anemone caught in pump

If not, then try to change the water flow direction by placing the powerhead at the other bottom end of the tank, shooting close to vertically up.

I think I had too much flow where it was at.  It stayed retracted all the time, so I moved the pump away, and it started moving around the tank again.  Once it came off, and was floating around the tank.  I have tried rearranging the rock, and water flow, but it ended up back by the overflow.  That seems to be the only place it likes.  Maybe it can attache better to the glass?

Mark Peterson wrote: Looks real good to me. See how it's still hydrated, even the bubble tips and how the foot is hydrated and openly searching for an acceptable surface.  Keep your fingers crossed.

Yes, it retracted when I first pealed it off, but seems to recover very quickly.  I had to move some rocks around a little more to keep it from moving to the back (it was heading to the power head in the back of the tank that shoots up to the surface, but it is anemone safe), and turned on my pump (the one it got stuck in!!!) to increase the flow around it(it really seems to like high flow areas).  But it is looking very happy where it is now....lets hope it stays there.

I am not sure if I should shut my pump off at night (since I can't keep an eye on it).  Or if I should leave it on to keep it in place. 

Looks real good to me. See how it's still hydrated, even the bubble tips and how the foot is hydrated and openly searching for an acceptable surface.  Keep your fingers crossed.



Edited by Mark Peterson - May 01 2012 at 5:51pm

Hi Fish Mama.
For y'all reading this, Fish Mama is one of just a few hobbyists that has been with our group since the early days.

To answer some questions, yes an anemone can slip through a 3/8 inch slit, in fact it can slip through a 1/8 inch slit. A screen cage hanging about an inch distance all around the circular overflow would keep an anemone out. The distance is important. The suction flow is strongest right at the overflow and decreases with increasing distance from the point of suction.

Oh my goodness, in that last pic, the anemone is perfectly situated to be scraped off the glass. Using a metal algae scraper blade (Kent Pro Scrapers are awesome) or even better, a single edge razor blade (in the paint dept. at hardware stores a small plastic single edge razor blade holder/scraper for just a few bucks) scrape that anemone cleanly off the glass. In this case you'll want to scrape close enough to get the coralline algae off the glass. The anemone will come off with the coralline algae. Sometimes anemones don't even close up while they are being scraped off with a sharp metal blade.

The reason the anemone has chosen that spot is twofold:
1- They like to live in caves/dark places for protection. They can easily stretch out to reach the light, but shrink back into the dark hole for protection from predators (puffers, turtles and the occasional butterflyfish) and to ride out a storm/rough sea.
2- They like to stretch into smooth moderately strong current where food is flowing past. The food they absorb is most of their diet. Since an anemone is really just one huge coral polyp, it needs dissolved nutrients for the zooxanthellae algae living in their tissue. Secondarily, their tentacles armed with tiny harpoons can catch dead/almost dead meat that flows past in the smooth current.


Oh, I almost forgot. With the rocks, make a cave area where the water flows smoothly past. After scraping the anemone off the glasss, place it there in that cave area. If it's done quickly right after scraping off, holding it in place with your hand for just a few seconds may be enough to let it attach to a rock. Otherwise, just place it between two rocks to hold it in place. Don't worry about squishing it between the rocks. It cannot be squished.



Edited by Mark Peterson - May 01 2012 at 10:42am

Davidwillis wrote: I was hoping it would move to a better spot, but it seems to like it here.  Even though it has to really stretch to get light...

Mine was attached on the back of a rock, and had to extend at least 9 inches to get light on the other side. Sometimes these things find the most awkward positions to attach themselves in and somehow like being there.

The overflow is a slit about 3/8" tall, so I don't think the anemone could go all the way through, but I am not sure of that.  I know none of my fish will fit through (there is a top piece I have off in the picture that encloses it so a fish can't jump in).  I think I will try and put a screen around it anyway.  If it went for a ride down the overflow it would end up going into my skimmer pump which would kill it for sure.

I have been running my return pump, and keeping an eye on it.  It has moved down just enough so it has not been going in like the earlier picture.

I tried it again today with the pump about twice as far away, but he is not moving....

Too close?

Turn a pump to shoot directly at it and it will move away.