should I own a clam? What do I need to know?

[wetWolger]

I really like clams. I think they are excellent additions and if you guys think I can do it I would like to try.

I have a 120gal tank with 2x250watt MH 14k, with 2x95watt VHO actinics. The tank is 48x24x24. I have between 20x and 22x turnover. I have been in the hobby for around 9 years and can keep all corals including sps with ease now. My fish list includes a mandarin, foxface, chromis, and a hippo tang. I also keep an urchin, hermits, and a varaity of snails.

I do not want/can't feed it every day. Infact I would prefer not to spot feed it at all.

So what species would you recomend?

Any links to sites with good info I should read over?

Do you even think I should try a clam?

Any comments, would be welcome, thanks

 

[The steven liu]

Sounds like you have all the set up for a clam! I'd start with a less demanding clam like a Derasa or a Squamosa. Once you get familiar with clam behavior with these then you can move onto Crocea or Maxima which are alittle high maintainance but are truly beautiful.

 

[Ti]

You can have one

 

[auto_loader]

Get one at least 3 inches and you wont have to worry about spot feeding. Just supply adequate light.

 

[MiddletonMark]

Great questions, I'm no clam expert
[had one successfully for 2 years ... but not killing the only one I've had isn't that much experience ]

I would skip the really small clams that show up sometimes, from what I understand they're more dependent on filter-feeding, and in general seem a lot more touchy.

It is VERY important to consider the long-term needs of clams - and it's long-term growth. Some of them can get to quite large size in only a few years if quite healthy, and this is important to consider. [I've seen a T. derasa go from 3-4" to about 10" in two and a half years in a local reef club member's tank].

Here's Fenner + Calfo's Clam chapter from their Reef Inverts book [a pdf]
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/BookMatters/WWM/NMA-RI/NMA-RI_Tridacnids-demo.pdf

I'm sure there's some essential reading here, hopefully some of the resident experts can link that. Daniel Knop has a great book on Giant Clams, though the translation from German is a little odd - it's probably the most complete, and explains a lot about the very interesting biology of clams. [like during larval stages ... really neat, their use in their native habitats, etc]

Good luck on your choice, and hope you have many happy years with your clam ahead

 

[Lpabsolute]

Get one and post some pics...Good Luck