Possible Problem with My T. derasa Clam?

[camaroracer214]

I have a T. derasa clam that is a fairly new addition to my reef. It is sitting in the sandbed, with a flat piece of rock directly under it. The clam is attached to the rock as soon as I put it in there and is responding to light/shadows and appears to be healthy. Well I just noticed a "spot" on its tissue that seems to have no pigment. Can't really tell what it is, and what can I do to fix it? Or should I not worry about it? I have two other clams (T. crocea and T. maxima) that are doing very well. Just don't know what's happened to my T. derasa. Picture below. The spot is on the left hand side of the clam. Thanks for the help.

 

[camaroracer214]

what...nobody has an answer???

 

[mbbuna]

from the photo what i can see is localized bleaching and some central bleaching. the most common cause for this is lack of light. it looks like you have your clam tipped towards the front of the tank for your viewing pleasure, however this is not good for the clam. they need to have there mantles pointed directly up towards the light.


other causes of local and central bleaching are ultra low nutrients and insufficient lighting. in most home aquariums low nutrients are usually not a problem, insufficient lighting unfortunity can be a problem. on rare occasions bacteria can attack the zooxanthellae but unfortunately there is nothing that can be done for this. Fresh water dips are only good for some external parasites, these dips will have no effect on internal ailments, and worse can push the clam over the edge as they(dips) are very stressful.

place the clam so it receives more light and if it doesnt improve in a week or two consider moving it up closer to the lights