Why are all of my clams dying???

[daniella3d]

I guess it,s like antibiotics... you have to continue the fresh water dip even if it looks better because it probably looks ok but it's not yet fully healed, and of course like you said, they must all be treated together so that what ever infection is not returning. I don,t think 3 fresh water dip over 1 year is enough to cure pinched mantle.

If the fresh water dip improved it temporary it is sign that it was working on what ever was affecting the clam, not just enough to cure it.

Originally Posted by whatcaneyedo

It would start to show signs of pinch mantle so I'd dip it. Then it would look alight for a little while before it started again.

The dipping seemed to cure the problem for a while but then I believe they just re-contracted whatever was infecting them from the other clams.

[doch]

Well, it's official... my 2 remaining clams are now in my other tank in Fort Mac (where I work). I gave them each a 25 minute freshwater dip last night (I couldn't quite muster the cajones to do a full 30 minutes) and now my fingers are crossed. Hopefully all works out OK.

[ALang]

Good luck, doch, and pls keep us posted as some of us are interested in the outcome for the same reasons. Merry Christmas!

[doch]

Well, for those keeping track, it's not looking very good. Looks the the new maxima is not going to make it. When I left yesterday it looked pretty mad. Also, my (favorite clam) blue squammy hasn't opened up in 2 or 3 days. I'm not very happy about this.

This all said though, there are other potential factors. The tank in Fort Mac is brand new (about a month since I swapped everything form my 6G to the new 28G) and I'm having troubles dialing in the flow and such. I ordered a new return pump and a Vortech 10W, so hopefully they will help.

***FINGERS CROSSED***

[coreyskylar]

I just lost one yesterday.
Hope yours gets better.

[daniella3d]

How is your bioload helping your clam? clams eat phytoplankton, not fish waste.

Originally Posted by whatcaneyedo

I don't do any supplemental feeding to directly feed my clams. Everything I've read states that it is unnecessary especially considering my high bioload.

[whatcaneyedo]

Originally Posted by daniella3d

How is your bioload helping your clam? clams eat phytoplankton, not fish waste.

Yes they do. Does this little game we play ever get boring to you?

Fatherree explains in his book how clams can feed on a variety of things such as phytoplankton, dissolved organic matter, detritus, nitrogen and phosphorus aka. fish waste. I'm not going to copy the whole thing out for you but here is a good paragraph:

"Want a second opinion about feeding? How about Delbeek & Sprung (1994), "...the effort required to feed these items is not worth it in our opinion. Tridacnid clams have been grown successfully in both culture systems and home aquaria for many years without supplemental feedings." And you can get a third opinion from Knop (1996), "Altogether the food requirements of clams is so small that a special feeding scheme for them is superfluous if the tank is populated with a fair number of fish, especially if corals are regularly fed, In such a case a special food destined for the clams would even unbalance the whole system." And here's a forth opinion from Calfo (2001), "Many clams have been maintained years in aquaria without any deliberate feeding, but rather dependent upon light and dissolved compounds." If you're new to the hobby you might not know who the heck these guys are, but I assure you that you'll eventually become familiar with them if you read much. So, there you go."

p176 Giant Clams in the Sea and the Aquarium the biology, identification, and aquarium husbandry of tridacnid clams by James Fatherree. 2006

[The Grizz]

That is some good info there Russel, I always wondered about the feeding habits of clam for the simple reason there is really nothing on the market that I have fornd that is clam specific.

[fishytime]

Originally Posted by The Grizz

I always wondered about the feeding habits of clam for the simple reason there is really nothing on the market that I have fornd that is clam specific.

Tropic marine makes a product called "UltraClam".....and although its called "Sponge Power", the KZ product is designed also with filter feeders in mind

[The Grizz]

Originally Posted by fishytime

Tropic marine makes a product called "UltraClam".....and although its called "Sponge Power", the KZ product is designed also with filter feeders in mind

I have some of that stuff