The Nexus Burst Bubble Tip Anemone is an exciting new strain of Entacmea quadricolor that is set to rekindle the hype for aquarium anemones. This very wild lineage of bubble tip anemone is partially green and partially neon orange, and it has a lot of interesting factors that make this one of the most desirable new BTAs in our aquarium world.
Rose bubble tip anemones have been enjoyed by hobbyists for decades, but it wasn’t until the Colorado Sunburst Anemone hit the scene that all of a sudden everyone was clammoring for this neon orange BTA. The Colorado Sunburst was propagated locally for ten years before being more widely ‘discovered’ but thankfully, we won’t have to wait that long for the Nexus Burst anemone to start spreading in the reef aquarium community.
Eye Catching Coral has been culturing the new bicolored bubble tip anemones for some time so they are the first to experience and discover the unique appearance of the Nexus Burst Anemones. We are very excited to have Jim Gintner of ECC share their knowledge and observations of the most original new strain of bubble tip anemones.
When we were first offered these bubble tip anemones, we were very concerned that they would not keep their color. Having seen thousands of anemones, we had never seen anything like these [bicolored anemones] so it was really hard to believe.
We feared that the unusual coloration might be caused by light shading, photo editing, or maybe even a health issue. We also wondered if they would continue to hold their color over time and after being propagated would one color win or lose out?
I reached out to most of my friends in the industry to get their input and almost no-one thought the bicolor bubble tips would keep their color. I was doubtful myself, but I couldn’t stop thinking about them. I traveled to see them and inspect them in person. It just so happened I was on a vacation only a few hours away from the shop offering them for sale (The Coral Connect in Dania Beach, FL.)
Once I saw the bicolor bubble tip in person I knew I couldn’t pass them up. They were in great health and well looked after so we decided to take the risk and purchase the anemones and naming rights to them.
Fast forward almost 18 months, I am glad to report we have had tremendous success propagating the Nexus Burst Anemone. They have kept their color well, have been great growers, and we now have over 25 of these anemones since acquiring our original two.
This particular strain of bubble tip stays much smaller than other strains of BTAs we are currently farming. This presents a challenge for us, as they often split before growing to a large enough size to safely manually propagate by cutting. We would prefer to cut them as this allows us to ensure both colors remain in the anemone.
When the Nexus Burst Anemones split on their own, the distribution of the green and orange color is completely random some are half & half, some completely one color, and most of them are somewhere in between. This is going to make pricing each one of them somewhat challenging.
Overall, we are very pleased with how the Nexus Burst Anemones are doing for us. The Eye Catching Corals team has worked very hard to care for this very unusual bubble tip anemone strain, and we are excited that we will soon offer them to the aquarium hobby.
