Calling all clam experts!
Printed From: Utah Reefs
Category: Help
Forum Name: EMERGENCY FORUM
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URL: http://www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=63938
Printed Date: July 12 2025 at 12:51am
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Topic: Calling all clam experts!
Posted By: Ann_A
Subject: Calling all clam experts!
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 1:26pm
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Alright so I have a large maxima clam that has been doing great for months, but is suddenly slightly bleached and gaping with the mantle retracted. No changes in chemistry have occurred, lighting hasn't changed, and no new clams have been added recently. I've inspected him very thoroughly for pyramidellid snails and any other pests (worms, crabs, etc.) and have not found any signs of trouble. Here are my current parameters... -Ammonia & Nitrite 0ppm -Nitrate 1ppm -Phosphate 0.03ppm -PH 8.1 -dKH 9.6 -Calcium 450ppm -Magnesium 1350ppm -Temperature 78-80F (nighttime swing) The only possibilities I can think of are these... A) My lighting is insufficient for this clam and he has slowly been wasting away over the last few months or B) The 80 degree temperature is too high and has caused his bleaching and is now killing him. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!   ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Replies:
Posted By: phys
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 1:30pm
| Has there been a change in food? Has it had enough stuff in the water column to eat? |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 1:32pm
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He shouldn't need food from the water column since he's photosynthetic. I do feed my fish a ton and he gets bits of their food and can filter out what he wants. No change in my feeding or dosing has occurred. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: ClownFishAddict
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 1:57pm
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Found this for you: Many people do not believe it is necessary to target feed maxima clams. At Blue Zoo, we recommend that most people keeping maximas target feed their clams at least a couple times per week. The trouble is that while these animals do host symbiotic algae and filter feed, most reef aquarists over-filter their reef tanks, especially if they are keeping more sensitive coral species such as those with small polyps. As such, there is not as much available food in many reef tanks. To insure the health of a maxima clam in an over-filtered reef tank, consider feeding commercially-prepared phytoplankton with a turkey baster at least twice per week. Simply broadcast the food up current from the clam, and allow the food to be carried to the clam. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=61789&title=ok-here-it-goes-my-redneck-120-rimless-build" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 2:05pm
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I have NPS just up current from him and target feed them 3 times every week. He gets plenty of food. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: phys
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 2:27pm
| something been picking at it? |
Posted By: ch3tt
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 2:36pm
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I don't know if you have bristleworms or not but they have been known to eat clams. ------------- Red Sea Reefer 625 XXL |
Posted By: Jeremyw
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 2:47pm
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Is his foot attached? ------------- Next meeting: |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 4:18pm
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Yes ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: chuckfu
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 4:26pm
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Bristtle worms got mine! ------------- Try, try, try, then give up! |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 4:33pm
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Checked for them and no sign of them. I've checked him very thoroughly and there's nothing on him that could be bothering him. My other clam is happy as can be. But for some reason this guy is just about dead and it practically happened overnight. Nothing has been picking on him and the fish have been out of the tank for two days so they can't have been picking on him. My shrimp haven't shown any interest in him either. I'm stumped. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 4:34pm
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Ann, I know we talked about this earlier...but just for the record... What lights do you have? Have you changed the bulbs lately? Have you recently changed GFO/carbon/biopellets/etc? What about your trigger and/or the wrasse? I wouldn't underestimate them.... ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 4:36pm
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And...I'd still freshwater dip it if I can't get it tonight. ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 5:05pm
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The lights are 6 T5HO 39W bulbs. They have not been changed for 5 months. No media has been changed or refilled. The trigger and wrasse have never given my clams even a glance. Besides they've been out of the tank for two days so couldn't have caused the problem yesterday/last night. As for a freshwater dip...just let me know when to bring him or if I should do the dip here. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: phys
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 5:17pm
| Maybe the media needs to be changed? When was the last time? |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 5:32pm
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I change it every month. It's been about 2.5 weeks. I don't think the media being changed did this since it just occurred in the last 24 hours. Plus from my water testing I'm not seeing any reason to think my media needs to be changed early. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 5:43pm
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Ugh...my best best is a protozoan/bacterial infection then. (But, I'm no clam expert.) Unfortunately, I don't see any way I can help out today with everything going on here. :-( I'm so sorry!!! ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 7:38pm
Went to do a freshwater dip and the clam all but fell out of it's shell so it's dead.  ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 7:47pm
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AHHH!!! It fell out before the freshwater dip? Wow, that was fast. ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:00pm
In the freshwater dip.... ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: chuckfu
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:03pm
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When it rains it pours. Sorry. ------------- Try, try, try, then give up! |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:08pm
No kidding...marine velvet now this...my family is almost to the point of taking bets on what will happen next...  ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
chuckfu wrote:Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:26pm
