Anemones - Please share what you have.....

[Taipan]

I was at a local LFS earlier and came across these 2 Stichodactyla mertensii carpet anemones. I originally was mistaken and thought they were Stichodactyla gigantea. However; after further inquiry on another forum and re-assessing the underlying verruccae - I learned it was a Mertensii.

I personally haven't seen this colour morph/combination before; nor have I seen them this small in size - approx 4" and 6" respectively. They can be best described as Burgundy with Gold tips in my opinion.

Thee pictures were taken with a camera phone. I'll try and post better quality pictures soon.

[Delphinus]

Nifty! It is definitely a species not seen very often in the hobby. Especially neat to see them at this size. If for sure S. mertensii they have the potential to get rather large!

I was wondering at first if S. helianthus was also a possibility but I do not remember very well what their verruca look like. The shape and patterning is certainly consistent with merten's and the tentacles as well. So probably not. I suppose if you have the ability to ask the store where they were sourced, if Caribbean then helianthus, if Pacific then mertensii.

Did you get any for yourself?

[Taipan]

I've kept S. helianthus in the past and actually gave it to a friend of mine a while ago. It came in from a Caribbean shipment at the LFS. It was different and caught my eye. What really caught my attention was the excpetionally powerful sting and stickiness of S. helianthus. Unlike any carpet I've encountered before.

One of the Mertensii Carpets didn't make it unfortunately. The other seems to be relatively well but I'll wait a little longer before calling it a success.

I'm in the midst of acquiring a Purple Gigantea that I've sourced out and hope to have new Red Carpet for my upcoming build. I'll keep you posted.

[Taipan]

I'm well aware that this specimen has most likely has gone through some form of bleaching (via high intensity lighting). However; that being said.....I took a chance on this particular anemone since it was "orphaned" at an LFS by a good client who was moving. It has been in captivity for quite some time from the original client. I'm hoping that since it has been in captivity for awhile and the tips of it are still orange/gold - despite the bleaching.....the colour will remain as vibrant. Traditionally from my experience; bubble tip anemones that are "fresh off the plane" and bleached will return to their "normal" colouration in time. Also; the tips are generally bleached as well - no gold or orange. It's currently being held for me as I'm awaiting the completion of my new Display. It's being held under T5 conditions; but low level lighting T5s (4 bulbs, not 6 or 8 bulbs). We'll see if it changes colouration or reverts to an 'original' colour under low(er) intensity lighting over time. No photo shopping or editing involved in these pics. Enjoy.....

[Myka]

I just have little nems...

[Taipan]

It's not "just" tiny or any anemone...it's beautiful

[Taipan]

[Taipan]

I'll update when I get a definitive answer to what kind of anemone it actually is......

[noirsphynx]

Originally Posted by Taipan

I'll update when I get a definitive answer to what kind of anemone it actually is......

Is it maybe the fish eating anemone (Urticina piscivora)

Edit: never mind, just saw the other thread =)

[Taipan]

No need to apologize. I value your input. It entirely possible. However; from the Google pics I've compared it to....it does seem like a variant of a "Ball" Anemone - Corynactis sp.

I was used to seeing the smaller Caribbean Ball Anemones and have not encountered one this size before.