Bubble Tip Anemone

Scientific Name
Entacmae quadricolor

Common Name
Bubble tip anemone, bulb tipped anemone, BTA

Region
Vietnam, Taiwan, Indo-Pacific

Identification
Varying bulbous tips, found in a wide range of colors including red, pink, purple, orange, green, tan, and brown.

Lighting & Placement
Bright lighting, place on a rock away from corals or other anemones.

Temperament
Will sting corals

Current
Random and turbulent, no direct or laminar currents

Hardiness
90% of anemones die within the first year. This species should not be attempted by the inexperienced aquarist.

Notes
The BTA is the most commonly imported anemone available to the hobby, and the easiest of the clownfish-hosting anemones with which to achieve success. While commonly kept in reef aquariums, the BTA and other anemones make poor nano reef candidates for a few reasons. A healthy BTA can reach a foot in diameter after a few years, much too large to be kept in a nano reef for any length of time, and it is not a good idea to mix stinging, motile anemones with sessile coral.

E. quadricolor should be fed small quarter-inch pieces of meaty seafood once or twice weekly. Bleached specimens should be fed every other day until recovery.