RBTA Splittng

[quazi]

When does a RBTA split? Mine is getting huge. It is very happy, so what do I have to do to get this thing to split? It is getting too big for my tank.

[hypertech]

Some split regularly, some just don't. There are lots of theories from feeding to starving to stressing to making them "happy" to get them to split.

 

About the only way to make them split for sure is with a knife. Although I've never done it myself, they can be cut. I've read of everything from 0 to 100% success doing it though, so read up on it or see if you can find someone who has done it and can offer tips before doing it yourself.

[davelin315]

Chip (flowerseller) has a video on doing it that is posted to youtube and there's also a few crash courses in various threads here as many people have split them. About the only rules of thumb are use a sharp scalpel or razor blade, cut from the mouth out to ensure you get some stomach, and give it time to slime out of your tank and then give it some rest afterwards to allow it to recover (e.g. don't put it in with a loving clown).

[Coral Hind]

If it isn't splitting then it must be a very happy solitary anemone. There are two types of anemones, solitary and clonal. The solitary will normally not clone or asexually reproduce unless faced with severe stress or damage. The clonal type on the other hand will asexually divide regularly. The clonal types normally stay smaller around 6" while the solitary ones will become over a foot across.

 

If you want to try the natural method instead of removing the anemone you can feed it well and then do a large water change, around 50%, to try to induce a split. If that doesn't work you can try the manual method. The first BTA I cloned in 2002 was a tan solitary specimen from Traveller7 that became over a foot across. The force feedings and stress of large water changes were not enough to induce a split. It finally came down to a razor blade and a complete radial cut from the mouth outwards. I prefer to cut the animal entirely in half. Some go for thirds, quarters, and more but the mortality rates go up. It is best to stick with a simple half lateral dissection.

 

As DaveLin mentioned, clownfish can become a hinderance to the anemone's recovery as well as cleaner shrimp. The anemone must pull in the mesenterial filaments and close up the cut which it can't do easily with a clownfish constantly rubbing on it or a shrimp looking for a snack. After the cut you will want to place it into a container for about twenty minutes to allow the anemone to stop slime production and lower the amount of released nematocysts from being introduced back into your tank. You want to place the newly cut anemone in an area with good flow, but not too strong of course.

 

So how big is the anemone?