Adequate Lighting for Clams

[1journeyman]

Clams are among the inverts that need intense lighting.
At around 4 inches clams begin to feed almost entirely off of the lighting in your tank.

 

[jpa0741]

Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/2516988
You can keep a Deresa clam in that lighting. They are the lower light required species. Do some research. I kept one that thrived under 144 watts of PC lighting in a 29 bio cube. I would not try anything other like a Crocea of Maxima though.

Does anyone else think this statement is contridicting. A dersa in a 29g tank can not be thriving if it is in longer then a year. If it was it would be busting out the sides

.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/2518204
Here is an article from Dr. Ron Shimek with contrary information to your statement "which would leave me to believe that derasas are dependent on their zooxanthellae to produce a majority of their food"
http://www.dtplankton.com/articles/necessity.html
And as for the T.derasa the reason I mentioned it was because in the stores you will mostly, not always, find that they are the variety that are for the most part more brown in color with only highlights of blues and greens on the very edges of their mantles. These are by thier color the variety that take less intense lighting to sustain them and therfore can be kept very well under the lighting that the OP suggested.
This is also why I made it a point to not include the T.crocea and T.maxima in something that the OP could keep.

of course its a neccessity for a clam in his opinion. he sells a food that is BELIEVED to be used by clams. if he said otherwise it would be harmful towards the sale of his product.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by GeoJ
http:///forum/post/2518207
Much respect spanko keep the research going.

yea, because googling is such pain staking research. he must of pulled an all nighter on that last one.
Originally Posted by jpa0741
http:///forum/post/2518960
Does anyone else think this statement is contridicting. A dersa in a 29g tank can not be thriving if it is in longer then a year. If it was it would be busting out the sides

.
exactly. spanko,do you have pics of this clam when you first got it and now?

 

[mike22cha]

I wouldn't personaly put clams under anything but MH's. JMO though. I'm sure if you had enough VHO T-5's then it'd be fine, but if I want a tank for clams and or SPS I'd rather spend the extra buck and get the MH's. That's what I did on my Nano Tanks.

 

[nietzsche]

spanko, you kept a deresa clam in a 29g for over a year but it doesnt look like it grew?
as far as feeding i never fed phytoplankton, just fed the fish and it was enough for the clams-- along with strong lighting (maxima, crocea clam) and stable water parameters to allow them to grow
also, it would be ok to place the deresa on something as theyre young, but they lose the ability to attach to anything as they grow:

 

[spanko]

I am sorry if I mislead someone but I cannot see where I did. The T.derasa was in my tank for about 5 months. I changed my tank out to bare bottom and turned it in for store credit because I did not have any substrate for it to sit in. While in the tank it did show growth on the shell. I want you all to know that I tried a T.crocea when I changed my tank to bare bottom, SPS, and 150 Watt Sunpod MH and it did not make it. I then tried a T.maxima and it did not make it. So while my derasa lived and grew for the time it was in the tank under 144 watts of PC lighting, I could not keep the more light demanding under the MH. I don't pretend that there is any correlation here, just my experience trying to keep these demanding creatures. I still stick by the idea that a deresa can be kept and grown in something other than MH lighting and kept well. After all some of these come from as much as 40 feet deep water in the wild. Granted they are the ones that are not as colorful but non the less................

 

[teen]

yea BoYEE

 

[volcom69]

I for one would never put any clam under such low lighting as stated before they need lighting for food. I have had my clams in my 55 gal which has 2 250 watt and 1 150 watt MHs, and i hardley ever feed my clams anything, but light and fish poop. So i wouldnt recomend putting them under anything unless u have the lights to do so.

 

[geoj]

If you do not know what the limits are, that a specific animal can survive. Then you do not know what is good, moderate, and bad health. You only know what you think is good or bad…. People that push the limits do those that don’t a service by telling them what the limits are.
Thank you! Spanko

 

[nietzsche]

Originally Posted by GeoJ
http:///forum/post/2521221
If you do not know what the limits are, that a specific animal can survive. Then you do not know what is good, moderate, and bad health. You only know what you think is good or bad…. People that push the limits do those that don’t a service by telling them what the limits are.
Thank you! Spanko
why would someone want to give something the minimum or even try to push it? i still dont get why people think that way. is it just so you all can save some money instead of buying the proper equipment in the first place?

 

[florida joe]

Before we all go giving expert advise perhaps we should read some papers by James Fatherree. Who is an expert on clams not only in our aquariums but also in the world’s oceans? Very in lighting I can assure you. of course that is just IMO

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by GeoJ
http:///forum/post/2521221
If you do not know what the limits are, that a specific animal can survive. Then you do not know what is good, moderate, and bad health. You only know what you think is good or bad…. People that push the limits do those that don’t a service by telling them what the limits are.
Thank you! Spanko

that was extremely hard to read, but ill try and make sense of it.
you're saying that because he's testing the limits of these animals, hes helping us out?
ive got news for you. people have been keeping animals like this for years upon years. i could see if he was trying to keep some type of rare fish that isn't seen in the hobby often, then by all means, try something out so we as a group can hopefully keep that animal succesfully one day. clams though? we already know what works and what doesnt. hes not doing any of us a favor. if anything hes just making it worse by giving noobs* bad advice.
now im going to generalize, im trying not to discriminate, but anybody who asks if they can keep a clam under PC lighting is more often than not a new hobbyist. if they werent, they would have seen this issue pop up time after time and understand the general consencus. if that is the case, chances are their tank is relatively new meaning less stable tank parameters and just a less mature tank in general. these people arent perfect candidates for keeping animals as sensitive as clams IMO, but feel free to argue otherwise. so now, maybe it is possible to keep a clam such as a derasa in a tank with PC lighting (let it be known that I personally still feel its a bad idea). id leave that up to somebody with a more stable tank and much more experience. a more "seasoned" hobbyiest, somebody whos been around the block a few times and knows what they're up against.
idk, thats just my take on the whole thing. im sure you stil have a different point of view in which im still interested in reading and picking apart.
* by noob, im not picking on the thread starter in particular, but any new hobbyiest who is looking into clams and happens to stumble upon this thread or the hundred of similar threads that are out there.

