Can you tell me what clam this is?
- Thread starter hrdneglcry
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ScubaFish802
Just keep swimming
@ISpeakForTheSeas is my go to
Got any white light pictures of it?
hrdneglcry
Well-Known Member
It might be empty. I can see light through one side. The other side might have something. I never kept a clam. Not sure where to put it. One part of the opening I see light on the other side. Another part seems to have some maroon stuff against the place where it closes. I know nothing about clams
Does it have 7-9 of those little trench rows between the rows with the spikes?
If yes, possibly Arcinella cornuta - the Florida Spiny Jewelbox Clam - which is a filter feeder. Some filter feeders accept the phyto and pods readily available in the hobby, others don't, so the ease of keeping one varies greatly from one species to another.
Edit: generally speaking, with filter feeders, you want to place them somewhere the flow can bring food to them, but with A. cornuta, it’s actually free-living after its juvenile stage, meaning as an adult it (somewhat uniquely for a bivalve) moves arounds on its own, and it might be able to just find a spot it likes. Regardless of if my exact ID is correct, however, if your specimen is still alive (you should be able to see it open/close and react to stimulus in the water like you slowly waving your hand over its “mouth” if it is), you would likely want to ensure it is being offered food (though some people report doing literally nothing and keeping bivalves without issue - again, some are easier, some are harder, and some seem to vary in difficulty from tank to tank).
Other filter feeders may have different food needs, but with bivalves specifically, to clarify, you typically want to offer phytoplankton, not pods (I’m not currently aware of any carnivorous bivalves, but a few bivalves may have somewhat odd diets; the New Zealand Cockle, for example, is thought to eat specific types of macroalgae, I presume in phytoplankton sized pieces). Basically the wider the variety of phyto offered, the better - unless you know what specifically to feed for your specific species.
If yes, possibly Arcinella cornuta - the Florida Spiny Jewelbox Clam - which is a filter feeder. Some filter feeders accept the phyto and pods readily available in the hobby, others don't, so the ease of keeping one varies greatly from one species to another.
Edit: generally speaking, with filter feeders, you want to place them somewhere the flow can bring food to them, but with A. cornuta, it’s actually free-living after its juvenile stage, meaning as an adult it (somewhat uniquely for a bivalve) moves arounds on its own, and it might be able to just find a spot it likes. Regardless of if my exact ID is correct, however, if your specimen is still alive (you should be able to see it open/close and react to stimulus in the water like you slowly waving your hand over its “mouth” if it is), you would likely want to ensure it is being offered food (though some people report doing literally nothing and keeping bivalves without issue - again, some are easier, some are harder, and some seem to vary in difficulty from tank to tank).
Other filter feeders may have different food needs, but with bivalves specifically, to clarify, you typically want to offer phytoplankton, not pods (I’m not currently aware of any carnivorous bivalves, but a few bivalves may have somewhat odd diets; the New Zealand Cockle, for example, is thought to eat specific types of macroalgae, I presume in phytoplankton sized pieces). Basically the wider the variety of phyto offered, the better - unless you know what specifically to feed for your specific species.
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hrdneglcry
Well-Known Member
As the rows go around the side of this clam there are many more but they get smaller and smaller. Maybe 20 rows
Mines seems to have more than 9 and its not spiney at all. But its little. My first clam. It hitchhiked. Maybe its empty but it thought I saw same maroon inside maybe tie the musle. But it was a piled up on one end and not laying flat. At one place I can see light through the opening. Not sure it thats normal.
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Forgive me, I phrased that very poorly.As the rows go around the side of this clam there are many more but they get smaller and smaller. Maybe 20 rows
Mines seems to have more than 9 and its not spiney at all. But its little. My first clam. It hitchhiked. Maybe its empty but it thought I saw same maroon inside maybe tie the musle. But it was a piled up on one end and not laying flat. At one place I can see light through the opening. Not sure it thats normal.
Your bivalve displays what are known as radial ribs (i.e. those ridges that are topped with little spikes shoot out from the back of the bivalve in a radial pattern), and they’re generally defined (from what I’ve seen) as ribs, riblets, threads, or lines (from most drastic to least drastic). Basically, the big ribs (like the ridges of the folds in an origami fan) are substantially larger than the others. From what I can see in your pictures, your bivalve seems to have at least six ribs (likely 7, but it’s hard to say for sure from pictures) - the big ridges with spikes - and a number of riblets - the little ridges with little spikes - that are shooting out from the “hinge” of the bivalve. If you search for images of A. cornuta, you’ll see the listed, confirmed specimens frequently have substantially more than nine rows of spiked ridges - what I’m looking for are the ribs specifically, which they have 7-9 of.
While, you bivalve doesn’t have spines like a sea urchin, it definitely has spines on its ribs (most bivalves have very smooth shells even with deep ribs, yours has those little spiky bumps on it - those are the spines). Some specimens have more exaggerated spines, some have less exaggerated spines. It varies drastically even within species - your specimen has some less exaggerated spines.
A. cornuta only grows to be approximately 1.5 inches in length (maximum), so - if my guess on the ID is correct - you specimen would be pretty much full grown.
Also, I added some general filter feeder and bivalve info to my previous post above.
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