Rockflower anemone

[Ariel'sMom]

My rock flower anemometer was perfectly happy since I got him 4 months ago. He stayed in one place on my rocks. Now he looks like he is trying to attach to the back of the aquarium. Also, I don’t know what’s growing towards the bottom of the stem. Any ideas are appreciated!

 

[Idoc]

@Ron Reefman -- don't you have a lot of experience with Rock Flowers? I've never seen one grow a stalk this long...is this even a rock flower?

 

[Ron Reefman]

My rock flower anemometer was perfectly happy since I got him 4 months ago. He stayed in one place on my rocks. Now he looks like he is trying to attach to the back of the aquarium. Also, I don’t know what’s growing towards the bottom of the stem. Any ideas are appreciated!

Question: When you got this anemone 4 months ago, was the trunk this long? or was the top part down near the very bottom?

I'm really not sure if that is a RFA. They can get to look like this, with a long trunk) when they spawn. But that only lasts a hour or two. The oral disk looks very similar to a RFA, but the tentacles look too textured and without any color.

If I had to guess, I'd guess that this is NOT a RFA.

Most anemones tend to move if they aren't happy for any reason (attachment spot, flow, light, food, neighbors... whatever). Attaching to the glass or anything smooth is common as they can really set their foot firmly. I've found putting the base of the trunk in a PVC end cap and placing that in the sand, keeps them in place 99% of the time. They all love a good hole to draw back into if they feel the need.

Given I'm not sure what kind of anemone this is, I really don't know what that is near the bottom of the trunk. Is it firmly attached or part of the anemone? Have you tried blowing it off with a turkey baster, or rubbed it with something to see if it wipes off?

 

[mtfish]

Not sure what this is, but looks more like a frilly anemone (Phymanthus sp.) than a rock flower.

 

[Ariel'sMom]

Question: When you got this anemone 4 months ago, was the trunk this long? or was the top part down near the very bottom?

I'm really not sure if that is a RFA. They can get to look like this, with a long trunk) when they spawn. But that only lasts a hour or two. The oral disk looks very similar to a RFA, but the tentacles look too textured and without any color.

If I had to guess, I'd guess that this is NOT a RFA.

Most anemones tend to move if they aren't happy for any reason (attachment spot, flow, light, food, neighbors... whatever). Attaching to the glass or anything smooth is common as they can really set their foot firmly. I've found putting the base of the trunk in a PVC end cap and placing that in the sand, keeps them in place 99% of the time. They all love a good hole to draw back into if they feel the need.

Given I'm not sure what kind of anemone this is, I really don't know what that is near the bottom of the trunk. Is it firmly attached or part of the anemone? Have you tried blowing it off with a turkey baster, or rubbed it with something to see if it wipes off?

 

[Ariel'sMom]

This is not the greatest picture, but this is what it looked like when I got it and remained like this until a few days ago.

 

[Ron Reefman]

This is not the greatest picture, but this is what it looked like when I got it and remained like this until a few days ago.

That does look more like a RFA. So what do you want to do with it or for it? Do you just want to know it's OK? Do you want it moved?

 

[Nano_Man]

That does look more like a RFA. So what do you want to do with it or for it? Do you just want to know it's OK? Do you want it moved?

Looks like it's stretching for more light

 

[Lavey29]

Mine has done the same. Wandered to the back and attached to the glass under the sand. Been there 2 years now. The others prefer the rocks. The stem is at least 4 inches long.

 

[paragrouper]

My rock flower anemometer was perfectly happy since I got him 4 months ago. He stayed in one place on my rocks. Now he looks like he is trying to attach to the back of the aquarium. Also, I don’t know what’s growing towards the bottom of the stem. Any ideas are appreciated!

This looks like the Pacific RFA I recently received from @Tidal Gardens (pic below) the tentacles are longer than my other RFA’s and mine will stand up from time to time as well

 

[mtfish]

Found this thread talking about "pacific" RFA. This one is called a Borneman Anemone. Not familiar at all, but this would be a cold water species?

pacific vs. caribbean RFA's.

so there has been a discovery in my tank.... i HAD 6 RFA's (2 from my LFS, 3 from TopShelfAquatics, 1 TidalGardens). the one from tidal gardens was labeled as a "pacific green RFA", the rest just RFA (which i assume are from the carribean...) yesterday, i was inspecting my tank and lo and...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[littlefoxx]

I thought of pacific too, my LFS had one that looked exactly like that and they called it a pacific rock flower. Almost got it but couldnt really find info on it so I didnt get it. Beautiful though!

 

[paragrouper]

Found this thread talking about "pacific" RFA. This one is called a Borneman Anemone. Not familiar at all, but this would be a cold water species?

pacific vs. caribbean RFA's.

so there has been a discovery in my tank.... i HAD 6 RFA's (2 from my LFS, 3 from TopShelfAquatics, 1 TidalGardens). the one from tidal gardens was labeled as a "pacific green RFA", the rest just RFA (which i assume are from the carribean...) yesterday, i was inspecting my tank and lo and...

www.reef2reef.com

Looks like I got taken in by a trade name. Lesson learned

 

[Ariel'sMom]

Question: When you got this anemone 4 months ago, was the trunk this long? or was the top part down near the very bottom?

I'm really not sure if that is a RFA. They can get to look like this, with a long trunk) when they spawn. But that only lasts a hour or two. The oral disk looks very similar to a RFA, but the tentacles look too textured and without any color.

If I had to guess, I'd guess that this is NOT a RFA.

Most anemones tend to move if they aren't happy for any reason (attachment spot, flow, light, food, neighbors... whatever). Attaching to the glass or anything smooth is common as they can really set their foot firmly. I've found putting the base of the trunk in a PVC end cap and placing that in the sand, keeps them in place 99% of the time. They all love a good hole to draw back into if they feel the need.

Given I'm not sure what kind of anemone this is, I really don't know what that is near the bottom of the trunk. Is it firmly attached or part of the anemone? Have you tried blowing it off with a turkey baster, or rubbed it with something to see if it wipes off?

When I first got this, the trunk was not noticeable. The anemone quickly found its spot and seemed happy til last few days when this big change occurred. I tried removing some of the “stuff” at the distal end with a tweezer. It looked wispy but was definitely part of the stalk so I stopped.

That does look more like a RFA. So what do you want to do with it or for it? Do you just want to know it's OK? Do you want it moved?

I do want to know it’s okay. It was so stable and then it changed drastically in my opinion. Today its color is back and it is settled in the sand. As I think back on everything that happened, I did feed it a small piece of uncooked shrimp a few days before the changes. I wasn’t feeding it before.