My 1.5 ft Reef log

[jackywongto]

haha no worries both of us new still got lots to learn haha... so which goby did u get..

post 1312 & 1314

[qiang]

post 1312 & 1314

wa u got a jawfish ah not scared it jump out ah? i wanted to get 1 but my hood not closed 1 so i scared it jump out

[teebs]

post 1312 & 1314

Ehhhh...jacky, U want to try reef chilli???

[jackywongto]

wa u got a jawfish ah not scared it jump out ah? i wanted to get 1 but my hood not closed 1 so i scared it jump out

I think their 1st reaction is to dash back to their burrow normally.

My purple firefish also same thing. rush back at 1st panic.

But I do have a cover which i sometimes use.

[qiang]

I think their 1st reaction is to dash back to their burrow normally.

My purple firefish also same thing. rush back at 1st panic.

But I do have a cover which i sometimes use.

haha i dun noe man my dog will become mad dog when theres a dog downstairs and he will dash here dash there haha...

i scared the fish will get heart attack and commit suicide heh

[jackywongto]

haha i dun noe man my dog will become mad dog when theres a dog downstairs and he will dash here dash there haha...

i scared the fish will get heart attack and commit suicide heh

let me see how's their response then come back to you after a few days.

dunno how bad is their sense of insecurity yet.

[MarcoVan]

Keeping the giant clams in the home aquaria:

Probably the most important element to consider here is lighting. T. max and T. crocea typically come from highly lit areas. Knop recommends using metal halide lighting, and perhaps actinic supplementation, and I happen to agree. I know people who have kept their maximas and croceas under NO, VHO, and power compact fluorescent lighting, but I also know quite a few who have had their clams lose intensity, and in some cases starving to death over the course of 6 months to a year.

Maximas and croceas typically have a higher density of zooxanthellae, and rely heavily on the nutrition provided by the algaes. This may account for the successes of people keeping these species in high light, low plankton (big honkin' skimmer) tank along with SPS corals. Derasa, squamosa, and giga all come from deeper in the ocean, and therefore have less of a light requirement than crocea and maxima. I could go into a long scientific discussion about lighting a home aquaria, but I believe that has been covered at some point in our lecture series.

If it hasnt, the bottom line is that we must try our best to duplicate the settings that our animals came from. 2 40w bulbs over a 55g aquarium isn't even coming close to the amount of sunlight a critter from 10 feet under the water is usually getting. According to the lectures here and on fishroom by Chris Paris, we typically don't even get close to natural light intensity in home aquariums, even when we have MH lighting.

Synopsis: Maximas and croceas need a bunch of light. Expect your clams beautiful pigmentation to fade if you don't have it, and expect the clam to die.

Derasa, giga, squamosa come from deeper waters and you can obviously get away with less light (although you will want to favor the blue spectrum in your lighting arrangement).

Water Current: Clams need water current, but they don't like strong, direct current.

Calcium: Clams need 400-450 mg/l calcium, and 7-12 dKH hardness according to Knop. This can be achieved by kalkwasser dosing, Ca reactor, dual part additives.

pH: Knop recommends a range of 8.0-8.1 as optimal with 7.9-8.2 as the extreme ranges. Most well run reeftanks these days run at 8.2-8.4 pH, and I haven't yet seen a problem under these conditions.

Additives: Here we run into the ever present problem of how-much-of- this-element-does-our- organism-need. We know the animals use them, we don't know how much, although with the advent of cheaper, more accurate test kits we may be able to figure it out.

I add a full spectrum trace element product, strontium, and iodine in the form of lugols solution. Knop only says to add trace elements, and that's as far as he goes. He also advises to add vitamins in the form of a concentrated liquid. I'm not sure I agree, but I'm hardly at the level of Daniel Knop, so I'll shut up about it.

Water temp: Knop advises to keep the tank between 25-32 deg C with 22 to 34 being the extreme range. The main concern here is keeping the water temp stable as the clams react poorly to sudden changes.

