marineboy said:
tank update: 2 giant green or aggregating annenomes (cant tell difference),
Is there a way to add a california mussels?
Hi Michael,
There are four common species of Anthopleura anemones and, with the exception of the Giant Green Anemone (A. xanthogrammica) it can be a bit tricky to tell them apart.
1. A. xanthogrammica - As the common name implies, these animals are large and green. I've never seen one that had any other color on it and I can't recall seeing one that was smaller than about two inches across the column and three or four inches across the entire face (I have no idea why I've never seen a 'baby'). Also, although it's pretty common to see them living fairly close to each other, they don't form clones or colonies the way that A. elegantissima does. Pretty common in tidepools in areas exposed to a good deal of wave action.
2. A. elegantissima - AKA the Aggregating Anemone - These tend to be fairly small individuals (rarely over an inch in diameter) that reproduce via fission into large aggregations referred to as 'clones'. They are normally green with purple or lavender tips to their tentacles. These guys are very common in the intertidal zone - sometimes fairly high into zone 2 if there are areas that stay damp.
3. A. sola - Once thought to be an antisocial member of the A. elegantissima species, this has recently been reclassified as a separate or possibly sub-species. A. sola looks pretty much like a larger & solitary version of A. elegantissima. I could be wrong, but I believe that these are more likely to be found sub-tidally.
4. A. artemsia - The Moonglow Anemone - Quite similar to A. sola in overall appearance except that while A. sola (and the other Anthopleuras) are normally found on bare rock, A. artemsia prefers to attach to a rock that is buried in sand such that only the anemone's 'face' is exposed.
The thing about Anthopleura that distinguishes the genus from the other anemones on the west coast is that they harbor zooanthellae very much like the tropical cnidarians that are so popular in reef aquariums. As such, they need some light to thrive. They can get by with a good deal less than a truly tropical species, but they do need some.
Anthopleuras mainly eat small crustaceans (copepods & amphipods) in the wild although A. xanthogrammica also takes mussels that have been torn lose by the surf. Any of the four species should do OK on a variety of chopped meaty foods like shrimp, fish, and bivalves.
I wouldn't put mussels in your tank. It's too small to generate any significant amount of the planktonic foods that a mussel needs. You could get around that problem by using a products like DT's phytoplankton but it would get a bit expensive. OTOH: A few empty mussel shells would be welcomed by your smaller animals as an excellent hiding place.
Identificationally yours,
Alex
