New Live Aquaria Clam

[SauceyReef]

I knew LA/DD went to crap but I had no idea they were specifically known for selling bad clams or I would not have bought one. I will keep you updated how it goes.

 

[dedragon]

you should be better off saucey, i think those ship directly from the ORA facility, not from liveaquaria

 

[SauceyReef]

Thank you I hope so!! It will come in any moment. I just checked tracking and it came from Fort Pierce, FL US.
Like I said when I was browsing through LA/DD I noticed many of the clams did not say aquaculture or ORA thus many of them are likely Wild Clams. I have heard so many people say online that wild clams especially smaller ones are super hard to keep.

 

[dedragon]

good ORA is in florida, and i dont think LA has a facility there. I dont get anything from LA though, too many bad customer stories (btw i got a clown with brook from them long ago)

 

[SauceyReef]

Oh wow I must have lucked out! Glad I did my research and picked the Ora

aquaculture squamosa even though in the photos it looked the worst. I just got it in! I’ve never got a clam before and was scared when I first got it (all white and closed up) but after a few minutes it’s already opening! Looks a little blue How does it look?? Should I flip it upside for acclimation ?

 

[dedragon]

nah leave it on its side and drip acclimate it, then transfer it in a cup or bowl so you dont expose the clam to any air, is there any air in the bag it was shipped in?

 

[SauceyReef]

Lifted it up!

 

[SauceyReef]

Whoops just saw your message dedragon. Somone earlier said I should gently scrub the side with a brush so I imagined I could handle it a bit. Made sure not to expose it to air. But yes there was air in the bag. Would these clams not be exposed to some air in the wild when the tide goes down though?

 

[dedragon]

doesnt matter if you move it at all just easier not to while doing everything else. No clams dont live in tidal areas where they are above water, the little air bubbles that get in can be expelled by a healthy clam

 

[dedragon]

good to scrub the clam, it was directly from ora so its prob fine but i would probably just do a once over and then look it over to make sure no bad algae or snails

 

[SauceyReef]

Thank you for the reply. Yes I will do that! In terms of being exposed to air sounds like many from the RC forums have their clams exposed to air during water changes. Plus with the PAR reading I got for my tank the only spot for the clam that I can get 200-300 par would be the higher portions of my tank which will also make the clam be exposed regularly for water changes.

Clam being exposed to air during water changes - Reef Central Online Community

Clam being exposed to air during water changes Tridacnid Clams and other Mollusks

www.reefcentral.com

 

[SauceyReef]

It is opening quite a bit now and if I hover my hand over the light is skirts back in and out Solid movement. Not as much blue as I thought.

 

[dedragon]

i had mine for 3 years at about 150 par its not too much of an issue for it to be in a little less light, most people keep clams on the sandbed and i bet most dont have 200+ on the sandbed. i just worry about it not being able to expel the air and it was never worth the risk, squamosa will get huge too so best to put it in the sand

 

[SauceyReef]

My sand bed is around 100 par though. Would this be acceptable??

 

[dedragon]

i think it will be just fine. Shouldnt really matter but what lights are you using?

 

[SauceyReef]

AI Prime 16 HD so far making everything look great but the preset I have is not the highest in terms of par for the lower portions of the tank.

 

[dedragon]

cool, quality light, you should be just fine. Just set it on a flat rock on the sandbed and enjoy waving your hands over it, they are such a great part of reef tanks. Watch calcium and alkalinity changes as well as nitrate and phosphate, you will be surprised how much they can pull out.

 

[SauceyReef]

Awesome! Yes I am so pumped. Part of the reason I got one was for the beautiful / quick movement similar to fan worms. What do you mean by pull out with the changes?

 

[cloakerpoked]

There are a few things that I will always get from a LFS, and clams are one of them. I'm sure that there are online sellers who do ok...after all the LFS gets them shipped, so it isn't like they can't make it when shipped...but I prefer to give them a week or two in the LFS first, just to make sure that they're acclimating well.

I'll pay the 40-100% markup for one or two critters that I put in my tank. But that's my personal preference.

+1 to everyone who commented on your stand, you did a really great job with it!

 

[SauceyReef]

After 5 hours of acclimation I finally got the squamosa in the tank! Decided for the sand bed for now. Found a big ol coral eating asterina on it! Glad I checked real well