Water Quality: Things get kinda weird here. Everything we usually think about in terms of keeping a reeftank is contraindicated. The symbiotic zooxanthellae of the tridachnids need nitrogenous waste as a fuel. The waste produced by the clam itself though filter feeding is utilized as a source, but such filter feeding may not be taking place in a highly skimmed aquarium. Knop suggests ~2ppm nitrate as being optimal. Dick Perrin likes (as of a year ago at least) to keep his nitrates at ~8ppm. This can be added in the form of a sodium nitrate solution, or an ammonium nitrate solution.

I'm sure this is gonna come up, so I'll just cover it now: yes, anecdotally I have heard of the usage of human urine as a source of nitrogenous waste in clam farms and tanks (by sober people no less).

The other concern here with water quality is that most of us employ pretty heaving skimming. Clams are built to filterfeed. Knop recommends using a solution of baking yeast and water, or a commercial preparation. Unfortunately I haven't seen such a preparation available in america. I have seen a planktonic algae preparation available though. Knop also discusses the use of blood as a food source. For those of you unfamiliar with phlebotomy, I suggest you consult a medical professional before attempting this <<grin>. I have not as of yet spiked a vein for my clams, but it is an interesting consideration. Knop mentioned the problem of possibly spreading pathogens through this method, although unless the host providing the blood was in a state of septicemia, I don't see it as a huge concern.

Anecdotally, I know of people keeping T. maximas and T. croceas in heavily skimmed SPS tanks for about five years (and still going strong).

Purchasing a clam: When purchasing a clam, be very particular in choosing one. Look closely at the mantle for any signs of bleaching at all. Pass your hand over the clams to see if they retract in reaction to the change in light, if they dont, pass the clam up. Look at the byssal opening for any signs of injury or tearing. I've seen clams in such bad shape that there was no byssal organ at all, just an empty hole. If you can, look under the mantle for parasitic snails.

Gently acclimate your clam to its new lighting. It may have been sitting in the dark for a few hours during shipping, or under inadequate lighting at the dealers. Shield it from intense light, gradually working your way up full light. Typically I use a sheet or two of "eggcrate" light diffusing material.

I just set it on the tank over the clam, and every few days I leave the eggcrate on for a little less time. There is no real set amount of time on this. Observing your clam will be your best guide.

Placement of clam: Place the clam with the mantle up towards the light. Alot of times you will get your clam already attached to rock or a clamshell, or something else. This may or may not make your life easier depending on your tank. You can either place the clam somewhere and observe it for signs of good health (mantle expansion, not trying to move), or you can cut the byssal threads.

This is done by poking, prodding, tapping the soft tissue surrounding the byssal threads. If all goes well it will retract and reveal the byssal threads. Take a sharp instrument, and cut the threads. You must be careful not to pull the clam from its attachment, or irreparable damage may be done to the byssal organ, in which case your clam may be a world of trouble. I have heard of some croceas and maximas living after losing their byssal gland, but the chances of survival are slim to none IMO. After the threads are cut, place the clam where you think you want it to be. Don't wedge it into a rock, or it will not be able to open fully. Place it on a rock shelf, or possibly the substrate. This is a long standing argument about placing a clam on the substrate. Some warn of bristleworms. Knop thinks there is some chemical defense mechanism that clams employ to keep the bristleworms away. I've heard of clams being on an aragonite substrate for 3 years now with no problems. I personally don't see it as being a big threat. It may take months to figure out where your clam wants to be. Observing it will give you a sensitivity to its "moods", and eventually you'll get it figured out.

Do _not_ glue, cement, or epoxy your clam to anything if it keeps trying to move. Just keep trying.

Problems: There are alot of pathogens and a few parasites that can injure a clam in the home aquaria. I am only going to go over the most prevalent.

Pyramidelline snails can be a problem. They prevented me from getting one of the nicest croceas I've ever seen. Even worse, they can injure or even kill a clam. These are small elongated snails with whitish shells. Look for them at night feeding on the mantle of the clam. If you have them, pick them off by hand. Juvenile coris wrasse and the sixline wrasse both predate these snails and can be utilized to fight off the little buggers. (unfortunately they also decimate the copepod population of a reeftank).

