Rock Anemones... can be deadly?

The Anemone. One of the most popular additions to the saltwater reef aquarium. Everybody seems to want "Nemo" and his partner. The bubble tip is one of the most popular, and easiest type of anenome to keep. If you are reading this, chances are high you have at least one in your tank. Or maybe you have some kind of long tentacle anemone. Maybe a Ritteri? Maybe you have a Condy Anemone. Maybe you have a colorful Mini Maxi Carpet Anemone. Maybe you have a giant Carpet Anemone. And maybe you have a Rock Anemone... or two... or three.

I used to have bubble tip anemones but I got tired of them splitting, and removing them to give/sell to other Every Day Reefers can be a real chore. There is also the possibility that they decide to take a walk one night and sting a bunch of your SPS coral. I had a gorgeous Ritteri in one of my tanks but it eventually outgrew it, extending it's long reaching tentacles to neighboring coral, stinging them and causing dead tissue. What I have settled on is the smaller, lesser known but still popular for their bright, colorful patterns... the Mini Maxi Anemone and the less ornate but still colorful common Rock Anemone. I have one of the former and four of the latter in my tank. What I like about these, especially the Mini Maxi, is that they seem to find a spot they like and stay there. In fact the Mini Maxi that I have has been in the same spot on the same rock since I got him. Even through several tank moves! You would think he was permanently glued to that rock. The Rock Anemones that I have tend to stay pretty much in the same location too. I've seen them move slightly over time, like they are fine tuning their position for the best light and source of food, but they generally stay in the same spot. Neither has reaching tentacles to worry about so coral can be placed close without worry. My Rock Anemones have all come from Tampa, Florida... collected by Richard from Tampa Bay Saltwater.

The Carpet Anemone I will probably never own. They are huge and I don't like the idea that they are dangerous to my fish. One brush up against the Carpet Anemone can turn that fish into a tasty and expensive snack. The Mini Maxi Carpet anemone… Well they are too small to do any damage, right? And the Rock Anemone... Well they just sit there and look pretty, right? I mean who ever heard of a Rock Anemone eating a fish? I never have… UNTIL NOW!

A local Every Day Reefer was hanging out at my house one night. Almost right away he points at something in my tank. One of my Rock Anemone's had somehow gotten ahold of my Mystery Wrasse that I had for 2.5 years to the week. The Wrasse "was" about 3" long, a pretty decent size. The last time I noticed him swimming around a day or two before he was fat and healthy. But this is what we found...

The Wrasse was being consumed by the Anemone from the tail fin up. What you see above is the underside of his neck/head. I was shocked because I never knew that this type of Anemone could be aggressive. But there is really no way to tell how aggressive vs opportunistic he was since we didn't see how it happened. Did the fish just get sick and weak? Did it happen at night and he fell asleep and floated into it? I'm leaning towards some kind of freak accident where the fish just got too close but I still didn't realize this kind of Anemone would even be that opportunistic. I thought they were pretty much just a filter feeder, grabbing stray bits of food as they float by, and basking in the glow of my metal halide and T5 lighting. Well, let's just say I have a new found respect for these little guys.

The Rock Anemone… Pretty, but (sometimes) deadly.