Nem seems upset

[Matt Bravo]

Hey guys so on Saturday I picked up this RBTA and it doesn’t seem too happy. It was a lot bigger at my LFS and my parms seem decent so is there anything I could be missing here?

Calc 440
Mag 1320
Alk 11.2
pH 8.2
Phos .16
Nitrate 17 (in between 12 and 25 Nyos)

 

[Matt Bravo]

Forgot to mention,
Tank is 2 weeks away from turning a year old

peppermints sometimes bother it, could this be the reason?

Nem has not moved this entire time, it has stuck to the gsp

Lady at LFS tried peeling off nems foot when I was buying it, I asked her to just give me the gsp with the nem and she agreed

 

[Anemone_Fanatic]

Could be the peppermints. My cleaner shrimp picks on my BTA, and it doesn't seem to be very happy. It was fine before the shrimp discovered it, now it's closed half the time.

 

[exnisstech]

It might just be adapting or shrimp could be bothering it. They are nasty little buggers especially the cleaners. I won't keeps them with LPS any longer.
The nem is inflated and has good color. Maybe keep an eye on it and make sure it's getting plenty light. I've found light to be more important than feeding bubble tips.

 

[Matt Bravo]

Okay so it’s likely the shrimps, anyway as long as it’s inflated the problem isn’t an emergency? When should the real stressing begin? Should I put it in a higher lighting area? (It’s on the sandbed right now)

 

[Pyrogens]

Judging from the pictures, its probably still settling in. Mine did that when it was new. Also, it's gonna move where it wants. You can somewhat influence where you want it to go with directional flow, but even then it's just gonna setup shop where it likes.

 

[Matt Bravo]

Judging from the pictures, its probably still settling in. Mine did that when it was new. Also, it's gonna move where it wants. You can somewhat influence where you want it to go with directional flow, but even then it's just gonna setup shop where it likes.

Yeah, I’ve heard they move and I was just surprised it hasn’t moved yet. I don’t mind where it ends up I just want to make sure it’s doing alright. Any ideas on how long it might take to settle in?

 

[Pyrogens]

I'd give it a week or so. Luckily anemones are good about showing if they are happy or not. Also good about going where they want to be happy, even if you disagree with their spot of choice.

 

[Matt Bravo]

Small update:
Had a small salinity spike, (1.028 and brought it back down to 1.025) also the nem is finally on the move. I brought nitrates down to under 15 and planning on doing another wc to get them under 10 tmmr. Anything else I might be missing?

 

[Pyrogens]

Sounds like he's trying to find a spot he likes, good sign he's moving around in my opinion. Just keep an eye on him and make sure he's opening up during the day.

 

[Matt Bravo]

Sounds like he's trying to find a spot he likes, good sign he's moving around in my opinion. Just keep an eye on him and make sure he's opening up during the day.

Yeah that’s what went through my mind as well, the nem is finally looking for a spot to stay in.

 

[Matt Bravo]

Update:
Nem was on the move 2 days ago. It is now missing…. I’ve checked my canister filter as well as behind any spaces where it could hide. My last guess is that it’s inside some rock work. I waited today hoping it would come out but I’m scared it might have gotten stuck. Should I try to look for it inside the rock (this would mean lifting the whole rock) or should I give it some more time to come out?

 

[Pyrogens]

Update:
Nem was on the move 2 days ago. It is now missing…. I’ve checked my canister filter as well as behind any spaces where it could hide. My last guess is that it’s inside some rock work. I waited today hoping it would come out but I’m scared it might have gotten stuck. Should I try to look for it inside the rock (this would mean lifting the whole rock) or should I give it some more time to come out?

More than likely it's somewhere in the rock work. You can move rockwork around if you want, but the stress to other inhabitants would deter me personally.
Give it some more time and see if it moves back into view. If its worrying you alot, try redirecting flow around in the tank in an effort to get it on the move again. Anemones are fickle, frequent movers until they are happy... Whether they are in view or not!

 

[Matt Bravo]

More than likely it's somewhere in the rock work. You can move rockwork around if you want, but the stress to other inhabitants would deter me personally.
Give it some more time and see if it moves back into view. If its worrying you alot, try redirecting flow around in the tank in an effort to get it on the move again. Anemones are fickle, frequent movers until they are happy... Whether they are in view or not!

It’s a small 10g so that’s the only thing worrying me. It would probably be a good idea to give it some more time though

 

[MaxTremors]

A few things. Your alk is pretty high, likely much higher than the store you bought it from, so that’s some stress (your phosphates are also pretty high). Instantly lowering your salinity from 1.028 to 1.025 is a pretty big stressor (next time slowly lower it over several days). The lady trying to pry it off the rock is a huge amount of stress. So that’s all a lot of stress in the first week. It is likely hiding in your rockwork (they can become quite tiny when they want to). I would not tear your tank apart looking for it, it will come out when it wants to, and if it died the damage is already done. In the photos it didn’t look too bad, so I suspect it will resurface.

 

[Matt Bravo]

A few things. Your alk is pretty high, likely much higher than the store you bought it from, so that’s some stress (your phosphates are also pretty high). Instantly lowering your salinity from 1.028 to 1.025 is a pretty big stressor (next time slowly lower it over several days). The lady trying to pry it off the rock is a huge amount of stress. So that’s all a lot of stress in the first week. It is likely hiding in your rockwork (they can become quite tiny when they want to). I would not tear your tank apart looking for it, it will come out when it wants to, and if it died the damage is already done. In the photos it didn’t look too bad, so I suspect it will resurface.

Is this normal? I mean the fact that it’s hiding inside the rocks. I’m worried that it’s not getting light since it’s inside rocks and that it’s health will decline

 

[MaxTremors]

Is this normal? I mean the fact that it’s hiding inside the rocks. I’m worried that it’s not getting light since it’s inside rocks and that it’s health will decline

It’s normal for a stressed nem to hide. It can go months without light and survive, a few days or a week without won’t hurt it. It will come out when it wants to.

 

[Matt Bravo]

It’s normal for a stressed nem to hide. It can go months without light and survive, a few days or a week without won’t hurt it. It will come out when it wants to.

Wow, I didn’t know they could hide. This brings some comfort, I think it would be best to let the nem come out when it’s most comfortable.

 

[Tamale]

The initial couple of months will be a bit nerve wracking as the nem settles in and gets used to your tank. But eventually they become nigh indestructible in my experience. I had a heater go out while I was on vacation in the winter once. Took almost 24 hours to get someone over there (happened in the afternoon just after my friend left) and tank was in the 60’s. Nem was fine. Not saying you can neglect the tank but after a while the worry will go away a bit haha

 

[Matt Bravo]

Hey guys! Remember this situation I was in? Yeah still in it and have absolutely no idea what to do. No signs of nem coming out and I’m starting to think my shrimps got to it. For the past 2 weeks I’ve been adding algae wafers into my tank to keep the shrimp fed at nights while I feed mysis in the day. None of my corals look stressed and my sps all have great polyp extension. What do I even do at this point?