Murex snails bore their way into the clam shells by dissolving the shell. Personally I have never observed these snails, so my advice is that if you see a snail trying to munch through your clam shell, remove it.

There are infectious pathogens that can infect a clam. Of those that have been documented, are Vibrio sp, Ricksettia, and Perkinsus. The bad news is that Knop says there is no hope.

I'd be interested in knowing if Dr. Bingmans chloramphenicol protocol used with RTN cases in SPS would be effective against Vibrio infections.

Environmental factors also play a part in clam pathology. Generalized bleaching can be caused by lack of nitrate. Localized and central bleaching can be caused by damage from subjecting the animal to light conditions without proper acclimation.

Knop also lists damage by heat, cold, low salinity, high salinity, heavy metal poisoning. I see little need to go into the details on those.

That pretty much concluded my lecture. I've covered most of what I consider to be relevant to the hobbyist. On the other hand, I've barely scraped the tip of the iceberg.

I suggest if you are seriously interested in clams to not only get Knops book, but to read everything you can find, and talk to everyone who will talk to you. Unfortunately, there isn't a vast body of scientific information on the Tridachnid clams, but hopefully with all of the efforts of captive propagation, research will continue to increase and we will unravel the mysteries of these beautiful creatures.

Question: Why the low recommended pH?

<dc> I have no clue. I assume it is the pH that Knop kept his tanks at, and concluded that it was optimal. I personally dont find any problems keeping my tank at 8.3-8.4.

Question: Is placing clams on the sand in anyway detrimental to them?

<dc> Not that I have observed, or heard of anectdotally. again, there may be a concern of bristleworms, but I personally think the threat is overrated.

Question: What exactly are the symptoms of a Vibrio infection?

<dc> Internally, I dont know. Externally there may be visible yellow pustules. From the info I have gathered from Bingman, Vibrio sp. acts fast, and can "reduce an animal to a putrifying mass of amino acids in short order"

Question: Given the delicate nature of the bysal organ, how often should you attempt to move your clam to a "better" spot?

<dc> as often as it falls down seriously, the clam will situate itself when it is content, otherwise it wont make a serious attempt to attach itself. Most of the tridachnids are even capable of a small amount of movement, so just observe the clam. Eventually you tune in to the needs of your animals.

Question: If clams are in nature filter feeders, can you feed clams in your aquarium? If so, what would be a good food and how do you go about feeding them?

<dc> yes, you can. As I mentioned earlier Knop recommends a solution of baking yeast and water. Unfortunately thats as specific as it gets. I will try to contact him and find out the specifics. There is a planktonic marine algae preparation that can also be used, and of course the blood thing. The main concern here is that you turn off your skimmer for a few hours while feeding

Question: Are any of the infectious pathogens you mentioned species specific?

<dc> of course, clams would probably do very well in a planktonic friendly tank, such as the algal filtration tanks

<dc> Different species of the different bacterias have been known to attack various organisms. For instance a species of Vibrio is the cause of cholera in humans I believe. I dont know if the particular species of bacteria that infect clams are zoonotic though.

<dc> or vice-versa

Question: In the grand scale of reef keeping (mushrooms through SPS) how difficult would you rate the keeping of giant clams, using a 1-10 scale?

<dc> good question. I dont find them difficult at all to be honest. The trick is to use alot of light, and calcium additions. Healthy clams with nothing in a tank to predate them are usually no problem at all.

Question: It is recommended not to put clams within crevices etc, but in nature several of the species are actually burrowing. Isn't this a contradiction?

<dc> not at all. the clam makes its on hole according to its needs. Shoving a clam in a crevice is according to the hobbiests need.

Question: Know of any good clam web sites or other resources on the Web?

<dc> for purchasing, or learning about them?

<dc> there is a very nice site with good pictures and some info

<dc> some of my clams are even on the site

Question: You touched on the concept of dosing a clam tank with nitrates, have you found that to be necessary/beneficial?

