White patches on Blue Haddoni

[Poriferabob]

Hello all,


I’ve had this Blue Haddoni for about two years now. I recently noticed it has developed some white spots/patches, as you can see in the attached photo.

The tentacles themselves don’t look necrotic or dead—they’ve just turned white.

Should I be concerned about this?

For context, I did make some recent lighting changes: I tried to replace an old metal halide bulb, but the new one didn’t work properly with my ballast, so I had to switch back to the old bulb. I’m wondering if that temporary lighting change could have caused this.

My main worry is that it might be a bacterial issue. I did recently lose another carpet anemone from the same system due to an infected wound, so I’m a bit on edge about potential infections spreading. But I also don't want to jump the gun on unnecessary treatment.

Any insights or advice would be greatly appreciated!


Thank you!

 

[billysprout]

this is a typical pattern for haddonis, i wouldn’t be concerned. never seen it on a blue before

 

[D-Nak]

Can you provide a photo under white lights?

Haddoni sometimes develop white areas when they're stressed. I typically see this in newly imported specimens, and once acclimated, the white areas typically go away. That said, I've also seen photos of haddoni in the wild with white areas, so it's not uncommon.

I agree that there isn't a need to be concerned, unless other symptoms arise, such as it deflating or the white areas becoming necrotic.

 

[World Citizen]

I would say this is a normal pattern, but it does have a strange look. It is not fully developed, or something else is happening.
I am a bit confused this is happening in a later stage. I didn't know they can develop this over time. IF it is a normal stripe pattern.

It look perfectly healthy.
I opened it in lightroom because I was confused by the foot. It looked odd.

But I see you placed it in a pot which I find a great! idea! .. Thanks for that tip.

(nothing is real anymore in this pic. Colors are filtered and sorts.)

 

[billysprout]

reef2reef is broken af today, none of these new images are loading haha

 

[D-Nak]

Let's see if this image works...

This shows a haddoni in the wild with white lines. I think it's normal, just that we typically don't see it in captive specimens for some reason.

 

[billysprout]

now it loads! i’ve only seen stripes on brown and green specimens before. +1 to a white light photo

 

[Poriferabob]

Thank you to all that have replied and I apologize for my late response.
Here are some additional photos with white light for a better look.

 

[Poriferabob]

I'm a little worried about the extra crunched/folded up areas as of late also. I have had this blue for about 2.5 years and it never did this much folding until recently. That said, it does not stay like this all the time. Just more than what I would consider normal for it. The white and folding together make me paranoid.

 

[D-Nak]

I'm guessing that is not comfortable in the pot. It doesn't have the ability to flatten out because there's nothing to hold the oral disk andit probably doesn't want to extend out in order to clear the edge of the pot. Like in the photo I shared above, haddoni are most comfortable with their foot buried in the sand, but they ALSO like to have their oral disk sit flush with the sand surface, and oftentimes will flatten out.

Anemones can "feel" surfaces and substrate, and surprisingly each species has a preference. In cases of BTAs, they'll inflate their foot and float around, eventually finding a surface that they like to attach to. With haddoni, they tend to move via sliding on their foot. I'm guessing that yours might be having a hard time moving out of the pot, so essentially it's stuck where it is and is showing symptoms of being stressed.

My suggestion would be--if you plan to keep your haddoni long term--to fill a corner of your tank with sand, at least 4" high, with enough surface area to allow it to bury its foot and then extend out its oral disk.

 

[Poriferabob]

I'm guessing that is not comfortable in the pot. It doesn't have the ability to flatten out because there's nothing to hold the oral disk andit probably doesn't want to extend out in order to clear the edge of the pot. Like in the photo I shared above, haddoni are most comfortable with their foot buried in the sand, but they ALSO like to have their oral disk sit flush with the sand surface, and oftentimes will flatten out.

Anemones can "feel" surfaces and substrate, and surprisingly each species has a preference. In cases of BTAs, they'll inflate their foot and float around, eventually finding a surface that they like to attach to. With haddoni, they tend to move via sliding on their foot. I'm guessing that yours might be having a hard time moving out of the pot, so essentially it's stuck where it is and is showing symptoms of being stressed.

My suggestion would be--if you plan to keep your haddoni long term--to fill a corner of your tank with sand, at least 4" high, with enough surface area to allow it to bury its foot and then extend out its oral disk.

Thank you again for taking the time to provide elaborate feedback and advice. I do want to share that my experiences with the clay pot have been somewhat different. I have found that the carpets seemingly rather enjoy the pot and have no issue vacating when they feel the need as far as I can tell. I do have a 4+ inch sand bed in this tank. They (my remaining red and blue) will every so often wander between foot in pot and foot in sand. The attached photos are from this morning.
Interestingly, it does seem the white patches are fading back to blue.