# bubble anemone splitting



## derekc85 (Oct 23, 2008)

my RBTA split about a month ago, i took some pictures of the progress, so thought i could share. Originally the RBTA came with bubbles, but slowly vanished...









This is a shot several months ago, notice how nothing is close to it, because it stings everything...


















































I took the chance to take a clone off, and gave it to my friend...










This is what it looks now...


----------



## mr_brixs (Jun 18, 2009)

nice... how long is the splitting process?


----------



## derekc85 (Oct 23, 2008)

i would say about an hour


----------



## ozi (Aug 23, 2007)

awesome.
wish i saw mine when it split...but i believe it did it hidden under a rock


----------



## carmenh (Dec 20, 2009)

Wow, I had no idea it was so fast! I had thought that mine might be splitting because the top part is kind of figure-8ish. But it's been weeks, so if it's not a slow process, I guess not  

Carmen


----------



## trailblazer295 (Mar 7, 2010)

Very cool, though I thought clowns were imune to the sting of them?


----------



## derekc85 (Oct 23, 2008)

carmenh said:


> Wow, I had no idea it was so fast! I had thought that mine might be splitting because the top part is kind of figure-8ish. But it's been weeks, so if it's not a slow process, I guess not
> 
> Carmen


Mine wasnt a figure 8, but more like a heart... i dont like how the tenticles are so long... anyone know how to get the bubbles back or get the tenticles without cutting them lol...

I am not feeding it at the moment...


----------



## conix67 (Jul 27, 2008)

derekc85 said:


> Mine wasnt a figure 8, but more like a heart... i dont like how the tenticles are so long... anyone know how to get the bubbles back or get the tenticles without cutting them lol...
> 
> I am not feeding it at the moment...


Here's the picture of my RBTA after split. Both show stringly tentacles.










Here's my RBTA clone in a basket, after being placed in it, the bubbles appeared.


----------



## Byronicle (Apr 18, 2009)

wow that is so bizarre...i really want to go SW now lol


----------



## carmenh (Dec 20, 2009)

Do you know what caused it to regain it's bubbles while in the basket? (Light, feeding, etc?)



Here's my RBTA clone in a basket said:


> http://i396.photobucket.com/albums/pp45/conix67/PB_RBTA_IN_BASKET.jpg[/IMG]


----------



## conix67 (Jul 27, 2008)

carmenh said:


> Do you know what caused it to regain it's bubbles while in the basket? (Light, feeding, etc?)


I don't know, at first I thought it was the clowns. I heard stories that when clowns being hosting BTA, they tend to lose bubble tips.

I also heard that the tentacles become stringy when they are hungry. In my experience BTA seemed to gain the bubbles back momentarily after feeding, but does not last.

When I put the clone in the basket, many things changed - lighting, flow, hosting fish. I guess it could be any one of them. I'll experiment with this when I get another clone.

However, as far as lighting is concerned, my RBTA is all the way on top of rocks, very close to lights, and it's still stringy. So this cuts down the variables to just flow and hosting fish.


----------



## derekc85 (Oct 23, 2008)

conix67 said:


> I also heard that the tentacles become stringy when they are hungry. In my experience BTA seemed to gain the bubbles back momentarily after feeding, but does not last.
> 
> However, as far as lighting is concerned, my RBTA is all the way on top of rocks, very close to lights, and it's still stringy. So this cuts down the variables to just flow and hosting fish.


I've had similar experience. when i feed the anemone consecutively it does get back 'some' bubbles and the tentacles are shorter. but once you stop feeding it goes searching for food again.

My RBTA was under ~8" of water under 8xT5HO's, now it moved down to 24" (tank is 30" tall) who knows where it will go next..


----------



## carmenh (Dec 20, 2009)

Very interesting. Nems are new to me so I'd love to hear any further observations you come up with on this!

Carmen



conix67 said:


> I don't know, at first I thought it was the clowns. I heard stories that when clowns being hosting BTA, they tend to lose bubble tips.
> 
> I also heard that the tentacles become stringy when they are hungry. In my experience BTA seemed to gain the bubbles back momentarily after feeding, but does not last.
> 
> ...


----------



## BKTruong (Jun 29, 2009)

Bubble Tip Anemones DO lose their "nipples" when hosting clowns. These are before and after shots of a Maroon Clown I added in. The reason your RBTA regained its tips must be because it's separated from the clowns as oppose to the other RBTA's that are placed in the tank with the clowns swimming freely.


----------



## derekc85 (Oct 23, 2008)

In this picture, the RBTA has been in the tank for about 6 months, the clowns never touched it, and it never bubbled up.










has anybody seem clowns actually feed the anemone? instead of stealing food from it?


----------



## ozi (Aug 23, 2007)

When I first got my anemone it had the bubbles on the tips and it had them for the longest time while I was feeding it 2-3 times a week. After a while it got really big so I stopped feeding as much. At first I cut down to once a week, then it split into 2 and I've been feeding them more like every couple of weeks, and both have lost their bubble tips since.
So I believe (from my own experience with it) that the bubbleness of its tentacles is related to some extent to feeding.
My pair of Ocellaris clowns have never even touched it, they are hosting a hammer coral and don't seem interested in anything else.


----------

