As per a request I decided to write this up on my knowledge of clams. I know a lot about a little, so please do research far beyond what I write. This write up is only ment to be guidelines. I dont reccommend anyone buy a clam if that dont have the proper tank/lighting conditions or knowledge. So with that here is a little of what I know. please enjoy.
Introduction....if youre considering a clam, please make sure your system has been established for atleast 6 months. Any less and your tank could still be going thu phases of fluxuating levels which could result in clam death. Next READ about clams....tho this little write up is a basic basic run thu of clam keeping...always read more!
Step 1. Buy a clam but consider the warning signs!
a. move your hand over the clam to cast a shadow, a healthy calm will close up very fast!
b. If possible, turn clam upside down and look at the foot, it it looks too mushy or deteriated, dont buy it!
c. make sure there are no visable holes near the clam foot, if you can see thu the clam it prolly best not to buy it
d. dont buy a clam that looks faded in color or has any tears in the mantle.
e. be aware that there are reef fish that LOVE to eat clams....do your research!
step 2. Acclimate the clam slowly! Drip method is best over a time of atleast 2 hrs. People will argue this, but its better to be safe than sorry with something that will cost a good bit of money. When putting in your tank its best to keep the clam submerged at all times, tho its ok if it does get some air, just make sure to roll the clam around a few times under water to ensure all airbubbles have been expelled. Worst case here, the clam will close up really fast and spit water at you...yes they spit water!
Step 3. Placment.....if you ahve a crocea, best thing to do is place it on a half clam shell, they are smooth and obviously best suited for the delicate foot to attatch to. Once attached you can move the clam around your tank.
a. With croceas, they need a high amount of light! Suggested light is Metal Halide and T-5 HO's only. I'll be bold and say only, people will argue with me about that, but thats fine by me, you'll be having clam chowder soon.
b. croceas should be higher up towards the light, but please take your time in doing so, a few weeks with slight elevation changes would be best. Too drastic of a change and they can die. Maximas and derasas will be fine on your sand bed.
Step 4. Flow.... clams dont like a lot of flow, croceas will tolerate more but too much is never a good thing. Too much flow could cause a clam to close up thu resulting in lack of light and lead to health issues. They could jump from their place of residence....Yes, clams jump! And they can injure themselfs very bad.
Step 5. Supplements....make sure your calcium is above atleast 420. clams will depleat your calcium levels pretty quick, so stay on top of your dosing and checking levels.
Step 6. Feeding....this is a widely debated topic. Persinally I dont feed my clam. There has been talk about feeding phyto, or DT's. There have been reports of that actually clogging the digestive system of the clams, but I dont know if that was the actual cause, so I wont set that in stone. I feel what ever it can pull out of the water column from me scraping the glass or whatever other free floating particulate matter is more than enough for supp feeding. Besides they get most of their nutrition thu the light. Hence why high light is good
Step 7. Diseases....Pinched Mantle is probably the most common diseas with clams, the clam will actually appear to be close to fully closed all the time..hence pinched mantle. Tho make certain that is what the deal is, some ways to help with this is freshwater dips. I will not tell you how to do this for I dont want responsibility for you not doing it right, so google it or look on other forums, there is more than enough info on how to do that.
Clam types:
CROCEA - The smaller of the clams usually reaches about 6" They have many types of color variations, ranging from Blue-Green, Bright Blue, Bright Green, Metallic Blue, Metallic Green. The brighter more vibrant ones are often sold as "Super Colored" or "1st grade" usually resulting in a higher price tag. T. crocea has a very large abyssal gland (larger than T. maxima). This gland is used to anchor the clam in the strong water currents they inhabit. These clams have the highest light demand of any clams, MH or HO T5's are highly recommended to ensure proper health. Under insufficient lighting, the mantle coloration may fade or turn brown or white. Position clam on rock area but make sure it cant fall, it can injure itself.
MAXIMA - This clam can reach sizes up to 12-14" Their shells have larger ridges on the sides and are usually found on substraight rathen than on rocks. It can attatch to the rocks and may do so in as little as 1 day. Colors tend to be more vivid and has a nice variety of color. this clam also requires high light, but can be a bit less than the Crocea. MH and T5's will ensure proper health. T. maxima is a moderately hardy clam which usually does well in reef tanks given strong lighting.
