.

 

[Salty Rambler]

Welcome to R2R! Come great advice above. Good luck with your nem!