What's wrong with my CLAM!?!?!

[pjewett]

I'm so bummed. Just got this guy a few days ago and he looked great until late yesterday when he started looking like he's gaping..and the mantel is retracted.

Water params are good (calcium is 450) and all my other corals, inverts & fish look great. The clam is placed as high up as I can get him on the reef..directly under a 150W MH light that is approx. 12-13 inches from the clam. Water temp is at 80.

I had briefly placed him in the sand but he was quickly swarmed by some nassarius snails. I knocked them off any returned him to the top.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Killerdrgn]

stress maybe? or pinched mantle.

 

[NYreefNoob]

really dont want it sitting on a rock might be aggitated as well, place it in the sand

 

[ZBT3091]

it could be a parasite like a snail or something. I dont know alot about clams, but i know that if the mantle is retracted and the clam doesn't respond if you wave your hand between him and the light it isn't good.

 

[charlie1225]

Keep an eye on it. I had a clam than was fine and the next day looked exactly like that. Next thing you know it started to rot. There's a reason nassarius snails are swarming him.

 

[pjewett]

Keep an eye on it. I had a clam than was fine and the next day looked exactly like that. Next thing you know it started to rot. There's a reason nassarius snails are swarming him.

That's why I don't want to put him in the sand.

 

[Pedro Nuno Ferreira]

Hi
It doesn't look good...did you check for Pyramid snails? (they are the ones you see on top of the coins in the image link)

Bellow is some information about them that you can read in this site

Pyramid Snails Identification
Pyramid Snails, or Pyrams are very small snails that belong to the Pyramidellidae family. They are generally white in color, have a slender shell that tapers to a point, and do not grow larger than a few millimeters. The Pyramid Snails use their long proboscis, which is a tube-like mouth, to puncture the mantle of a Tridacna Clam in order to feed upon the fluids and zooxanthellae cells contained within. A few snails will typically not pose a threat to a healthy Tridacna Clam. The snails reproduce every 90-120 days, and if left to multiply, can cause serious harm or even death to their host in a very short period of time.
Signs & Symptoms
Evidence of an inflicted clam can be noticed by poor expansion and loss of color within the mantle. The Pyramid Snails feed mostly during the nighttime hours. During the daytime, they will remain either at the base of the clam, or within the scutes of the shell, where they are difficult to spot. It is best to inspect an ailing clam with a flashlight a few hours after the lights have turned off on the aquarium. The small snails will line up at the top of the shell just below the clam's mantle.
Treatment
If you discover these snails, it is best to remove the clam to a separate container of aquarium water. Once out of the aquarium, you can physically remove the adult snails, and brush the entire shell with a new toothbrush in order to remove any eggs.
Natural predators of Pyramid snails include several species of wrasse within the genus of Halichoeres and Pseudocheilinus. A few of the more popular species that are reportedly very efficient at controlling these snails are; Six and Eight Lined Wrasse (P. hexataenia and P. octotaenia), and the Green Wrasse (H. chloropterus).

I Hope for the best
Cheers
Pedro Nuno ;-)

 

[reefman]

i find nassarius snails are very aggressive. when clams r stress, they will take advantage of them n can kill.

 

[tosiek]

If its not determined that its a parameter problem or stress through pyramids or pinched mantle beforehand its really hard to correct the problem before they die.

Clams tend to get sick and die rather quickly, most times overnight to the snails. If you don;t correct the problem when it first happens then your not going to save the clam.

sorry for your loss. Ive lost 4 clams within days of each other before and im still trying to figure out why.

 

[pjewett]

If its not determined that its a parameter problem or stress through pyramids or pinched mantle beforehand its really hard to correct the problem before they die.

Clams tend to get sick and die rather quickly, most times overnight to the snails. If you don;t correct the problem when it first happens then your not going to save the clam.

sorry for your loss. Ive lost 4 clams within days of each other before and im still trying to figure out why.

yikes. well he doesn't look good and I don't see anything crawling on him but he's wide open but the mantel is still retracted.

not expecting good news in the morning.

:irked:

 

[Cibo]

Nassarius snails are the under taker in my tank anything dead or dying in my tank are quickly eaten by them, you said you put it hight in the tank as soon as you got the clam maby it needed to get use to the light in you tank and you stressed it out.
hope it lives but it dont look good....

 

[rookie07]

i had alot of pyramid snails...look at night on the lower part of the glass...just above the sand bed.
It took me 2 clams before I discovered the pyramid snails...best of luck...and you shouldnt buy another clam, as the same thing might happen

I had a hermit kill this pyramid snail(it was huge)

 

[pjewett]

Nassarius snails are the under taker in my tank anything dead or dying in my tank are quickly eaten by them, you said you put it hight in the tank as soon as you got the clam maby it needed to get use to the light in you tank and you stressed it out.
hope it lives but it dont look good....

