yosemite sam
Active Member
Yeah, a picture would really help. If the side of the clam is torn out, that's pretty serious.
do cleaner shrimp have a taste for clams?
- Thread starter peckhead
- Start date
peckhead
Active Member
http://good-times.webshots.com/photo...02525674QueHga
here is the picture, you can kinda make out the hole you can kinda see the sand through the hole. let me know if the picture shows up or not
here is the picture, you can kinda make out the hole you can kinda see the sand through the hole. let me know if the picture shows up or not
yosemite sam
Active Member
This may be a pain, but can you tank a picture from the other direction, from the bottom of the clam? I can't tell from the tank if the flesh is torn or if it's just the byssal gland that is open.
Also, do you have a sump you can put the shrimp in?
Also, do you have a sump you can put the shrimp in?
peckhead
Active Member
i could put the shrimp in the sump or qt but they didnt do this to the clam, i cant really get a picture from a different angel. can you see the hole? i can see all the way through it. the mantle is prefectly fine. its the side of the clam, i guess you can call it flesh, that is missing
yosemite sam
Active Member
I know what you're talking about, but there is a natural hole there, too. It's called the byssal opening. I've seen through my clams before, too, so it could be a tear or it could be normal. In the picture you posted, I can't tell if it's a tear, or the byssal opening. That's why a picture from the other side would be helpful.
peckhead
Active Member
that picture was taken from my camera phone so it was tough to get a picture that good. i can try again tomorrow. is there any way that i would be able to tell if there is a rip or normal? do you ahve a picture or can you describe how it should look? thanks for being such a help already
brandon7491
Member
have u checked for any prymaid snails? they look like this
i doubt its the cleaner shrimp because i have 2 and they dont pick at any of my clams. here is a pic of my clams what is missing on yours ur saying?
i doubt its the cleaner shrimp because i have 2 and they dont pick at any of my clams. here is a pic of my clams what is missing on yours ur saying?
yosemite sam
Active Member
Here's a photo I found. You can see the opening extends fairly far to the left, up towards the mantle.
peckhead
Active Member
the part of the clam is not shown in those pictures and i dont believe i have pyramid snails. the shrimp have been on the mantle for the last 2 days but it still opens, the mantle looks ok, its when i look in the incurrent syphon i can see through the side of the clam where i am not sure if that is normal or what Yosemite sam says might be the bysall opening.
yosemite: check out my post above brandons
yosemite: check out my post above brandons
yosemite sam
Active Member
Originally Posted by peckhead
Link removed
ok i have that too.
when the clam is open, is it possible that i would be able to look into the incurrent syphon al the way through the bysal opening to the sand or rock or whatever the clam is on?
Ooops, I guess the picture I linked was bad. Sorry!
Yes, it's possible to look through the incurrent siphon through the byssal opening to the sand or rocks the clam is on. That said, when I have seen this (which is maybe twice), the clam has been gaping, which is usually a sign of stress. Whether it's the shrimp that are stressing the clam, or if it was already sick, I can't tell you.
peckhead
Active Member
so what exactly is gaping. from what you said, what i am seeing is normal? im working on getting the second shrimp out, what else can i do to make sure this clam gets better if something what wrong? phytoplankton and maybe some vitaman c? there is some stuff that regrows tissue and stuff like that that brightwell aquatics makes that seem pretty good.
yosemite sam
Active Member
What you're seeing is 'normal' in that the byssal open extends for much of the side of the clam - there is a natural hole where you are looking. The fact that it is open, and you can see through the clam is not a 'normal' situation since a healthy clam shouldn't be doing this.
Gaping is when the mantle of the clam is retracted but the shell is open. The incurrent siphon is usually wide open as well. This is a sign of a sick or stressed clam.
Try and get the shrimp out, and see if they are the cause of the stress. However, as a few other people have mentioned, the clam may be dying anyway, and the shrimp are simply being opportunistic. If this is the case, there isn't really much you can do, unfortunately.
Gaping is when the mantle of the clam is retracted but the shell is open. The incurrent siphon is usually wide open as well. This is a sign of a sick or stressed clam.
Try and get the shrimp out, and see if they are the cause of the stress. However, as a few other people have mentioned, the clam may be dying anyway, and the shrimp are simply being opportunistic. If this is the case, there isn't really much you can do, unfortunately.