ReefSafari Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 So I was given a little Tomato Clownfish and I have him in a 33 long, I would love to get an anemone for it, and read that they will take to Bubble tips, I was curious how hardy they are? I know there are quite a few people that have them, do they tend to move around a whole lot? My only experience with anemones are with Carpets...so this will be new to me, and I was looking for some advice from those who have kept Bubble tips... Should I get another Tomato and have a pair of them with it? I hesitate to do so in fear that having two in the tank might cause them to be more agressive than if there was just one with an anemone....What kind of flow do they tend to like in your expereince? I am mainly concerned about them moving around the tank a bunch, are there tricks to getting them to stay put? The Tomato I have is about an inch in lench, just a little guy...still not sure if I want to go the Anemone route, so I was looking for some pro's and con's and advice from those who have kept them.. The Red variety seems to be more expensive correct? which is weird as I tend to see more people have the red kind, I don't see the green variety very often for sale or in peoples tanks...I was personally thinking of going the green route as I thought it would be a nice contrast to the tomato clowns which is more solid red coloration, but it seems at least locally I tend to find the reds more available...are the reds more hardy? or just more popular? Thanks in advance... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf86123 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Well Dave, I can say that my RBTA doesn't move, period, why I don't know, but he won't move off of his rock....They're pretty easy to care for to be honest, I feed him 2-3 times a week and he stays happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReefSafari Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 Well Dave' date=' I can say that my RBTA doesn't move, period, why I don't know, but he won't move off of his rock....They're pretty easy to care for to be honest, I feed him 2-3 times a week and he stays happy.[/quote'] Cool, thanks for the reply....Do you have clowns with it? What do you feed it, mysis or Silversides? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 I think the red are just more popular but the greens are just as hardy. I think most people prefer the color of the red (me included) over the green. I had one that moved around all the time and just stressed me out but most people say there's stay put. I think they are really cool but I had to kick mine out of the reef tank because it kept moving around. I tried to get the clowns to host a torch but they were too aggressive with it and killed it. I have to say I always enjoy watching clownfish in an anemone. I have one in the maxi-mini tank. I have a green bta too if you are interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf86123 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Whatever big chunk of food doesn't fall apart when I'm feeding the rest of the tank LOL My B&W's love the nem, they alternate between it an the frogspawn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moovinfast Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 My RBTAs seem to stay in one spot once settled. They don't move unless they split or the water flow in the tank changes. As long as you don't add or move powerheads around they should stay put once settled if all your tank parameters are good for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReefSafari Posted March 20, 2011 Author Share Posted March 20, 2011 I have a green bta too if you are interested. Hmmm...interesting...how big is it?(plotting) Whatever big chunk of food doesn't fall apart when I'm feeding the rest of the tank LOL My B&W's love the nem' date=' they alternate between it an the frogspawn.[/quote'] Cool, I bet the Black and Whites look awesome with it...is it a red one? My RBTAs seem to stay in one spot once settled. They don't move unless they split or the water flow in the tank changes. As long as you don't add or move powerheads around they should stay put once settled if all your tank parameters are good for them. Cool, I guess its a wait and see where it goes and feels comforatble...I don't plan on changing the flow in this tank... I am also curious as to why some you see are nice and bulbousy, and others tend to get long more stringy type tenticles? is there a lighting preference or flow preference ot keep them short and bulbous...or do most elongate in captivity? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf86123 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Oh yeah, it's split 3 times now I think it is since I got it, I've stopped feeding it, about 3 weeks now I guess, since I'm getting ready to finish emptying the tank out for the big tear down n rebuild, but once I get everythign back up and going, I plan on feeding it every other day, I want it to get as big as possible, since the clowns are getting bigger and I think with the size it is(it's kinda small) the clowns are just beating it up lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emerald525 Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 Hmmm...interesting...how big is it?(plotting) It's a little one only about 2 inches in diameter I would say. Here's a picture of it next to a maxi mini for size comparison. I have also wondered why some are bulbousy and others are long and stringy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Algae Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 What are you guys feeding your BTA's? My false perculas refuse to host in the BTA and the mini-maxi's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabe Posted March 20, 2011 Share Posted March 20, 2011 I have 3 RBTA's. I very rarely "feed" the nems. They seem to get plenty of stray food when I feed the fish. Occasionaly I will thaw out some silversides and give them a true meal. +1 on them staying put once they find a spot they like. I did put in an "anemone island" seperate from where my stony corals are. They would have to cross sand to get to the main structure. I believe the bubbles vs. stringy has to do with flow, at least that is my experience. (more flow, more stringy) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gill Posted March 22, 2011 Share Posted March 22, 2011 IMO BTA will stretch out there tentacle when hungry or when they are not getting enough light. I would suggest you get a "captive bred" nem, by that I mean one that has allready split in captivity. BTA from the wild (especially the reds) can be hard to keep alive, but once acclimated and happy they become almost bullet proof! IMO most RBTA you see probably came from only a handful of wild caught specimens that survived and subsequently thrived. I would suggest you island your nem if you have the space in your tank, they tend to avoid the sand bed so this will ensure they do not sting your corals. I currently have two GBTA in my tank and I just brought home a GIANT RBTA. Just the other day I pulled out four GBTA and traded them with the LFS. P.S. Tomato Clowns are MEAN!!! You really might want to consider getting that fish out of your tank ASAP and definitely think twice before adding another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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