Mussels as biological filters

[Fishyfish]

Hi all,

I bought some live marine mussels today

Not for food but as a biological filter .....

Placed them in the sandbed of my refugium and ensured that a gentle current is constantly washing over them.

Does any bro/sis have any experience with their upkeep and their efficiency as biological filters?

Do they have any special care requirements? I do have some small starfishes in the fuge. Will that be alright?

Cheers.

[kareen]

They need heavy doseage of plankton.... Is your tank mature enough to keep them alive? If you have some success, do keep us inform okay and take a pic of it for us to know the species

[fishtalk1517]

Hi fishyfish, think u bought 3 batches of mussels, rite? I was there remember ? I too got some mussels but it's only abt 3-4 pieces. I left them amongst the rocks in the main tank, and they stick ard or hidden beyond being seen.

I.M.O, mussels thrives better in rich plankton water, jus like u always sees them in our water like the kelongs A rope that was thrown in the locals kelong and within abt 6 months, they get to multiply fast and extremely growth rates found on the rope Maybe u wanna try lay them over some rocks and as u said, low currents over them. I still believe they still contribute as bio filters as a whole thou

[Thexder]

I bought 1 batch of mussels from CF over the weekend. The auntie told me they are used to 'clean' the water. Went back and found that my batch of mussels was spawning instead. The bag look like containing sperm Dumped the mussels into my sump and ended up my corals and feather worms were having a feast. Skimmer also skimming overtime.

[Fishyfish]

They look kinda cool although there are some in the reefing circle who are quite skeptical about them

Anyways, I am glad I am not the only one trying them out. However, I suspect that some of my starfish are tryingto make a meal out of them and have at least succeeded in doing so to one or two of them.

Found some broken shells that were broken in half and I am not talking about the place that hinges both halves together. It was the single shell that was broken in two. Wonder who did it

Will monitor the starfishes.....suspect it is one of those fast moving types.

Hi fishtalk1517, yeah I remember you...I told Reefzzz that I met you there

There are some reeferes who are even using scallops and abalones. I prefer to use these types as food anyday

[Reefzzz]

Anyways, I am glad I am not the only one trying them out. However, I suspect that some of my starfish are tryingto make a meal out of them and have at least succeeded in doing so to one or two of them. 

Found some broken shells that were broken in half and I am not talking about the place that hinges both halves together. It was the single shell that was broken in two. Wonder who did it 

Will monitor the starfishes.....suspect it is one of those fast moving types.

Your starfish might be the culprit. haha...

saw your star grabbing one of your mussels that day... Not really sure if he is the culprit though..maybe that fellow is just checking out his new tank mates...

[kareen]

Interested to know about this species of mussels.... Care to post a pic?

I feel that mussel and clams are delicious feast for all the animals in our tank so best to put them in a place with no predators....

[Fishyfish]

Ok will try to post a pic.

Well said, there seems to be many hungry reefers around here as well......

[STORM TROPPER]

Out of curiousity after u guys placing it in is there any sign of improvement

on ur water n can it be determine tt it really works.

[Thexder]

I only bought 1 batch which is around 8-10 mussels. Don't think its enough to make a difference. Maybe have to go for mangrove already.

[kareen]

Any pics? Or updates? R they still alive?

[Achilles Tang]

I've tried it before and so have many other reefers!

Fact of the matter is: mussels don't survive long in a reef tank. They filter feed and frankly, there isn't enough food supply for them in the long term. They will perish after a while.

Same for flame scallops and other big bivalves which don't can't produce their own energy supply like clams which photosynthesize.

[kareen]

I thought it's someother more hardy species.... The last time I rear the flame scallop in the office, I put them with the seahorses and pipefish. I have to dose "diy" plankton and rotifers 5 times a week.....

[Thexder]

Any pics? Or updates? R they still alive?

Threw them in the sump with cheatos and LR. Forgot all about them ever since. Seems like still alive, but no difference in nutrient level.

[kareen]

How's thing? R these what u guys bought?

http://www.saltwaterfish.com/site_11_03/pr...oot_parent_id=4

Some correspondences in there....

http://www.saltwaterfish.com/vb/showthread.php?t=152707

[Thexder]

What I bought from CF are the common green mussels or 'tua tao'.

