Rock Flower Anemone Babies
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Ron Reefman
Lets Go Snorkeling!
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Thanks for posting the video. I've been having some of the same success with my rock flower anemones. But I've never actually seen it happen.
I have 2 full size rock flower nems (the colorful ones) and about 9 months ago my wife noticed we had some very small, but brightly colored (fluorescing) dots on a rock. They turned out to be rock flower babies. I've never seen it happen, but I believe it's happened 2 or 3 times now as we have rock flowers that are the size of a silver dollar (the first babies), some that are dime to maybe a nickle (possible 2nd round or just slower growers???) and now we have more that are as small as period at the end of a sentence in a book (these have to be at least a second batch).
The parents are a rainbow color and the other is bright orange with green tentacles. The kids are a wide variety of colors, more oranges and bright greens, but some rainbows and even one that is bright yellow. Altogether I have between 30 and 35 rock flowers. It's hard to get a really accurate count and many of them are so small and they have spread all over the 50g cube. I have a small one that sits on the magnet of a wavemaker powerhead! And just a couple of weeks ago I upset one of the parents and when it closed up I found 3 nems sitting on the edge of the cap the parent sits in!
BTW, my experience is that these nems like to be in or very near the sand more than up on rocks. It's not 100% true, but more than 75% in my experience. So I've taken to putting the nems in PVC end caps or plugs (various sizes). They attach to the bottom of the cap (inside) and then I push the cap down in the sand until 95% of it is buried. After one has settled into the cap in the sand for a few days, I've never had one move. But obviously, I've had the babies move all over the tank.
Last weekend I added to new rock flowers to the collection. These were the less colorful ones but I collected them while my wife and I were snorkeling in the Florida Keys. It's my understanding, but I'm not an expert, that the ultra colorful rock flowers come from deeper water (30 to 60 feet) and the more ordinary tan, off white, green patterned ones come from shallow waters. I collected mine in water that was 2 to 3 feet deep.
I have 2 full size rock flower nems (the colorful ones) and about 9 months ago my wife noticed we had some very small, but brightly colored (fluorescing) dots on a rock. They turned out to be rock flower babies. I've never seen it happen, but I believe it's happened 2 or 3 times now as we have rock flowers that are the size of a silver dollar (the first babies), some that are dime to maybe a nickle (possible 2nd round or just slower growers???) and now we have more that are as small as period at the end of a sentence in a book (these have to be at least a second batch).
The parents are a rainbow color and the other is bright orange with green tentacles. The kids are a wide variety of colors, more oranges and bright greens, but some rainbows and even one that is bright yellow. Altogether I have between 30 and 35 rock flowers. It's hard to get a really accurate count and many of them are so small and they have spread all over the 50g cube. I have a small one that sits on the magnet of a wavemaker powerhead! And just a couple of weeks ago I upset one of the parents and when it closed up I found 3 nems sitting on the edge of the cap the parent sits in!
BTW, my experience is that these nems like to be in or very near the sand more than up on rocks. It's not 100% true, but more than 75% in my experience. So I've taken to putting the nems in PVC end caps or plugs (various sizes). They attach to the bottom of the cap (inside) and then I push the cap down in the sand until 95% of it is buried. After one has settled into the cap in the sand for a few days, I've never had one move. But obviously, I've had the babies move all over the tank.
Last weekend I added to new rock flowers to the collection. These were the less colorful ones but I collected them while my wife and I were snorkeling in the Florida Keys. It's my understanding, but I'm not an expert, that the ultra colorful rock flowers come from deeper water (30 to 60 feet) and the more ordinary tan, off white, green patterned ones come from shallow waters. I collected mine in water that was 2 to 3 feet deep.
sromero287
Valuable Member
This is for me the nicest article i ever saw in my saltwater experience, it’s awesome [emoji1319] [emoji1319][emoji1319], congratulations and obviously u guys are doing a phenomenal husbandry at your tank!!!! EPIC [emoji106][emoji225][emoji886]
Ron Reefman
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Tampa Bay Reef Keepers
MAC of SW Florida
I'll go you one better. I'll start a new thread and include pics of the tank and of my rock flowers.
Ron Reefman
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Tampa Bay Reef Keepers
MAC of SW Florida
Sweet!
Here is a link to my Rock Flower thread, as promised.
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/ron-reefmans-rock-flower-experience.409436/
TerraMagnus
Community Member
Sorry to resurrect an old thread but this just happened to me.
I had 2 RFA's in a 20 gallon tank until a few days ago. Now they are in a 73G (Red Sea Reefer 350). A third one was added this week.
The one that gave birth used to be down at the base of a rock that was sitting on sand in the old tank. In the new tank, her rock is up higher on the rockscape because some Darth Maul zoas were doing well on that rock. We thought the RFA might just let go and drop down closer to the sand. But she's been staying put and looking good.
The kids were watching when the last one came out and they netted it out, put it in a glass, and sure enough it's a baby.
We found this thread and realized there were probably many more, so we're collecting what we can find from the substrate. Many more probably fell into holes in the rocks on the way down. No count yet.
The tank (both the new 73 and the old 20) are well-maintained. Salinity is 1.026, nitrate stays around 5ppm. Temperature tends to be a bit on the cool side, like 76-77F. I can't seem to file attach the .aip file from the AI Prime HD lighting schedule.
I had 2 RFA's in a 20 gallon tank until a few days ago. Now they are in a 73G (Red Sea Reefer 350). A third one was added this week.
The one that gave birth used to be down at the base of a rock that was sitting on sand in the old tank. In the new tank, her rock is up higher on the rockscape because some Darth Maul zoas were doing well on that rock. We thought the RFA might just let go and drop down closer to the sand. But she's been staying put and looking good.
The kids were watching when the last one came out and they netted it out, put it in a glass, and sure enough it's a baby.
We found this thread and realized there were probably many more, so we're collecting what we can find from the substrate. Many more probably fell into holes in the rocks on the way down. No count yet.
The tank (both the new 73 and the old 20) are well-maintained. Salinity is 1.026, nitrate stays around 5ppm. Temperature tends to be a bit on the cool side, like 76-77F. I can't seem to file attach the .aip file from the AI Prime HD lighting schedule.
ZoaAddiction81
Nems And More Nems
That’s Awesome !!!!!!!!!!
TerraMagnus
Community Member
We only recovered 6. It looks like the event started long before we started watching, and many of the babies likely fell into holes in the rockscape. At least one was in the sump (recovered).
We've got them in a net trap on a thin layer of sand hanging in the display tank. They are being target fed rotifers & BBS with a syringe.
We've got them in a net trap on a thin layer of sand hanging in the display tank. They are being target fed rotifers & BBS with a syringe.
TerraMagnus
Community Member
I think they are eating the food we're providing. They look bigger even just 24 hours later.
TerraMagnus
Community Member
Five are remaining but seem healthy. They are still getting daily target feeding of thawed frozen food. I don't want to jinx myself but I think they are going to do fine.
Queenbee73
New Member
Amazing .
Pictures please
ReeferMadnessTX
New Member
Awesome thank you! I think we watched this happen but thought it was just pooping... they do look similar. As of now we have found 2 in the rocks. Will let them stay for now and hopefully develop some color soon to confirm.
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