Electric Flame Sea Scallop

[rhenie]

We purchased an electric flame sea scallop from the LFS yesterday. We'd had a special order in for it and they called when it came in... The problem is that they also had a regular flame sea scallop in the same tank at the LFS and we think we got the wrong one.

Is there a reason that ours would not "light up" or maybe better worded.. do the electric sea scallops require special conditions or circumstances to display that "electric charge"?

He moved around the tank a bit last night but seems to have found a comfortable spot hanging under a piece of rockwork. He looks happy and all water parameter are perfect with other tankmates fat and happy.

Did we just get the wrong sea scallop? I like him and he's cool, but we paid more for the electric one.

??

Thanks,
Rhenie

 

[Zoalander]

Don't worry about, it will die soon. Flame scallops live less then a few months in aquariums until they eventually starve to death. No matter how much phyto you feed it, it will die. It's very sad that they are still collected and sold. There are numerous threads about them.

 

[Go29]

well, the electric look is actually jsut color on the mantle and is cover by a red flap so you scallop just has that color covered by the flap. but some one please correct me if i am wrong , i just thought that is how the whole thing works

 

[wds21921]

I dont' believe they're actually electric. What you see is the light reflecting off there eyes around the perimeter of the shell.

And despite what I've read from some alleged pros, I have seen them kept in tanks for up to a year. Far longer than the several months that are suggested. The main focus being on the size of the actual phytoplankton. Just because it can ingest the phyto doesn't necessarily mean it will absorb the nutrients from it. A diet of phyto and zooplankton seems to be more condusive to their survival.

 

[rhenie]

Vetter, you mentioned that there are numerous threads about them, but I can't find one. Where are they?

I've searched online and can't find anything either, other than the descriptions from the retailers who are selling them.

Shimek's Marine Invertebrates book lists them as a good reef aquarium animal. What's up with that????

Thanks,
Rhenie

 

[Zoalander]

search google type: wetwebmedia flame scallop

 

[Freed]

If you look closely you will see that they are not "electric" at all. They have a flap of lighter colored mantle (as stated above) that they flap from time to time which makes them look "electric".