I guess if get sick of them can always cook them for dinner

[Fishyfish]

Ya its the green mussels alright except uncooked

They are not so hardy. Some of mine died and became free food for the damsels in my fuge. Many are still alive. They need some level of care and must be fed phyto. I haven't been feeding them lately However, my fuge has lotsa chaeto, some other macroalgae and mangroves to compensate.

My reef is doing pretty ok these days with less maintenance. Only ones that can't make it are the trachyphyllia which needs to be fed. I am too lazy to target feed SPS and other LPS are just fine

[kareen]

R they really useful the level of nitrate in your tank? Appreciate some sharing of your experiences....

[Thexder]

R they really useful the level of nitrate in your tank? Appreciate some sharing of your experiences....

Not in my case. Hair algae is growing like grass all over...

[kareen]

Not in my case. Hair algae is growing like grass all over...

ok.... in your observation, how do those 'tua tao' fare? Do they look 'weaker' compared to the first day? How many do you put for your tank size? Lastly, do u think those selling in wet market one can be use?

[Fishyfish]

For my case, they are definitely weaker than before as I haven't been feeding them and didn't provide optimal flow as well. They probably will perform better if given proper conditions.

As my system is about 900 litres, I used 3 clumps (about 30). Can't say for green mussels sold in the mark. If they look healthy and their holding tanks are clean (which I doubt), they should do fine except the water provided should not be used. When I bought them from CF, they seem to be "breathing" - opening and closing their shells gently. Their holding tank's water condition and circulation is excellent .

I haven't been measuring nitrates for a while now as my tank is rather free from algae with good coralline algae growth. I attribute this to regular water changes and other measures .

In terms of efficacy of nitrate removal, I believe they can contribute, but probably less than macro algae and mangroves. Their use should be limited to a supporting nature and as an interesting novelty.

[Thexder]

ok.... in your observation, how do those 'tua tao' fare? Do they look 'weaker' compared to the first day? How many do you put for your tank size? Lastly, do u think those selling in wet market one can be use?

Looks the same to me although a couple died. When they die, the shells just open up completely. If they are doing well, they will start to lay down their sticky threads and get stuck to the glass or LR. Maybe my tank's nutrient level is high so they still surviving?

I basically dumped them into my sump together with LR and a clump of cheato.

[madmac]

The ones that work in tanks aren't green mussels... they are the 'sand' mussels, they're aren't very common in the wet-market as these need the cooler fresh seawater to survive. Mostly sold in the food fish LFS or go the Chinese restaurants that sell live seafood.

The smaller version can be found in our shores, the old Connie island(Ponggol) or Seletar island(Sembawang). Tiny 1 inch mussels, that require u to dig into the sand to find them. Surf clams(lala) also work qutie well... jus be careful to find healthy ones, before dumping them into ur tank.. enjoy.

[kareen]

The ones that work in tanks aren't green mussels... they are the 'sand' mussels, they're aren't very common in the wet-market as these need the cooler fresh seawater to survive. Mostly sold in the food fish LFS or go the Chinese restaurants that sell live seafood.

The smaller version can be found in our shores, the old Connie island(Ponggol) or Seletar island(Sembawang). Tiny 1 inch mussels, that require u to dig into the sand to find them. Surf clams(lala) also work qutie well... jus be careful to find healthy ones, before dumping them into ur tank.. enjoy.

Sorry.... more questions...

If "lala" can be used, what about those blood cockles? Blood cockles are easily available in wet market and I believe they are sand burrower....

How to determine if they are healthy? What are the signs or symptons to look out for? Any suggustions? Eg. "breathing" - opening and closing their shells gently...

[kareen]

Jus wana share something.... an attempt after reading this thread, bought some lailai and green mussels from wet market place. These are what I did and experiences...

Immediately from the wet market place, I soaked all of them in a tub bubbling with some of my tank water for a few hours.... To identify the dead ones. Sequently I dump the alive lailai and mussels in my crammy sump.... a mistake. The mistake is that it is difficult for me to monitor them due to the crammy space. I thought a weekly inspection is okay but turn out to be very wrong 'cos by a week, some of them has died and without removing them, fouled my water... Actually I remembered to check on them only 2 weeks later so quite a number have died. By now, a month has passed from the day I bought them from wet market. All of the lailai have up lorry and I'm left with about 5 piece of green mussels. Hence, looks like green mussels are more hardy than lailai... As for nitrate, more time is needed 'cos my tank's nitrate is horribe from the death of lailai......