<dc> http://personal.trxinc.com/jspece/reef1/clam/clamindex.html

<dc> I've only been keeping clams for about a year. my tanks run at 0ppm nitrate and I have never had a clam expire for no reason. The clam itself may be producing enough nitrogenous waste to provide its zooxanthellae with nitrate

<dc> and I frequenly urinate in my tank when going all the way to the bathroom is inconvenient

* dc grins

Question: Do clams usually require acclimation to light when you first get them?

<dc> I would follow the recommendations of Knop and Perrin on this subject, and keep nitrates in the tank, particularly with a tank heavily stocked with clams

Question: When placing additives in the tank, is it easier to stand on a stool or do you use the "arcing" method?

<dc> yes, I use eggcrate over the tank to diffuse the light when I first get them. ramping up the hours with the light cycle might also be of use

<dc> I use the arcing method. In podunk Missouri I was the pissing for accuracy champion 3 years running.

Nice write up! Finished it while attending my marketing lecture! LOL

Anyway,

it's feasible to keep a clam in nano tanks. Except for the matter that you may lose the pattern after some time and totally possible for anyone to grow a clam in a nano too! I have a squamosa which from 2" becomes a 4" monster in my 1ft cube! All I feed it is kalk, kalk, and kalk (:

Also,

I agree with some posts some of the guys posted about the position of clams. For myself, I consulted 3 friends who gave me the same logic which is to leave the clam alone and let him/her find his/her favourite position. I had ever tried putting flat rocks for my clams to attach on but to no avail. Somehow or another, they still manage to huff-and-puff out of wherever I left them and went to some place I didn't like (because I couldnt see them!) haha. In fact, I lost a maxima because of that, so word of wisdom:

Let Nature finds Her own way out!

Lastly, brothers, for nanos, better is to always monitor your kH when you have such delicate animals around. I have lost spses, clam and other lpses due to overstocking of such calcium-demanding animals in my 1ft cube. It's great to have them around but definitely not at the expense of my other corals imo. SO, better be safe than sorry. Usually bad things happen in a few months time. Won't be that soon but definitely around. My maxima died on me on my 8th month It was from Irwana's Vanatua shipment. Still can remember buying it together with bro. Nitro. but o wells....

Happy Reefing,

Marc J.

P.S: +1 for jawfish. They get spooked real easily. So wiser to always get your cover up before you go to bed bro! (: Also randall goby can grow up to a great size. Be prepared for it (: besides that, they are some lovely fishes! All of them my dream fishes when I started this hobby. Cheers!

[jackywongto]

New kid on the block

and his buddy. They follow each other. cute.

[stewpid]

Sweet!Haah!!I always think thier fins make them look like elvis presley!!!

[yikai]

just a quick note. never epoxy clams to rocks or glue them to anything. this will inhibit opening and closing of the shell and will/may lead to certain death.

the clams you guys got are very nice. there are many many many ultra grade maximas waiting for you!!! dont expire all on normal grade ones! haha.

[jackywongto]

Mystery guest.

Beautiul little fella.

[jackywongto]

Point noted Bro.

Keep those comments coming.

sometimes it helps to view things from different perspective.

Nice write up! Finished it while attending my marketing lecture! LOL

Anyway,

it's feasible to keep a clam in nano tanks. Except for the matter that you may lose the pattern after some time and totally possible for anyone to grow a clam in a nano too! I have a squamosa which from 2" becomes a 4" monster in my 1ft cube! All I feed it is kalk, kalk, and kalk (:

Also,

I agree with some posts some of the guys posted about the position of clams. For myself, I consulted 3 friends who gave me the same logic which is to leave the clam alone and let him/her find his/her favourite position. I had ever tried putting flat rocks for my clams to attach on but to no avail. Somehow or another, they still manage to huff-and-puff out of wherever I left them and went to some place I didn't like (because I couldnt see them!) haha. In fact, I lost a maxima because of that, so word of wisdom:

Let Nature finds Her own way out!

Lastly, brothers, for nanos, better is to always monitor your kH when you have such delicate animals around. I have lost spses, clam and other lpses due to overstocking of such calcium-demanding animals in my 1ft cube. It's great to have them around but definitely not at the expense of my other corals imo. SO, better be safe than sorry. Usually bad things happen in a few months time. Won't be that soon but definitely around. My maxima died on me on my 8th month It was from Irwana's Vanatua shipment. Still can remember buying it together with bro. Nitro. but o wells....

