Ok I am ready for a clam.....

[gatorracer]

100 gallon reef
6 x 65 power compact
75 pounds of live rock
dual back pack skimmer
12 gallon refegium
1-4" sand bed
Lots of ric's
a few shrooms
giant colt coral
maze brain
welsophylia 3-6 inches depending on mood
going on 2 years in the hobby.


I have a couple of channels near the top of my tank and the whole sand bed minus the welsophylia and I want to get a clam. My lfs thinks I am right on the verge of enough light and not enough light. Help a guy out here. I am not going to upgrade to MH lights in the forseable future. My brain coral and welsi have been growing at fairly steady rate and that tells me that light while not MH is quite good.

What are the differences in clams? like a maxima to a crocea

If light is an issue will the clam live on the live rock near the top closer to the lights? or is it a sand dweller only?

How and what do you feed you clams to give them their optimal chance for growth and survival?

Is there a rookie clam that still has good coloration?

What is a good price for one? My LFS has what they call show grade croeca clams for 69.00 that are about 4-6 inches wide with lots of blue, green and purple colorations.

Thanks in advance

Gatorracer

 

[Anonymous]

Don't know if you are willing to settle for a T. deresa. It will do fine either on the sand, or for smaller ones, attached to a rock closer to the light.

I don't feel your setup is ready for T. crocea, but you maybe able to get away with T. maxima. if you can get it to closer to the bulbs.

There are other alternatives, such as Hipp. and other clams, but they generally more difficult to get, and IME, more difficult to keep.

 

[Anonymous]

I had no luck with H.hippipus. I keep my maxima under 175w MH's. I would wait until you get halides, unless you get a deresa like mentioned.

 

[Unarce]

You might be able to get away with a squamosa. They're not as light demanding as the maxima, but require a bit more than derasa. Although, some consider the crocea to be the hardest to keep, maxima's actually have a higher mortality rate. Other factors come into play when considering maximas, so I'd definitely avoid them as well as crocea.

Squamosa's are quite attractive and are sometimes mistaken for maximas when young. You can easily tell the difference as their scutes are larger and farther apart. Their mantle also spreads out a lot wider.

They're mostly gold and brown, but every once in awhile you can find some specimens with green or blue. They do not ship well, so it's best to try and obtain one from your LFS or a local reefer.

HTH

 

[Anonymous]

Here is a picture of my T. maxima under 2x24W PC's. He was under 2x250W HQI MH's forever, but I moved and had to downsize my tank.
He's been just fine, looks as healthy as ever still.
They are much more light adaptable than most reefers, even experineced ones, give them credit for.
Having said this, a Squamosa or Derasa would do just fine in your setup.

Edit: I should add that I've pulled maximas out that were behind rockwork for weeks up weeks with amost NO light, and they were fine.
They're really not that delicate when acclimated - I've never killed one.

 

[Unarce]

That's because you've got the midas touch, Jim :wink:

You are correct about the lighting needs of clams. Although crocea and maxima are the most light demanding, I never felt that it was at the same scale as SPS.

Still, considering that it's possibly gatorracer's first attempt at clamkeeping, I think the squamosa is the best choice right now.

 

[Anonymous]

Still, considering that it's possibly gatorracer's first attempt at clamkeeping, I think the squamosa is the best choice right now.

Agreed.

 

[gatorracer]

OK so here is my choice I guess. My LFS has only maxima and crocea in stock. They can order some for me but I pay extra and shipping so it doesnt make much sense to go that route.

http://www.liveaquaria.com/product/prod ... pCatId=589


Do the prices look fair?

And most of all I did appreciate all the advice but I didnt see anything on how you guys feed. Or do you just rely on the lights? My method of choice right now is the cut 2- liter bottle and drop in the top so I can more directly feed the coral without flow or fish getting the food first. But what to feed? I have frozen brine shrimp and selcon that I feed my other LPS corals.

How does the clam choose a spot? I assume they cant walk around so do I just need to find a place to put it where a snail wont come and push it around or will it attach it self to something on its own?

Thanks again.

 

[Anonymous]

Clams are filter feeders, and despite what you may read elsewhere, they filter feed ALL OF THEIR LIVES. The apparatus is there for a reason.
Having said this, as they get larger don't need to be fed as much in captivity. In many systems, they don't get fed at all, although they ARE feeding. Make no mistake.
They feed on phytoplankton, and you can purchase this in various forms through your LFS.

 

[Unarce]

Young clams greatly benefit from direct feeding, either with the coke bottle method or separately in a bowl. Clams that are 3-4" and up will rely mostly on zooxanthellae, but will also appreciate some DT's on occasion.

Those prices are reasonable, but personally, I wouldn't buy clams online from anyone besides Barry. Their clams are in great health and their packaging is top notch. Here's the current inventory of squamosa:

http://www.clamsdirect.com/store/home.php?cat=7