This is what I suspect the problem was. I put it right at the top under the MH as soon as I got it home.

She is gone.:frown:

My last clam for a long time. Thanks to all for the help.

 

[Pinkheine]

Just out of curiousity noone had mentioned it, how large was the clam? In inches... small clams under 3" are more difficult to care for. Just an idea on it maybe dying simply because it was small and not getting what it needed to stay alive properly. When learning we didn't know that smaller clams were a bit more difficult in the care dept and we lost one because of our naivete.

 

[Alex]

for future reference, most animal that we put in our tanks are placed in positions that we would like them to be in. little do we consider the position they were in when we bought them,what foods,lighting,water params etc...
what I did with my first clam was to place it in a small container (sponge strainer) just above the bottom of my tank until it was acclimated to my tank.It was in a position similar to where it had been when I bought it and with less lighting(it had been under 400w I have 250w). after it was settled in my tank I placed it on the bottom and it has remained there for the past 2 years.
take a look at James fatheree book on giant clams and then when you feel confident maybe you can get another. check your tank for any snails and figure out the cause of your loss. good luck.

 

[pjewett]

Just out of curiousity noone had mentioned it, how large was the clam? In inches... small clams under 3" are more difficult to care for. Just an idea on it maybe dying simply because it was small and not getting what it needed to stay alive properly. When learning we didn't know that smaller clams were a bit more difficult in the care dept and we lost one because of our naivete.

Probably 3" exactly...perhaps slightly larger. Picked it up from Wonderful World of Fish and though I have only been there once the livestock looked very healthy to me.

 

[pjewett]

for future reference, most animal that we put in our tanks are placed in positions that we would like them to be in. little do we consider the position they were in when we bought them,what foods,lighting,water params etc...
what I did with my first clam was to place it in a small container (sponge strainer) just above the bottom of my tank until it was acclimated to my tank.It was in a position similar to where it had been when I bought it and with less lighting(it had been under 400w I have 250w). after it was settled in my tank I placed it on the bottom and it has remained there for the past 2 years.
take a look at James fatheree book on giant clams and then when you feel confident maybe you can get another. check your tank for any snails and figure out the cause of your loss. good luck.

One of the challenges I have is that I have a hex tank. I know apart from feeding there aren't many advantages to using this type of tank but it's all I have until my wife and I get a house (6mnths +).

It's 24" from the top of the tank to the sand bed. Then the light (150W MH) w/ new 15k bulb) itself is another 6" above that (waiting for replacement glass before I can adjust) so I don't have a lot of options.

Everyone else in the tank seems to be doing very well...I have duncan, rics & even zoas on the sand bed that look good.

I wonder if it would be best to wait until I can get a bigger tank and use the 30 gal hex to "seed" it. Then worry about trying clams again.

 

[Aquatic Life Direct]

Just curious... did you ever check the salinity in the bag and see if it is the same as your tank? Did you also check the temperature? what kind of lighting was it under before? Did the person who bagged the clam damage the foot by just pulling it off the substrate? Was the clam fully extended before you purchased it? I could be many many different things... also i would not recommend croceas being in the sand(long term). Croceas burrow into rocks in the wild and they do have very fine "gills". leaving them in the sand bed doesnt mean theyre guaranteed to die... but it is just increasing your chances that a sandstorm may kick up and clog the clam's gills. I would leave it as natural as possible. If you want a hardier clam, I would start with a derasa. They are relatively easy to keep but not as colorful as a crocea or maxima.

 

[pjewett]

Just curious... did you ever check the salinity in the bag and see if it is the same as your tank? Did you also check the temperature? what kind of lighting was it under before? Did the person who bagged the clam damage the foot by just pulling it off the substrate? Was the clam fully extended before you purchased it? I could be many many different things... also i would not recommend croceas being in the sand(long term). Croceas burrow into rocks in the wild and they do have very fine "gills". leaving them in the sand bed doesnt mean theyre guaranteed to die... but it is just increasing your chances that a sandstorm may kick up and clog the clam's gills. I would leave it as natural as possible. If you want a hardier clam, I would start with a derasa. They are relatively easy to keep but not as colorful as a crocea or maxima.

All good questions of course...but only have some of the answers. I did temp and drip acclimate the clam for 15-20 minutes..I realize it should have been longer. I didn't check the salinity in the bag and I should have...darn. Clam was fully extended and it didn't look to me like any damage was done when the vendor pulled it from his tank.

I may try again with the derasa but I'll wait until my tank is a little older as it's only 5 1/2 now. It's the second death I've had...including some Yumas that didn't last long. Hate killing things.

Thanks

 

[Chiefmcfuz]

What are your water parameters?