 

[teen]

Originally Posted by florida joe
http:///forum/post/2521272
Before we all go giving expert advise perhaps we should read some papers by James Fatherree. Who is an expert on clams not only in our aquariums but also in the world’s oceans? Very in lighting I can assure you. of course that is just IMO
why even have discussion boards then? we can all just go and read Fatherree' work and be experts and not have to express our own opinions or think on our own.

 

[bird dog]

I don't really care what anyone says. I have had claims under 250 MH and they do great for months, but one little thing changes and you have a clam shell for your rubble pile.Not for the poor beginner to play with.

 

[florida joe]

Originally Posted by teen
http:///forum/post/2521287
that was extremely hard to read, but ill try and make sense of it.
you're saying that because he's testing the limits of these animals, hes helping us out?
ive got news for you. people have been keeping animals like this for years upon years. i could see if he was trying to keep some type of rare fish that isn't seen in the hobby often, then by all means, try something out so we as a group can hopefully keep that animal succesfully one day. clams though? we already know what works and what doesnt. hes not doing any of us a favor. if anything hes just making it worse by giving noobs* bad advice.
now im going to generalize, im trying not to discriminate, but anybody who asks if they can keep a clam under PC lighting is more often than not a new hobbyist. if they werent, they would have seen this issue pop up time after time and understand the general consencus. if that is the case, chances are their tank is relatively new meaning less stable tank parameters and just a less mature tank in general. these people arent perfect candidates for keeping animals as sensitive as clams IMO, but feel free to argue otherwise. so now, maybe it is possible to keep a clam such as a derasa in a tank with PC lighting (let it be known that I personally still feel its a bad idea). id leave that up to somebody with a more stable tank and much more experience. a more "seasoned" hobbyiest, somebody whos been around the block a few times and knows what they're up against.
idk, thats just my take on the whole thing. im sure you stil have a different point of view in which im still interested in reading and picking apart.
* by noob, im not picking on the thread starter in particular, but any new hobbyiest who is looking into clams and happens to stumble upon this thread or the hundred of similar threads that are out there.
Well my friend please feel free to pick me apart. I have two Darasa clams in my 110g under 520 watt PCs and they are doing great, how do I know this well as I am sure you know the best way to tell if a clam is thriving is to check if there is a white line on the edge of its shell a growth line if you will. If it’s growing it’s thriving.( somthing told to me by Mr. Fatherree) I don’t think anyone can make a blanket statement about lighting with out getting the particulars on the tank involved. I am sure you would agree that depth of tank plays just as important part in the equation as lighting.

 

[florida joe]

Originally Posted by teen
http:///forum/post/2521291
why even have discussion boards then? we can all just go and read Fatherree' work and be experts and not have to express our own opinions or think on our own.
To have an opinion and have some one say “idk, thats just my take on the whole thing. Im sure you still have a different point of view in which im still interested in reading and picking apart". Is a little condescending don’t you think

 

[geoj]

Books have dates and the hobby keeps advancing. Some things in books may not be in total, true today like “ you must have MH to keep all clams” the fluorescent lights of today are getting very good and may be enough to keep some of the clams. This I don’t know to be so, but if we do not test we will never know. The condition that some of us keep are tanks out perform the natural environment. So if I keep an animal alive but it’s not growing as fast as your animal this dose not mean that I’m a bad person. The ocean is an unfeeling killer.
Those that enjoy pushing are knowledge should, so that we all benefit.
I hope that this makes since and I am not crazy.

 

[florida joe]

Originally Posted by GeoJ
http:///forum/post/2521456
Books have dates and the hobby keeps advancing. Some things in books may not be in total, true today like “ you must have MH to keep all clams” the fluorescent lights of today are getting very good and may be enough to keep some of the clams. This I don’t know to be so, but if we do not test we will never know. The condition that some of us keep are tanks out perform the natural environment. So if I keep an animal alive but it’s not growing as fast as your animal this dose not mean that I’m a bad person. The ocean is an unfeeling killer.
Those that enjoy pushing are knowledge should, so that we all benefit.
I hope that this makes since and I am not crazy.
Makes perfect sense to me and your not crazy. Please read some of NigerBangs posts I AM THE ONLY ONE CRAZY ON THESE BOARDS

 

[candycane]

It's about symbiotic zooxanthalae. Deresas require less light then Squamosas, Squamosas require less then Maximas and solar panels require less light then Croceas, HAHA. I have had good success with Derasas growing under PC's. Problem is, I have NO IDEA how deep your tank is. Not to mention that the things get FREAKIN HUGE!.
If you REALLY want clams and want to learn a LOT about them, get a copy of Giant Clams in the Sea and the Aquarium by Hames Fatherree.