Do I need to feed a Rock Flower?

[Wuzzo]

I wanted to get a Rock Flower Nem but the person I want to get it from says I need to feed phytoplankton but I don't have it. I have Fluval Evo 13.5 with the stock LEDs. Can't they just feed off light? The only thing I have close to Nem food is Coralific Delite by Hikari.

 

[Katrina71]

I feed mine frozen too.

 

[rkpetersen]

Rock flower anemones don't consume phytoplankton. In general, if you have decent lights they will survive without any feeding at all, however they will happily and quickly eat any meaty frozen foods you offer. Even very small pieces of raw table shrimp like you buy at the grocery store.

 

[Wuzzo]

Will they eat Hikari Brine or Coralific Delite?

 

[Wuzzo]

When I asked if they need to be fed he said "Phytoplankton needs fertilizer and sun"

 

[rkpetersen]

I'm sure they would enjoy either of those. :)

And that statement's not wrong, although a little misleading. 'Phytoplankton' means all microscopic plants, and most of those are free-floating. They're eaten by aquatic creatures like tridacna clams.

Rock flower anemones don't eat phytoplankton. However, as with most corals and anemones, they do contain living algae cells (called zooxanthellae) in their bodies. These algae produce sugars when exposed to light and provided with nutrients, and then leak these sugars out to the anemone. It's how the anemone gets most of its nutrition. But if you feed it something meaty, it will ingest it and gain nutrition this way as well.

 

[Ron Reefman]

IMHO it depends a little on what your RFA looks like. I collect them in the Florida Keys and have about 30 of them in my 40g tank at the moment. There are 2 breeding adults, about 5 or 6 very near adults, a handful of young ones (6 to 12 months old) and about 10 to 15 brand new babies.

I've found that the more colorful and highly fluorescent RFA's come from deeper water and are less able to do enough photosynthesis to do well without some additional feeding. But they will eat almost anything you offer them. I feed a wide mix of different foods and once every week or two I shutdown the flow and feed them directly with a turkey baster. Than about 10 to 15 minutes later I start the pumps back up. If you want them to breed, they need to be fed regularly (almost weekly).

The less colorful RFA's come from shallower water and are much better at doing photosynthesis because they have more zooxanthellae inside. These seem to grow and do just fine without any special attention.

Now this doesn't mean that the colorful RFA's will suffer if not fed. If you feed the tank (fish and coral) well, the RFA's may do OK. But if you see them getting smaller in size over time, say 2 or 3 months, you should probably consider direct feeding. RFA's can get smaller and bigger in short cycles of a few days to a week. Like most anemones, they are mostly water and can change size easily.

There is a link in my signature below to an informative discussion about RFA's and there needs. Please join in, ask questions.

 

[Flipsquad81]

When I asked if they need to be fed he said "Phytoplankton needs fertilizer and sun"

I feed mine coral frenzy pellets

 

[endlessrealm]

I feed mine coral frenzy pellets

Do they eat mysis shrimp

 

[MMI]

I just broadcast feed my tank and they catch whatever they catch. I haven't target Fred them in two years and they're growing so much.

 

[mww00ds]

I've got 2 in my fluval 13.5 and just do broadcast feedings rotating between different types of food items. I do make sure that my nems get at least some of the meaty foods. Both have grown and are generally happy, except when I move the return nozzles by accident lol