DERASA - AKA the Giant Clam mainly due to it reaching 24" and under the proper conditions, smaller Derasa Clams can double or triple their size in less than a year! This clam tends to be the most widely available and hardy of the Tridacna clams. This is the one clam that has been said to live under flourscents, but HO ones, like VHO's. Metal halide lighting is reccommended tho for continual proper health and for the growth of its zooxanthellae cells. The shell on these guys generally are smooth . Its mantle is a mixture of orange, yellow, blue, and black and white, and usually has a wavy striped or spotted pattern, usually with vivid blues and greens. Again you could position this clam in the sand or on rock if and only if you ahve a space large enough for it to properly grow without falling.
SQUAMOSA - This clam can reach 16" The mantle generally is brown with spots or waves sometimes blue or green coloration is found. T. squamosa is a hardy clam which usually does well in reef tanks. moderate to intense light requirments. Again position in sand or rock area as long as you have enuogh room ofr its growth.
GIGAS - T. gigas</em> is the largest of the clam species. The same requirements (high light, good water quality, high calcium) still apply here. Although the gigas doesn't require the extreme lights that the crocea</em>s and maxima</em>s do, they can adapt over time. gigas</em> are very fast growers, and grow to be very large - up to 3 feet in length. Because of their growth rate, calcium demand placed on the system is very high, and the owner should account for this when planning to house a gigas</em>. Gigas can be aquacultured, and can be found typically with yellow, green, and blue mantles, although typically not as brightly colored as crocea</em>s or maxima</em>s.
Well, i think thats about it. I'm sure there is a whole heck of a lot more I could get into but after all this is the "clam keeping for dummies" hand book. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me and I'll do my best to answer or point you in the right direction. None of my statments is scientific documented proof (well I'm sure there is a bit but I'm not going to list physical sites and all that jazz) This is based purly on my 2.5 years of keeping clams and reading a lot of material. If you dont feel comfortable or you dont have the right elements to keep a clam, PLEASE DONT BUY ONE! If a clam does in your system and you dont notice it right away, the ammonia levels will spike in your tank and could result in mass coral/fish death...and thats no good.
Introduction....if youre considering a clam, please make sure your system has been established for atleast 6 months. Any less and your tank could still be going thu phases of fluxuating levels which could result in clam death. Next READ about clams....tho this little write up is a basic basic run thu of clam keeping...always read more!
Step 1. Buy a clam but consider the warning signs!
a. move your hand over the clam to cast a shadow, a healthy calm will close up very fast!
b. If possible, turn clam upside down and look at the foot, it it looks too mushy or deteriated, dont buy it!
c. make sure there are no visable holes near the clam foot, if you can see thu the clam it prolly best not to buy it
d. dont buy a clam that looks faded in color or has any tears in the mantle.
e. be aware that there are reef fish that LOVE to eat clams....do your research!
step 2. Acclimate the clam slowly! Drip method is best over a time of atleast 2 hrs. People will argue this, but its better to be safe than sorry with something that will cost a good bit of money. When putting in your tank its best to keep the clam submerged at all times, tho its ok if it does get some air, just make sure to roll the clam around a few times under water to ensure all airbubbles have been expelled. Worst case here, the clam will close up really fast and spit water at you...yes they spit water!
Step 3. Placment.....if you ahve a crocea, best thing to do is place it on a half clam shell, they are smooth and obviously best suited for the delicate foot to attatch to. Once attached you can move the clam around your tank.
a. With croceas, they need a high amount of light! Suggested light is Metal Halide and T-5 HO's only. I'll be bold and say only, people will argue with me about that, but thats fine by me, you'll be having clam chowder soon.
b. croceas should be higher up towards the light, but please take your time in doing so, a few weeks with slight elevation changes would be best. Too drastic of a change and they can die. Maximas and derasas will be fine on your sand bed.
Step 4. Flow.... clams dont like a lot of flow, croceas will tolerate more but too much is never a good thing. Too much flow could cause a clam to close up thu resulting in lack of light and lead to health issues. They could jump from their place of residence....Yes, clams jump! And they can injure themselfs very bad.
