Carpet Anemone question

[albert_dao]

My RBTA's get mysis and only mysis. I use to feed them chopped tiger tail shrimp, but later decided that I'm better off eating the shrimp myself.

Edit: THe RBTA's that I DID have up until a month ago. Gave them to a friend where they were promptly eaten by his SEIO. It was awesome. Three hours of cleanup work, I helped... God... Cause life is just that great, haha.

[Aquaholic]

I have a carpet and 2-3 spot damsels hosting, it hasent grown too much and hasent wandered since the first 2 days. People say it is not neccisary to feed them but I do, about once every week. All and all a good addition to my tank.

[OCDP]

Originally Posted by Aquaholic

People say it is not neccisary to feed them but I do, about once every week.

It is most definitely necessary to feed anemones. They do require feedings in order to thrive and stay healthy. Lighting alone may seem like enough but anemones do require frequent feedings.

[Delphinus]

I thought I read somewhere that the energy that can be derived from zooxanthellae is more like quick-release sugars, whereas the energy derived from feeding can be more like slow-release proteins. So it's like a candy bar diet. Sure, you can subsist on it and have loads of energy, but it's hardly a healthy long-term diet thing.

Having said that, if you feed the tank anyhow, odds are good anemones will be catching something. Probably depends on the species though. I know my carpets eat anything and everything that I feed the fish, and they're surprisingly adept at catching any stray morsel the fish don't snap up right away. Whereas some other species that are probably less quick on the draw and probably should be target fed. I do feed my BTA's shrimp and mysis, but I find once per week or thereabouts tends to be plenty.

[OCDP]

I find that if I feed my BTA's more than twice a week the growth rate is just insane, and they usually split soon after. Just my experience though (this is BTA's too of course..)