Crocea clam turning brown! Help!

[jpc763]

I have had a Crocea clam for about 1.5 weeks. It is under T5 4x54 watt lighting in a 55g tank. It is placed in the top half although it spent first week in the sand.
It is turning brown.
First, is that a problem for the health of the clam?
Second, is there anything I can do about it?
Here are 2 pics. The day I got it and today.
Feb 10

Feb 20

 

[natclanwy]

I am not a clam expert by any means but I believe that it is a symptom of too little light I just recently moved mine because it has been slowly getting more brown. I have 2 250w MH over my 55 but the clam was on sand bed at the end of my tank and was shaded slightly by the bulb socket and the Live rock so I moved it onto the rock in the center of my tank and within a week most of the brown was gone and colors are getting more vibrant again. So I would definitely try to move it closer to the light to see if it improves.

 

[natclanwy]

Just reread your post and saw you already have moved it up I would give it a couple more weeks and see if it improves if it doesn't you may have to look into upgrading your lighting. Maybe someone here has experience keeping a crocea under T5's I'm not 100% postive it is possible.

 

[jpc763]

Thanks. I have read that a clam is OK under T5 if it is higher up in the tank. That is why I moved it. I have also been told that the clam will look a different color depending on the angle you look at it so I am going to see if that is the case.
I have moved it up so it is getting more light for sure.
Thanks, J

 

[kelly]

No expert here either, but I have had one since April 2007 and it is doing great under T5 lighting in a 75 gallon tank. It has been on the sand bed since I got it. I have the Tek T5 lighting system with 6 54W bulbs and individual parabolic reflectors. I am pretty sure it is the design by Sunlight Supply.

 

[jpc763]

Well I checked on the clam this morning and it looked fine. Tonight when I got home from work it was dead and the clean up crew was at work

So the clam lasted 11 days. I am not sure what went wrong. My parameters are posted below. I have LPS, SPS and an Anemone in the tank and all are thriving.
I fed the clam per the LFS instructions. I mixed up coral frenzy and squirted it in front of the clam. I can only figure that I killed it that way.
Another possibility is that I "handled" it too much, trying to get it to attach.
Any input would be appreciated. Thanks, J
02/17/08
Temp 77
Specific Gravity 1.025
pH 8.40
Ammonia 0.00
Nitrate 0
Nitrite 0
Calcium 420
dKH 8
Phosphate 0

 

[kelly]

If the clam is over 2" it does not need fed, that may have caused it's demise. Sorry for your loss.

 

[mie]

Sorry to say but handling a clam to much especially when it is new can cause it to stress out and die. And imo 216 watts is not enough for any clam to remain healthy mainly on the sand bed, Also once they reach two to four inches they almost 100% rely on light for growth, not food.

 

[topfins-mj]

My Crocea died the same way as I think I owe that to stress. I did a massive water change where I also removed the rocks to scrape some algae of fthem and when I put everything back together, the clam started to slime and look brown. Within days it was just an empty shell left by the clean up crew.
These clams seem to be very delicate while young. My Derasa survived and still kicking.
So I would agree that young clams should be placed somwehere safe and left untouched until they grow to at least 3 inches.

 

[teen]

never squirt food directly at the clam. thats was probably your problem. you'll clog his gills.

 

[jpc763]

OK, so handling was a problem. Feeding was a problem. Position in tank was a problem.
So if I get another one, I will acclimate the same way and place it on the rock to start and leave it alone.
Although I did not read the text book on clams, I scoured this site and a couple of others looking for tips. I never read that you should not "feed" a clam directly. I also read that you should start the clam on the sand bed and then move it up.
Lesson learned. Sorry that the clam had to pay the ultimate price for that. Hopefully someone will read this thread and will learn from my mistake.

 

[jpc763]

Maybe SWF.COM should have a Clams forum as I am seeing them at more and more LFS.

 

[nycbob]

there is a misconception that clams dont need to be fed when more than 2 inches. all clams could benefit from feeding. clams less than 2 inches can live off light just like the bigger ones. big or small. i'd recommend feeding phyto 1x a week. there isnt a need to squirt food at the clam. just drop it in the water and the clams will filter it thr the water column. also, if u hv enough fish, feeding isnt even a requirement since clams will filter thr the poop for food. studies hv indicated clams do better in tanks with heavier bioload. try to place ur clam at a low flow area on a flat rock next time.

 

[bgrae001]

I'm sorry about our clam. I had 2 die a few weeks ago.
Your lighting is not adequate for a crocea. These are shallow water clams and they are not very hardy. It could have been a number of factors that killed your clam. It might even been on the way out when you bought it.
I would like to recommend a book to you before you buy another clam. Its called "Giant Clams in the Sea and the Aquarium".

 

[teen]

idk about them not being hardy. as long as everythings spot on and your tank meets requirments, theyre relatively easy to keep.

 

[nycbob]

the t5 light he has even without individual reflector is sufficient, if he keeps the clam near the top half. i suspect it could be a number of thing that contributed to its death; too much handling or simply a dying clam when bought. always buy clams larger than 3 inches since they r much hardier.

 

[volcom69]

Next time only feed the clam once a week and that will be enough, i have 2 clams a crocea derasea and feed them maybe once a week, and sometimes not and i spot feed them and they love it. I have a mainly sps and clam tank so really the only thing i feed are my fish they are feed 2 times a day and the fish poop help out alot the lights help out lot to. Are u sure ur clam didnt have any type of snail on it at all when u brought it home or anything because to dye really quick like that is crazy.