Happy Reefing,

Marc J.

P.S: +1 for jawfish. They get spooked real easily. So wiser to always get your cover up before you go to bed bro! (: Also randall goby can grow up to a great size. Be prepared for it (: besides that, they are some lovely fishes! All of them my dream fishes when I started this hobby. Cheers!

[qiang]

just a quick note. never epoxy clams to rocks or glue them to anything. this will inhibit opening and closing of the shell and will/may lead to certain death.

the clams you guys got are very nice. there are many many many ultra grade maximas waiting for you!!! dont expire all on normal grade ones! haha.

heh thx for the note bro... so far hvn glue or epoxy any corals yet coz still not satisfied wif their placement haha...

bro wads the damage like for the jawfish heh

[jackywongto]

just a quick note. never epoxy clams to rocks or glue them to anything. this will inhibit opening and closing of the shell and will/may lead to certain death.

the clams you guys got are very nice. there are many many many ultra grade maximas waiting for you!!! dont expire all on normal grade ones! haha.

gotcha. roger roger on the epoxy.

Let me try to keep these successfully 1st.

[jackywongto]

Ehhhh...jacky, U want to try reef chilli???

what reef chilli?

your gourmet?

[jackywongto]

heh thx for the note bro... so far hvn glue or epoxy any corals yet coz still not satisfied wif their placement haha...

bro wads the damage like for the jawfish heh

pmed u.

[yikai]

heh thx for the note bro... so far hvn glue or epoxy any corals yet coz still not satisfied wif their placement haha...

bro wads the damage like for the jawfish heh

epoxy and gluing corals is ok and good only if you are sure you found a suitable place for it and you like it there. for clams, cannot

ever tried epoxying corals to snail shells? i have. bad idea too. stuck some pretty zoas on my turbo snails thinking it will be a nice moving centerpiece. end up all bleached coz the snail hide in the rocks for too long at times.

tried sticking a yuma on it too. end up walking around the place and the yuma killed my shrooms and other soft corals. yumas are good stingers

[jackywongto]

btw, I have decided not to get a true percs pair already.

My clown will be a lonely soul in the tank but he has lots of playmates

bought a seasquirt to target feed the suns, jawfish, gobies so as to eliminate the need for flooding the tank.

[qiang]

heh tats y hvn glue any yet... might need to rescape haha will see how...

jacky where did u get the squirt

[jackywongto]

heh tats y hvn glue any yet... might need to rescape haha will see how...

jacky where did u get the squirt

SL. will pm you the price.

[qiang]

SL but think I got overcharged. Try Petmart or something?

will pm you the price.

heh thx bro... goin any lfs tml ?... tink i might head down to irwarna in the morning haha..

gf startin to comprain liao hehe...her exams over le very eng now... yest comprain the clam cost as much as our dinner lol

[peacemaker]

bought a seasquirt to target feed the suns, jawfish, gobies so as to eliminate the need for flooding the tank.

Bro, do give us your feedback on this. I tried the syringe and balloon stick, but didn't work too well. How long is the tube?

[jackywongto]

heh thx bro... goin any lfs tml ?... tink i might head down to irwarna in the morning haha..

gf startin to comprain liao hehe...her exams over le very eng now... yest comprain the clam cost as much as our dinner lol

difficult for me. If you think managing gf is difficult, think of managing 3 girls in your family lol.

Gotta keep my princesses company tml. Bringing them to Robinson for christmas shopping.

Btu pls remember to place her in 1st priority seat hor. Reefing is secondary.

Might drop over to CF to get NSW for weekly WC though.

[jackywongto]

Bro, do give us your feedback on this. I tried the syringe and balloon stick, but didn't work too well. How long is the tube?

Sure thing. I tried syringe too but always end up over blasting or running out of juice.

[qiang]

haha i noe...heh had to supress the urge to go irwarna to see the shipment

bro did u test the nsw from cf.. bought 2 bags from them to try yest...