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Ann, you have excellent husbandry, and you always do what is best for your critters. These things happen...and you've seen the collection of medications I've amassed trying to fight it all off. As long as you learn something from this ordeal, that's all that matters. (And btw...you've earned some serious cool points for what you've done to diagnose this clam...lol.) ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:31pm
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In looking at the photos...I just noticed I didn't see a fresh white growth band. Is there one? It looks like the most recent one has some algae on it. To me, that suggests a long-term issue (possibly starvation). How big was the clam when you got it...and how big was it when it died? ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:57pm
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It's hard to see in the photos but there was a new layer of growth. He's grown about 1/2" in ~8 months. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 8:59pm
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Ok...well...I'm out of ideas. There are a ton of protozoan/bacterial diseases...that's still my best bet. Sorry. ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 9:00pm
Well thanks for your help anyways.  ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: Mark Peterson
Date Posted: April 22 2013 at 9:37pm
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Aloha, Every organism is different and what works for one may not work for another. Two things concern me about your setup and feeding in general. I'll throw in my 2 cents here. Even large clams do better with a regular diet of phytoplankton and Nitrates. If I were wanting to see what effect a change might have, I'd allow a little more nutrients to remain in the water and feed Phyto paste to the entire tank. A lot of important marine organisms both large and teeny weeny, thrive on phytoplankton. Clams are very efficient at eating phyto, so good that within hours they and other teeny weenies have eaten so much of the phyto that the water is clear again. No need for spot feeding in my experience. I don't keep temps at 78-80 degrees. Everything does better at 75-78, where all the organisms' metabolism is at a more manageable level for the amount of water flow (flow is a a lot better in the wild)so that when the tank gets a little hotter it doesn't suffocate. Suffocate? Yes, because dissolved O2 is significantly reduced for every 1 degree increase in temperature. In my opinion, we are better off keeping our tanks at a base temp of 75. That's my 2 cents. Mahalo, Mark  ------------- Reefkeeping Tips, & quick, easy setup tricks: www.utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=9244 Pay it forward - become a paid WMAS member 
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Posted By: ReefdUp
Date Posted: April 23 2013 at 5:43am
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Mark, This clam was alive and healthy just a few days ago (as evidenced by the new growth). If it was starving, it would not have the new growth, and it would instead have a ring of algae along the inside of the shell. Clams are photosynthetic, and she's running high quality lights of the correct spectrum. As she mentioned, she also feeds her nonphotosynthetic corals, and the clam benefits from the stray food. If she had fed more when she first noticed the problem, it probably would've only exacerbated the issue. There have been plenty of studies showing that sudden nutrient increases in captive aquaria cause bacteria populations (both beneficial and detrimental) to explode and cause a variety of issues. Again, there's nothing to indicate it was starving in the first place. Next, her temperature is not the problem. Clams can survive in that temperature range, and she's had no spikes. It's not where I keep my temperature, but it's not a bad range either. Regardless, that temp range would not have wiped out a healthy clam in just a few days. And...btw...we all know you went to Hawaii. No need to keep reminding everyone. ------------- www.reefdup.com Diving since 2009, reefkeeping since 2007, & fishkeeping since 1987 200g, 75g, & 15g Systems PADI Advanced Open Water |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 23 2013 at 10:22am
Mark, as Nikki said, I am running plenty of lighting in a good color spectrum and get great growth and health out of my corals as well as another Tridacnid. If starvation were the issue it would have shown earlier in an algae coating on the sell and by an absence of new growth (thus the algae on the shell). If temperature were the issue the bleaching would have started long ago since the temperature has always been maintained at 78-80F (78 at night, 80 during the day). The clam was perfectly happy and healthy up until about 2 days ago. I'm by no means an expert, but have done my fair share of research on clams and can say this was not a common problem that people encounter. The problem with diagnosing clam deaths is that they often seem to occur quickly and without warning. However when we examine these "mystery deaths" it soon becomes apparent that there were warning signs such as a lack of growth, bleaching, retraction, gaping, etc. However, none of these signs appeared until approximately 36 hours prior to the clam's death, leaving most of the common problems such as starvation, temperature, pests, etc. almost out of the question. Nikki, I agree it was likely some type of bacterial or protozoan infection. It seems the only likely explanation given the circumstances and symptoms shown. ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: chuckfu
Date Posted: April 23 2013 at 12:09pm
Well said! ------------- Try, try, try, then give up! |
Posted By: love2skiutah
Date Posted: April 24 2013 at 8:13am
+1 |
Posted By: bur01014
Date Posted: April 24 2013 at 10:29am
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-1 Nothing well said about that....the problem was not found and Mark has the freedom to say Aloha all he wants... |
Posted By: Ann_A
Date Posted: April 24 2013 at 10:40am
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I think Nikki was simply pointing out why the issues Mark mentioned were not very applicable in this situation. No need to feel negatively about her explanation. Anyways, I think it's time this thread was dropped since it's no longer productive and the cause of the clam's death is not going to be found out at this point. Thanks everyone for your help! ------------- http://utahreefs.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=53856&title=annes-65g-rsm-reef" rel="nofollow - RSM 250 Reef |
Posted By: jwoo
Date Posted: April 24 2013 at 11:36am
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Anecdotal I know but I never feed my Maxima clam. I've had it for 4 years now got it when it was 1/2 an inch and now it's 5 inches long. IMO good flow, good light and good water are all you need to keep clams. It appears that infection of some sort is probably the primary cause. Sorry for your loss. ------------- None at the moment Soon: 72 Gallon Bowfront |
Posted By: BobC63
Date Posted: April 24 2013 at 1:01pm
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Same as jwoo - don't feed my clams, never have, never will
And sorry about your Maxima, Ann - I hate when stuff like that happens.
Sometimes you never really figure out why...
------------- - My Current Tank: 65g Starfire (sitting empty for 2+ years) - * Marine & Reef tanks since 1977 * |