help with clams..

[dreamreefer]

folks,
I just picked up a gold teardrop yesterday and this is my first clam. I hope i can get some help in identifying what inhabitants are safe for the clam. (fish, inverts, etc).

saw my cleaner shrimp picking on it right away and I had to remove him. Are dwarf angels safe for clams? I have one currently under quarantine...Also, do we need to quarantine these guys and freshwater dips? what common diseases are with clams?...any help is appreciated...

 

[dreamreefer]

I also have a 6-line wrasse in quarantine and hoping he can eat up some bristle worms which I know will attack clams. WIll he pick on the clam too?

 

[Scuba Dog]

I would not worry about the 6 line wrass, but the dwarf angles are a 50/50 risk with clams. For clams the best advice I can give is have plenty of light good water quality not too much flow, have calcium up to around 400 to 450 alkalinity around 8 to 12 dkh...watch out for the parasites and fish that will nip it....all angels are a high risk, and butterflys are a risk as well....although some angels and butterflys have been kept with clams before its mostly a luck thing...

 

[Johnsteph10]

Did you research any? I would suggest the book by Daniel Knopf (sp?) about Giant Clams.

Great resource with good information.

Any angels are 50/50 at best. Once they nip they won't stop. Your cleaner wasn't picking at the clam -- it was likely just cleaning crap off he shell or in the scutes. Shrimp generally won't bother clams unless they are dying/dead.

Teardrops love light and low/moderate flow (best info about flow: if the flow ruffles the mantle a lot, then it is too much). Make sure it isn't gaping (very wide incurrent siphon allowing you to see its feathery gills), though gaping is a stress response and will likely continue for several days after moving it in. Check for pyramid snails (do a search). See if it reacts to shadows and fish by closing. Check for good mantle extensions (should cover the top and extend a little downward).

You didn't mention the size -- what size is it?

That's my brain dump for right now. HTH and good luck! Teardrops are my favorite!

John

 

[Meisen]

Yeah a bummer about angels and clams, I am wanting both in the tank. Probably going to get a Flameback or Ascension Is. Angel as the heresay is they tend to be well behaved with clams and coral.

I will also introduce the angel after all the clams I intend to have are in the tank. At least that will eliminate the likely "curiosity bite" that the inquisitive little buggers give.

There are a few angels that are totally ok with clams from what I understand....the swallowtail, lamarks and elbis are planktivores and thus dont pose a threat. Anyone experience otherwise here?

 

[dreamreefer]

guys,

These answers are fantastic....you've all answered each of the 3 main things I need to know...

ScubaDog, my calcium is always between 400-420, with 8 dkh for alkalinity. So I guess it's good. Thanks for the info on the six-line...

Johnsteph10 - i likely will put the shrimp back and see how he behaves. Regarding gaping, how wide is wide? I see my clam open and I can "peek" thru the opening on the side and see those gills you're talking about. Is that cool or is he stressed like you've said? should I leave him out for maximum exposure for light now and not worry about stressing him out more? mantle extension is fine, need to test response to light though...

my clam is 5-6" big and I got him for a good price I think... what's the market rate like? THanks for the info on the book, I've heard about it too...

Meisen - I forgot to specifically ask about Eibli angels and I think you've nailed it. He's the one in QT right now and he's sooo cute! It'll be a bumper if I cannot keep him...THanks!

 

[Johnsteph10]

dreamreefer - gaping is kind of subjective. It is hard to guesstimate on a new clam but you'll learn to recognize it as you have the clam for a longer period of time. My feeling is that if you have to "peek" thru the opening then I think it is fine. With good mantle expansion I think its all good.

Good Luck!

 

[dreamreefer]

THanks for the reply John...I do have a question on the pyram snails though...are they pretty much white and conical? I saw a shell like that on the sand near the clam and when I checked it out it was empty (hope I saw it right), I check it a few times and it pretty much free of anything snails but if it on the inside then I'm not sure since I can't realluy see inside...

do these smails attack from outside or in? THanks in advance...

 

[Johnsteph10]

Pyramid snails (aka "rice snails") are small -- a few mm long -- white, and conical -- about the size and color of a grain of rice. There are many, many sp. of this type of snail and not everyone of course attacks clams.

Basically the only way that these little pests get into your tank is on clams -- they won't come on LR, etc. as they have to have clams to stay alive. They burrow through the outside of the shell inside and suck lymphatic fluid from the clam -- a slow process. 1 or 2 won't worry cause anything to worry about but it is when you get more than the clam because stressed and will slowly wither away as it is literally sucked dry.

All pyramid snails, however, are not the same. Without a microscope and a good book of taxonomy, you can't tell. A lot of ppl talk about pyramid snails on their large astreas/turbo snails and worry about getting them on clams. These snails are dedicated parasites: if they feed on snails, they will not feed on clams. If they feed on clams, they will not feed on snails. Personally, I have several dozen that sit around all day on my largest turbos. The big snails don't seem to mind and I haven't lost any due to them (due to crabs is another story..grrrrr..).

The short of this longwinded diatribe: check your clam shell when you get it for any of these rice snails or gelatinous egg sacs. That is the only way they come into our closed systems. If you have them, then it is another story.

Everything that looks like a pyramid snail is not the same.

Whew.

John

 

[Scuba Dog]

Yeah it is a bummer about angels, butterflys and clams....IMO large angels are the most stunning beautfull fish there is ! But its a risk to have them with clams so thats one reason im setting up a clam tank, that way I can have my regal in the sps reef and the clams will be safe in there tank, both systems will be plumbed together and next to each other, saved a few bucks by doing it that way using the same euro reef skimmer and calcium reactor...

But good luck with the clams there addicting....I can never resist it when the lfs has some in stock....got word today that they have a 3 inch tear drop gold and purple....might just have to snag that one up...

 

[dreamreefer]

i hear the purple teardrops are very limited...anyways, thanks for all your iinput once again...can't wait to go home and see how my gold teardrop is doing!