Viva Derasa

[Nembuddy]

I decided to start a grow out thread.

I got my clam on June 7 and these were the initial photos after acclimating and a few days later after letting it settle a bit.

At the time it did have a small tear at the edge of the mantle on the left side of the exhalent siphon.

 

[Nembuddy]

Today it seems pretty happy, the tear I think completely healed up in maybe 3-4 weeks.

It is coloring up with some reds/pinks getting more vibrant. The thin black lines have really developed and the thick black lines seem to be showing a hint of green now.

Near as I can tell all the new growth above the vermitids has been in my tank.

 

[Nembuddy]

I used to occasionally feed LRS fish frenzy, but given that clam is an ingredient I thought maybe I should stop. Anyone else do this?

 

[minus9]

I used to occasionally feed LRS fish frenzy, but given that clam is an ingredient I thought maybe I should stop. Anyone else do this?

I feed LRS daily and it's a different clam species in LRS. No need to spot using it.

 

[Nembuddy]

Is this a sign of PMD? The clam seems to have this spot in the front that looks pinched at dawn/dusk cycles but it opens more during the daylight.

 

[minus9]

Is this a sign of PMD? The clam seems to have this spot in the front that looks pinched at dawn/dusk cycles but it opens more during the daylight.

Probably not. PMD will continue to get worse and the area affected will increase over time, so the retracted area will not "recover" during the day. My guess is there's something touching the mantle that's causing it to retract in that area. Your clam seems healthy to me.

 

[Nembuddy]

Figured I should add an update during full light cycle. Clam is leaning a bit because the pistol shrimp made a sand pile next to it

 

[Nembuddy]

Is this a sign of PMD? The clam seems to have this spot in the front that looks pinched at dawn/dusk cycles but it opens more during the daylight.

Found the culprit, it was a vermitid web. I picked up the clam to snap off the vermitid and took the opportunity for a picture comparison from day 1. This is 74 days in my care.

 

[Nembuddy]

Not much to update, just happy as a clam

 

[Nembuddy]

They sure grow fast! Getting tall enough that it is starting to grow into some higher current where the mantle is starting to blow around more.

 

[Nembuddy]

Growth looks like it has slowed so keeping an eye on that growth layer. It also decided to turn towards the flow.

My alk did drop, was running around 9-9.5 and is now 7.8 so working on bringing that up a bit.

 

[minus9]

As long as you're seeing growth, you're good. Slowly raise alk to 8-9 and you'll be okay.

 

[Nembuddy]

Alk is now sitting at 8.6, I’m happy to leave it there.

Clam decided to jump off the old clamshell cradle and turn towards the current. I will just leave it be but took the opportunity to take some pics of the byssal threads it left behind.

 

[minus9]

Alk is now sitting at 8.6, I’m happy to leave it there.

Clam decided to jump off the old clamshell cradle and turn towards the current. I will just leave it be but took the opportunity to take some pics of the byssal threads it left behind.

They don't stay attached for very long. Growth seems good.

 

[Nembuddy]

Update before the holidays

 

[Nembuddy]

End of year update. I did happen to see the melanarus go to sleep in the sand right next to the clam today. Not sure if that’s his normal spot or not but it would explain why there are always bits of sand on top of the clam

 

[Nembuddy]

I am only seeing a tiny sliver of growth now, In trying to restart growth I slowly increased my peak photo period from 6 to 8 hrs. I also did an icp test and noted some low numbers on sulfur, potassium and iodine, trying to step up water changes.

It does look like the byssal opening is almost closed now and I notice the shell is growing a bit asymmetrical as part of one side is getting slightly higher than the other

 

[minus9]

I am only seeing a tiny sliver of growth now, In trying to restart growth I slowly increased my peak photo period from 6 to 8 hrs. I also did an icp test and noted some low numbers on sulfur, potassium and iodine, trying to step up water changes.

It does look like the byssal opening is almost closed now and I notice the shell is growing a bit asymmetrical as part of one side is getting slightly higher than the other

8hrs would be the minimum for peak lighting, but you should hopefully start to see more growth. It’s also not uncommon for the shell to growth uneven, especially if it’s receiving more light on one side.

 

[Nembuddy]

I hadn’t taken a look from top down in a bit, the center is looking pink now, pretty nice!

Also hard to see in the picture but I noticed some sort of sand or debris inside the the mouth at the very bottom.

 

[Nembuddy]

Unable to get a picture from current angle but I can see growth on the left side now, still waiting for the right side to get going.