First clam questions

[Reefpoints]

Hello!

I just picked up my first clam yesterday (1.5" cultured maxima)and had a few extra questions (btw, I've already read Knop's book).

1. How long will it take for it to attach it's bissal threads to the shell I put it on?
2. Will pulling it out to feed it every day (or other day) prevent it from attaching?
3. I was planning on letting it feed on DT's for about 20 minutes - how open should the mantle be when it's feeding (I will have disturbed it and it won't be under the halides while I put it in a feeding tub)?
4. It opened about a 15 - 25 minutes after I placed it in the tank (after acclimating - 2 hour airline drip), but quickly fell over on its side. Will it right itself or should I continually help it?
5. How open should it be at night w/ the lights out?

I appreciate any help/guidance you can give me!

TIA!

 

[naso30]

Re: First clam questions

Hello!

I just picked up my first clam yesterday (1.5" cultured maxima)and had a few extra questions (btw, I've already read Knop's book).

1. How long will it take for it to attach it's bissal threads to the shell I put it on?
2. Will pulling it out to feed it every day (or other day) prevent it from attaching?
3. I was planning on letting it feed on DT's for about 20 minutes - how open should the mantle be when it's feeding (I will have disturbed it and it won't be under the halides while I put it in a feeding tub)?
4. It opened about a 15 - 25 minutes after I placed it in the tank (after acclimating - 2 hour airline drip), but quickly fell over on its side. Will it right itself or should I continually help it?
5. How open should it be at night w/ the lights out?

I appreciate any help/guidance you can give me!

TIA!

I am no expert on clams but here's my experince with them.

1=It should attach right away, mine did (within a day or two)

2=I would not pull it out of the tank to feed, will cause it to stress. Just use a turkey baster to squirte (sp) dt's over it in the tank.

3=I would not feed it for 20 minutes, just follow #2.

4=Help it up, but once it attaches you shouldn't have to. Also sometimes it will come loose and fall over. Usually it will reatach to a rock or something, if so you can leave it along if it's in a good position.

5=At night it will close, mine do.

Again this is just my experince, sure someone else my provide more info.

 

[Peabody]

Re: Re: First clam questions

Re: Re: First clam questions

I am no expert on clams but here's my experince with them.

2=I would not pull it out of the tank to feed, will cause it to stress. Just use a turkey baster to squirte (sp) dt's over it in the tank.

3=I would not feed it for 20 minutes, just follow #2.

Disagreed. Many feel this is the best way to feed small clams. Most clam distributors (Clamsdirect.com, etc...) are doing this with great success. Squirting DTs over a clam with a Turkey baster can lead to clogging of the gills since it gets too much at one time. Diluting DTs in a bowl and feeding 20-30 minutes 2 or 3 times a week is the best thing. My 2 inch maximas have put on 1cm of shell in the last month!

 

[naso30]

Re: Re: Re: First clam questions

Re: Re: Re: First clam questions

Disagreed. Many feel this is the best way to feed small clams. Most clam distributors (Clamsdirect.com, etc...) are doing this with great success. Squirting DTs over a clam with a Turkey baster can lead to clogging of the gills since it gets too much at one time. Diluting DTs in a bowl and feeding 20-30 minutes 2 or 3 times a week is the best thing. My 2 inch maximas have put on 1cm of shell in the last month!

Are you saying that taking them out of the tank on a regular basis will not cause stress?

 

[Peabody]

Sure it will cause a little stress, but not as much as much as not getting enough food. (They don't go fully photo until around 3 inches!) They require tremendous food at that age. Not too long ago clams under 3 inches had a terrible survival rate in tanks. It was advised that no one buy them until they reached the size where they were more light dependant and less so on food. Most of the stuff we feed our tanks is too large for them to eat: Golden Pearls, zooplankton, rotifers, dead bottled phyto, etc. ALl way too big for them to feed on. Even too much of the proper food will "choke" them if applied to suddenly like by a baster blast.

Now that people bowl feed babies it has changed everything. Many people that see lots of baby clams like Clamsdirect.com, eastcoastclams.com, and Jim Norris of TankU use this method and to my knowledge have never lost a baby! (I know Clamsdirect says that on their site after they switched to bowl feeding.) Feeding after dark and floating the bowl in the sump to keep temp steady will keep the stress to a minimum.


I can't argue with the results I ahve seen because of bowl feeding (growth, survival, etc...)

Taking clams out is not uncommon for other reasons. Many people take their clams out every week to remove pyramid snails. Again, it is much less stress than letting the snails do their thing! And in the end, it doesn't seem to stress them any more than a fish swimming overhead. Mine open up fully within 90 seconds of beign put back in place.

 

[crgeltn]

Feeding

Feeding

I have been keeping several squamosa clams for years and I have recently rescued several others from LFS. (see my thread) I always feed by using a specimen container.(clear hang on container used in pet stores) I submerge the container in the tank, put the clam in, and hang on the inside of the tank. I can then check out the clam for snails or anything else, feed them and return them without them ever leaving the water or severe lighting or temperature changes. I do this for all clams under 3" every two days. I also dont worry if they fall over either they will right themself or I can adjust them after feeding. I also keep the smaller ones on the 4" sand bed. I have been doing this a long time and have never noticed any stress to them. I also agree that the turkey baster method may not be the best way because there is no way to tell how much they are actually being fed. If you have a large system this way is the most cost effective way to feed them anyway. Good Luck!

:rollface:

 

[Mikefromaz]

Clam questions

Clam questions

I am trying an idea passed to me by a friend for feeding my clam. What he did was take one of those DIY brine shrimp breeding projects and turn it into a simple but effective clam feeder. All it is, is a clear one liter soda bottle with the bottom cut completely out, and a regular airline tubing stuck a few inches through the cap, which is drilled to snugly accept the hose. Make sure the hose is just long enough to stick out of the tank a few inches with the bottle sitting on the bottom. When it comes time to feed the clam(s), simply "screw" the open bottom end a half inch or so into the sand around the clam to "seal it", and squirt phytoplankton through the hose with a pipette. This way stresses the clam VERY little, and gives you a good visual indication of the phyto density compared to the regular tank water. Just be sure to completely remove the rounded part of the bottle bottom, because otherwise you won't be able to work it into the sand, and don't forget to remove the bottle after 20 minutes or so, as the oxygen supply is limited to whatever is contained in the bottle. Also try to resist putting too much food in the bottle at any one time.

 

[Mikefromaz]

Clam feeder part ll

Clam feeder part ll

I almost forgot a couple of important things about the DIY clam feeder. First of all, I find that about 2 ml. of DT's Phytoplankton works well for me, ( I dope the tank separately), but that could be adjusted for the size of a particular clam. Also..... MOST important!......drill or cut a small hole (approx. 1/4 in.) high up on the neck of the bottle to act as a vacuum break, so you don't have a liter of water "stuck" in the bottle as you try to lift it out of the tank, and be SURE to lift the bottle SLOWLY off the bottom of the tank so as not to suck up sand which will fall onto the open clam. That part I found out the "hard way", but luckily my clam buddy didn't end up with sand inside.

Mike