Shipping large clam

R

rayjay

Active member
I've been trying to sell my squamosa clam locally but no one has enough room for it. Under six 40 watt NO lamps, it has grown too large for me to find a buyer easily so I'll probably have to ship it overnight to whomever buys it.
However, I have no idea how to go about shipping this clam.
It's shell length is now about 13" long and the mantel, when opened up, touches the front and the back glass of the 65g tank it is in.
Any experience on shipping something this delicate and this size?

clam.jpg
 
I have shipped many large (12+) clams and I have found by far the best way to go is airport - to - airport. Fedex and UPS overnight can be a bit too rough with a box that will most likey weigh 40+ lbs and full of H2O. Styrofoam containers can crack really easily with this type of pressure on them. Plus airport to airport is cheaper ($60-100) where overnight service would be really high. It will also cut down on transit time from 15+hrs with overnight to just a few if you ship it early in the day airport to airport.
 
I run a LFS and shipped about 15 Gigas in the past few years until the large Gigas out of Tonga dried up. I used the standard styrofoam container that most wholesalers ship with. Check your LFS to see if they might have any. I used very large clear plastic shipping bags when available but mostly used thick black trash drum liners. Use as many bags as you feel comfortable with. I usually used 8. Rubberband them tightly closed and make sure the clam is fully submerged. Also use heat/cold packs as needed. I never lost one clam.
By the way, That is a nice looking Squammie. They are my favorites.
 
hmmmm rayjay, do we know each other ????


rayjay said:
How do you package them?
How come you have so many large clams to ship?
Click to expand...

the biggest problem with shipping large clams is the relatively small volume of water that can accompany the clam. with such a small volume of water it becomes very easy to pollute as well has harder to keep stable.

we moved an 18" - 20" gigas a year or so ago but used a 50G pail 3/4 full and drove it there ourselves with no issues but i wouldn't have tried actually shipping him.


how far do you have to ship him???
 
a4twenty said:
hmmmm rayjay, do we know each other ????
how far do you have to ship him???
Click to expand...
If I know you, I don't know you by the forum name. Do you live in London? I use the same username on all forums I go to.
I haven't advertised it for sale other than locally so far so it's not sold. I'm just preparing in case I sell it to someone not close by where we can just do a "meet" at halfway.
 
i recognized your tag ( from some Canadian boards ) but also the size and species of clam you have for sale. i know a guy from your area ( a little further west ) who is a member of MACL and is also selling a nice sized squamosa but the names didn't match up, small world :D


if you have to ship him, i would consider doing it in a large cooler to allow for extras water but you're going to need to use heat packs, it's getting to cold at night up here now.
 
thats a beautiful clam! Its a pain..but I would never ship something like that. That obviously cuts down on who/where you can sell it. jmo
 
Sorry but it's not a viable option.
First, I can't get anything larger than a 90g into my basement, and secondly, I've already shut down two 75's, a 65 and a 55 as I age and can't handle all the work load anymore, especially after a failed spine operation last DEC..
I still have 2 nineties, a sixty-five, 3 fourties, and 3 twenties.
Of course, then there are the fresh water tanks, plus my 130g of phyto cultures, my rotifer cultures and the brine shrimp cultures. I am also raising Reidi seahorse fry.
 
If you can't find a buyer you might contact a public aquarium for help. They may want to take him and do all the necessary work on shipping him. Just a thought to keep a great clam alive for a long time to come.
 
Unfortunately the only public aquarium in Canada that I'm aware of is the Vancouver one, completely across the continent.
Even if they did want it, I couldn't afford shipping, plus I would be afraid of the handling it would get on a trip that far.
Heck, I've seen how some packages get thrown at this London dept of one courier so I'm not sure it would still be alive leaving my own city.
 
Come on! All that stuff and you are worried about one little clam tank!! Can you say shallow cube!!! ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

E
Red Sea weir overflow
Replies
9
Views
278
griss
griss
D
How to safely transport 125 gallon aquarium across town?
2 3 4
Replies
67
Views
2K
ddang
D
Dr. Reef
Better and Sweeter than LiveAquaria
Replies
0
Views
316
Dr. Reef
Dr. Reef
Dr. Reef
Better and Sweeter than LiveAquaria
Replies
0
Views
712
Dr. Reef
Dr. Reef
Dr. Reef
Better and Sweeter than LiveAquaria
Replies
0
Views
448
Dr. Reef
Dr. Reef
Back
Top