expert anenome advice

[naesco]

Received a macrodactyla doreensis sand anenome.
I placed it on the sand but the mouth has inverted. It sticks out about 3 inches.
Should I simply leave it and see what happens, Attempt to feed it.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thank you

[Delphinus]

How long has it been the tank?

IME an inverted mouth is usually a response to O2 starvation. Since they can only respire through their skin, this increases the surface area for O2/CO2 exchange. It's generally a sign of stress but sometimes happens in newly acquired/imported/transported/etc. anemones.

Definitely do not attempt to feed it if the mouth is inverting. Even if it takes food (although it likely wouldn't), digesting food isn't its top priority at the moment. If undigested food starts to decompose inside the body cavity it's generally game over for the anemone.

You can try to increase O2 saturation with more water movement, but if he's new the to the tank he might not be firmly attached to anything yet and might get blown around. An air bubbler/diffuser placed nearby might be a suitable alternative..

If he's new and this is a one time thing then he'll probably be OK. If this is happening on and off over days that's generally a poor indicator. I've not really heard that LTA's were prone to this though .. usually carpets right after purchase.

Give the air bubbler a try for a couple hours and see how he responds. Good luck, please post back your updates.

[naesco]

Thanks for your post. He is brand new but in the last 30 minutes or so he is trying slowly retracting his mouth in. At the same time he pushing his foot from being inside out.
Hopefully this improvement continues.
It is a surge bucket system so their is lots of oxygen in the tank.