Jumping and Retracting Crocea

[jwedehase]

I'm sorry for the SOS nature of this post, but I'm at wits end, and can't find an answer that specifically addresses the problems I'm having with a T. Crocea.

38 Gallon
2x150wDE 14000K
78-79 farenheit
SG 1.025
Ca 400
dKh 8
pH 7.8-8.2

This clam has looked awesome since the day I put it in the tank, about a month ago. Earlier this week, I noticed it was spazzing out some, by twitching and rapidly closing, but only occasionally. Then, for the next two days, it was closed way up, pinched. Under the advice of a fellow reefers, i cut the byssal strands, and relocated the clam. Now it won't stay ANYWHERE. No matter where I put it, it jumps. I even tried the rock under the sand, in which case the Crocea jumped face down into the sand, and just started pumping away, getting no where, stirring up sand.

At this point, it's back in the original location, but that still doesn't explain why it's pinched or why it continues to jump from every location it takes.

Does anyone have any idea why a clam would continue to jump from every location it sees? I can't think of anything that's changed. A close inspection shows the clam to appear to be healthy, and it still reacts to shadows. It's just very withdrawn, and jump happy.

I'm sure that doesn't tell you a whole lot, so feel free to fire back with any questions, and I'll answer anything I can.

 

[mbbuna]

what fish do you have? can you post a pic?

 

[jwedehase]

Fish are 2 cinnamon clowns, 1 6-line wrasse who's been an absolute saint, and a bicolor blenny, who's never even paid attention to the clam. I've been watching the blenny, in particular, very closely.

Here's the clam for the first three weeks:

Mid last week, the clam starting spazzing a bit. It would open up real wide, then convulse shut. I've since learned that this could be just the borrowing nature of the Crocea, but I'm not sure. However, the clam was also touching an acropora, seen here.

As I kept an eye out, from one day to the next, it looked like this. This was 3 days ago now.

So I moved the clam, and it continued to jump from every location. I took advantage of one of the falldowns to take a picture of its foot, which sure appears healthy to me.

So I finally decided to move it back to the original position, only slightly shifted an inch or two for a flatter surface. This afternoon as I got home, byssal strands have been dropped, and the clam seems to want to be there. However, today the clam is more closed than ever. I have to look down into the shell to see the mantle.

 

[jwedehase]

Here we are, yet another three days later. Nothing has changed. Clam is still quite pinched. And now it's sliming up at the base again, like it was doing before I tried to move it. While removing the clam, I didn't place the rock it was on in exactly the same spot, so there's a small encrusting of a montipora capricornus that used to span the distance between these two rocks. The clam has set its byssal strands right into this encrusting.

Everything I've read says clams don't care much about chemical warfare, but this seems... such close quarters, since they're touching flesh to flesh. This sounds dumb to me, but is this worth worrying about?

 

[mbbuna]

i just answered you on another board. im sure its your blenny