bubble anemone

Question
Hi I ust got a bubble anemone on tuesday and it was doing really good all the way open and everything but one problem is it has no bubbles its tentacles are thick but there arent any bubbles but the pet store sold it as a bubble anemone and it looks exactly like one it just doesnt have any bubbles and also at night it is open all the way but in the late afternoon some days it ust shrinks up and its tentacles get all stringy but and the only way to get it open is to turn off the lights and the next day he will be fine please help. thanks.

Answer
Hi Marcus. In the wild, Bubble Tip Anemones are found in two locations. Large specimens, with tentacles that are more streaming or stringy, are often found in deeper waters with more dimly lit conditions. These specimens are often solitary. Smaller specimens are often located in groups or colonies, nearer to the surface, in bright sunlight. These specimens tend to show the bulbous tips on their tentacles that are characteristic to Bubble Tip Anemones. Although there are various theories about why some Bubble Tip Anemones develop these tips and some do not, it is widely believed that the bulbs are related to the light level in the anemone's habitat; specimens given more light are believed to have bubble tipped tentacles. This does not mean that your anemone will not thrive in your tank. I started with one bubble tip about four years ago as it got bigger it lost some of the bulbous tips that it had when I purchased it. Over the years it has split many times and I now have a total of six of them in my one tank. While four of them have the more stringy tentacles two are very bulbous. I believe it is a matter of genetics and that there may be a gene in the anemone that makes it either have more stringy or bulbous tentacles. Since all of mine are from the same gene line and only two out of the six have bulbs on the tips of their tentacles and they are all in the same amount of lighting I would have to say that it is a combination of lighting and genetics along with size and weather they were collected from deeper waters or not, that plays a role in the development of the bulbs on the tentacles. Basically bubble tip anemones that are collected from deeper waters may carry the gene for the bulbous tips but may not have them themselves. These specimens will eventually get bigger than the ones who carry a dominant gene for the bulbs. This would also explain the anemone having its day night cycle a little messed up. if you have extremely bright lighting over your tank and it was collected from deeper waters where it was not used to as intense lighting it may not like the new lighting conditions. It will however over time acclimate to a more brightly lit tank but it may take a month or two to do so. Hang in there it will eventually open up during the day and stay opened up as long as your water quality is good and you are not overfeeding it.(these anemones require very little feeding in a brightly lit aquarium and it can actually do more harm then good if you are feeding it too often. The anemone will usually deflate shortly after a big meal which is normal, however if fed too much and it spends too much time deflated it will not recieve as much lighting to its tissues which is much more important as a nutrient source then actual food. I feed mine maybe twice a month and mine are not only thriving but taking over my tank as well!)