Step 5. Supplements....make sure your calcium is above atleast 420. clams will depleat your calcium levels pretty quick, so stay on top of your dosing and checking levels.
Step 6. Feeding....this is a widely debated topic. Persinally I dont feed my clam. There has been talk about feeding phyto, or DT's. There have been reports of that actually clogging the digestive system of the clams, but I dont know if that was the actual cause, so I wont set that in stone. I feel what ever it can pull out of the water column from me scraping the glass or whatever other free floating particulate matter is more than enough for supp feeding. Besides they get most of their nutrition thu the light. Hence why high light is good
Step 7. Diseases....Pinched Mantle is probably the most common diseas with clams, the clam will actually appear to be close to fully closed all the time..hence pinched mantle. Tho make certain that is what the deal is, some ways to help with this is freshwater dips. I will not tell you how to do this for I dont want responsibility for you not doing it right, so google it or look on other forums, there is more than enough info on how to do that.
Clam types:
CROCEA - The smaller of the clams usually reaches about 6" They have many types of color variations, ranging from Blue-Green, Bright Blue, Bright Green, Metallic Blue, Metallic Green. The brighter more vibrant ones are often sold as "Super Colored" or "1st grade" usually resulting in a higher price tag. T. crocea has a very large abyssal gland (larger than T. maxima). This gland is used to anchor the clam in the strong water currents they inhabit. These clams have the highest light demand of any clams, MH or HO T5's are highly recommended to ensure proper health. Under insufficient lighting, the mantle coloration may fade or turn brown or white. Position clam on rock area but make sure it cant fall, it can injure itself.
MAXIMA - This clam can reach sizes up to 12-14" Their shells have larger ridges on the sides and are usually found on substraight rathen than on rocks. It can attatch to the rocks and may do so in as little as 1 day. Colors tend to be more vivid and has a nice variety of color. this clam also requires high light, but can be a bit less than the Crocea. MH and T5's will ensure proper health. T. maxima is a moderately hardy clam which usually does well in reef tanks given strong lighting.
DERASA - AKA the Giant Clam mainly due to it reaching 24" and under the proper conditions, smaller Derasa Clams can double or triple their size in less than a year! This clam tends to be the most widely available and hardy of the Tridacna clams. This is the one clam that has been said to live under flourscents, but HO ones, like VHO's. Metal halide lighting is reccommended tho for continual proper health and for the growth of its zooxanthellae cells. The shell on these guys generally are smooth . Its mantle is a mixture of orange, yellow, blue, and black and white, and usually has a wavy striped or spotted pattern, usually with vivid blues and greens. Again you could position this clam in the sand or on rock if and only if you ahve a space large enough for it to properly grow without falling.
SQUAMOSA - This clam can reach 16" The mantle generally is brown with spots or waves sometimes blue or green coloration is found. T. squamosa is a hardy clam which usually does well in reef tanks. moderate to intense light requirments. Again position in sand or rock area as long as you have enuogh room ofr its growth.
GIGAS - T. gigas</em> is the largest of the clam species. The same requirements (high light, good water quality, high calcium) still apply here. Although the gigas doesn't require the extreme lights that the crocea</em>s and maxima</em>s do, they can adapt over time. gigas</em> are very fast growers, and grow to be very large - up to 3 feet in length. Because of their growth rate, calcium demand placed on the system is very high, and the owner should account for this when planning to house a gigas</em>. Gigas can be aquacultured, and can be found typically with yellow, green, and blue mantles, although typically not as brightly colored as crocea</em>s or maxima</em>s.
Well, i think thats about it. I'm sure there is a whole heck of a lot more I could get into but after all this is the "clam keeping for dummies" hand book. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me and I'll do my best to answer or point you in the right direction. None of my statments is scientific documented proof (well I'm sure there is a bit but I'm not going to list physical sites and all that jazz) This is based purly on my 2.5 years of keeping clams and reading a lot of material. If you dont feel comfortable or you dont have the right elements to keep a clam, PLEASE DONT BUY ONE! If a clam does in your system and you dont notice it right away, the ammonia levels will spike in your tank and could result in mass coral/fish death...and thats no good.
