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Go Back   Reef Central Online Community Archives > Invert and Plant Forums > Tridacnid Clams and other Mollusks

 
 
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  #26  
Old 12/30/2007, 04:38 PM
TWallace TWallace is offline
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Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Seattle
Posts: 1,050
skinz, I apologize for any comment on the other forum that was offensive. I'm just very frustrated with the whole situation. I still don't think the flame angel had anything to do with the clam issues I'm having. I've seen him bother clams over a year ago (only happened for one day) and he always did it right out in the open. It makes no sense to me that he'd now only do it when no one's looking. A local reefer says he had a fire shrimp bother his clams at night and I do have 2 of them in my tank.

The derasa is still doing fine in the refugium, which to me indicates it's not a water quality issue, and likely not pinched mantle, but instead some animal bothering it that only lives in the display and not the refugium. Admittedly, that evidence does lend credence to your flame angel theory, but it could also be cleaner shrimp, fire shrimp or something else. I did say that I have emerald crabs in my tank, but honestly I haven't seen them in several weeks. They may not be around anymore.

I'll give the derasa a few more days to recover in the refugium, then put him back in the display and watch for things bothering him. I'm certain that it will happen again, but maybe I can find out what it is.
  #27  
Old 12/30/2007, 09:27 PM
skinz78 skinz78 is offline
Keeper of the clams!!!
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: north west washington
Posts: 579
It's too bad I live a couple hours away I would loan you my trap. At first I started thinking your stainless steel theory had some merit but on the other hand I use a stainless knife for cutting byssal threads when I have to work on my clams and I leave the knife in the tank the whole time I am messing arround in there. I have kept lots of emralds with my clams and have never had any problems too. I have had cleaner shrimp and the only time I have seen them touch a clam is when the clam was dead or dieing. I have never had fire shrimp so I can't help you there. But from what others are saying I think they can't be trusted with clams.

So if it were my tank I would highly suspect the fire shrimp and both angels. If possible I would remove all of them and see what happens. Put them into the qt.

Personally I think all of the others on the other forum have alot of different problems and a lack of knowledge. So they are all saying they are all experienceing the same thing as you. Don't get me wrong I know there are some people on there that do know thier stuff though.

I know some angels are good to go with clams and never have problems. But it is hard for me to even come close to recommending keeping them together becuase the risk is too high. Its just not responsible reefkeeping to me.
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Well, I'm off to give my reef a 30 min freshwater dip!!

That should fix it everything right???
  #28  
Old 12/31/2007, 07:57 AM
bsbarton bsbarton is offline
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I am surprised that nobody mentioned Bristle worms. I have read that they have like to munch on them. Could that be a possibility?
  #29  
Old 12/31/2007, 10:47 AM
skinz78 skinz78 is offline
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Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: north west washington
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they only eat on clams when they are already dead or dieing. They are pretty much a part of the worlds best clean up crew.

Don't get me wrong there are some worms that are bad but they are usually huge and easy to spot.
__________________
Well, I'm off to give my reef a 30 min freshwater dip!!

That should fix it everything right???
  #30  
Old 01/06/2008, 08:27 PM
skinz78 skinz78 is offline
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Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: north west washington
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TWallace, any updates on how the clam is going and if you have found the problem?
__________________
Well, I'm off to give my reef a 30 min freshwater dip!!

That should fix it everything right???
  #31  
Old 01/06/2008, 11:23 PM
jnarowe jnarowe is offline
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Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Poulsbo, WA
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I am in the NW and am having the exact same problem. Water params are excellent but ALL 7 of my clams are retracted and have been for some time. They have been in the tank nearly 2 years.

I do have a couple of cleaner shrimp but have been losing them. I put in a CBB prior to the clam problem, but haven't noticed him picking on the clams. Just before the problem started I added two cleaner wrasses and I haven't noticed them bothering the clams, but I do observe them getting real friendly with some corals.

Other issues that merit discussion are the huge die-off of snails and subsequent dino outbreak. I solved the dino issue over the course of about 2 months, and after they were gone, the clams started looking weak.

One other major thing to note: I have found the remains, or the molt, of a decent sized red crab with black pincers. I don't know if they molt, and the pieces looked more like remains than a molt, but it's definitely worth mentioning.

I also have a longnose hawk, but he seems to behave himself, 10 tangs, maroon pair, sebae clown, one chromis, one foxface. I have not observed anything bothering the clams.

I am getting very tense about this situation as some of these clams are really quite nice specimens. I do have a 40g QT, but it is a real hassle trying to get a clam out of the tank. I did inspect one for snails but no banana.

So, recommendations the same?
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  #32  
Old 01/07/2008, 12:05 AM
skinz78 skinz78 is offline
Keeper of the clams!!!
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: north west washington
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start off by doing the bottle qt asap. the others from the local forum waited too long and lost thier clams.

Post some pic's

What kind of tangs?
__________________
Well, I'm off to give my reef a 30 min freshwater dip!!

That should fix it everything right???
  #33  
Old 01/07/2008, 12:19 AM
mbbuna mbbuna is offline
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Quote:
Originally posted by jnarowe
I am in the NW and am having the exact same problem. Water params are excellent but ALL 7 of my clams are retracted and have been for some time. They have been in the tank nearly 2 years.

I do have a couple of cleaner shrimp but have been losing them. I put in a CBB prior to the clam problem, but haven't noticed him picking on the clams. Just before the problem started I added two cleaner wrasses and I haven't noticed them bothering the clams, but I do observe them getting real friendly with some corals.

Other issues that merit discussion are the huge die-off of snails and subsequent dino outbreak. I solved the dino issue over the course of about 2 months, and after they were gone, the clams started looking weak.

One other major thing to note: I have found the remains, or the molt, of a decent sized red crab with black pincers. I don't know if they molt, and the pieces looked more like remains than a molt, but it's definitely worth mentioning.

I also have a longnose hawk, but he seems to behave himself, 10 tangs, maroon pair, sebae clown, one chromis, one foxface. I have not observed anything bothering the clams.

I am getting very tense about this situation as some of these clams are really quite nice specimens. I do have a 40g QT, but it is a real hassle trying to get a clam out of the tank. I did inspect one for snails but no banana.

So, recommendations the same?
i would get a polyfilter and through it in the tank to see if it turns up any heavy metals. the snail die off leads me to think you might have copper or another metal
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  #34  
Old 01/07/2008, 01:15 AM
jnarowe jnarowe is offline
2011.5
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Poulsbo, WA
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snail die-off was do to a heat wave and 50 Mexican turbos kicked the bucket. They fouled the water and killed off about 5000 small snails...then came the dinos. It's been a tough year.

I'll do the bottle QT tomorrow and see how it goes. I have a 10 tear drop on th esand bed that is looking not so good, so I will start with it.

Unfortunately I have such heavy coraline growth that I cannot get a good pic. I will try a top-down ASAP.
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  #35  
Old 01/11/2008, 11:09 AM
rwbogard rwbogard is offline
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Join Date: Sep 2006
Posts: 41
Just MO, but FW dips seem like a terrible idea. Sure in theory it will kill parasites, etc., but most any cells that touch the freshwater (from a SW organism) will swell and burst. I would try other experimentation with chemicals in SW. I used an crystal violet SW dip on a clam suspected of pinched mantle and it seemed to work very well, Could have been just luck though.
 

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