clams
clams
I have had clams under both PCs and MH, all kinds - including the crocea, maxima, and squamosa. I actually keep a lot of things in my tank that are not supposed to be there, or are not supposed to thrive. I find it a shame that many reefers come down on people for wanting to attempt to keep something that may or may not be under the best of, or "ideal" situations -- is anything short of the ocean actually "ideal"? I am not saying that one should blatently disregard prudent discussion or advise, but in my short career and experience, as long as you know the basics, do your homework, and ask around -- even with the best set up money can buy, you are not assured success -- just a better chance of obtaining it. My experience has taught me that with decent equipment -- that time invested, not money invested is a better function of whether or not you will be successful.
My suggestion would be that if you feel comfortable with attempting to place an animal in your care once you have done your questioning, and you can afford to do so, then do so. We have all seen stuff grow and thrive in less than optimal conditions, or conditions that were not "supposed" to produce results -- as well as just the opposite. I have grown my clams, and many sps btw, under PC lighting for at least a year before I decieded to upgrade to a MH set up. My largest clam, a 6+" maxima, was under my PCs for about 6 months before the switch. Now I will be the first to tell you that it is happier than it was under the PCs, but it still grew and was beautiful (check my gallery=). -- under the PC lighting, it sat on the substrate of my 65g - it now resides a little further up on some rocks. My 5" squamosa still sits on the bottom as does one of the other 4" croceas with my little crocea (1.5"), attached to a rock on the bottom third of the tank. The only clams that moved with the new set up were the maxima and the large crocea as they kind of switched places. I hope this helps you somewhat because at the end of the day, we all do this because we enjoy the environments we create and want to healthfully sustain the animals we place in our care -- reality is, you won't know until you try, but my experience has been sucessful with keeping clams under PCs.
