Startin up this thread to kind of go along with the Coral of the Week thread, except this one will be on inverts.
This weeks topic is Carpet Anemones. Seems to be many people wondering about them lately so I decided to do it on them.
Lighting: These anemones need a ton of light, and should not be kept with out Metal Halide lighting.
Water flow: They require some flow but not too much, in other words don't blast them but they do need a medium flow going across them.
Aggressiveness: These anemones are extremely aggressive. They contain a potent sting and can cause rashes and things of the sort if you touch them. Be careful when handling them as their little tentacles will stick to you and this can cause damage to the anemone.
Feedings: These anemones will take food such as shrimp, pellets, any frozen food, etc. Also possibly your fish!
Hosts: They will host just about any clown. I personally have a saddleback hosting in mine. I have heard them to be extremely rough on their anemones and can possibly kill them. Mine hasn't done this but in most cases will. Also one interesting thing that I have found out is that Domino Damsels will also host in the carpet anemone.
Placement: They generally like to be placed in the sand. Some will go onto rocks low in the tank. They generally stay where you put them, or around the area, unless they really hate where they were placed.
These anemones need to be kept in a well established tank only. They are sensitive to water quality and need to be monitored pretty closely. I would say the tank needs to be up at least 8 months through a year before purchasing one of these.
Be where these anemones can get extremely large and sting anything in its path including eating fish if they get too close.
Here are some pics of my saddle back and carpet:
There is a size reference, the clown is about 3 inches...
The rest of these are not my pictures...
Any questions/ comments/ pics would be great!
Matt