flame scallop question

[swlover]

Hi, I have had a flame scallop for about 2 months, he has stayed in the corned by the filter since I got him. Yesterday I noticed he moved and what was left behind is wierd..these little white tad pole looking things attached to the glass, maybe less than a half an inch long, pure white and they are really attached, I tried scrapping one off with my finger nail and it didn't budge. Anyone know what these are? There must be 3 or 4 dozen of them. I noticed this morning there are some where he is now, but only a few. I tried getting a pic of them but they came out blurry. I looked on the internet about scallops but couldn't find much info on them eccept how to cook and eat them!!

Thanks for any ideas.

 

[alyssia]

Sorry, IDK what those are, but how have you managed to keep a flame scallop alive? What's your secret?

 

[sepulatian]

I would like to know too, they are beautifull, but I have not been brave enough to try, special lighting? feeding? let us know

 

[swlover]

Hi no special lighting, actually They like dark areas any ways so lighting is not an issue. I feed liquid food for inverts, & anemones three times a week and do 10% water changes about once a week, I add calcium and Kents essential elements...they, need very good water quality and water flow because they are filter feeders. I have been keeping fish for about 20 years, although saltwater is new to me, it's all the same concept good filtration, water flow & quality and mimic their enviroment as much as you can. I did do some research on them but like I said can't really find much on behavior..just feeding and requirements. I'm thinking that it has spawned, but wanted some others opinions on this. Go ahead and get one if you want it, they make an interesting addition as long as you don't have fish that tend to pick on every thing in your tank...most of what i have read on other people's experience on keeping them is some fish will pick on them until they kill them. I have only one small damsel in there with him and he could care less about him, I know damsel's are aggressive but mine is the exception he is really docile. They will spit water when they are scared, the first time mine did that it scared me! I was cleaning the tank, and at the time he was by the filter like in the picture, and part of him was sticking out of the water and I happened to touch him and it spit water clear across the tank at me! Very good shot hit me right in the face! If anyone could help me out with finding more info on reproduction and behavior I'd appreciate it, thanks for your comments.

 

[hagfish]

I know very little about the flame scallop. But I believe the white stringy stuff is produced by the scallop and used to stabilize it's position. I think it's kinda like a spider web.

 

[coachklm]

first of all 2 months is not along time to keep a flame scallop alive.... claim victory over 6-12 months.

 

[swlover]

Originally Posted by coachKLM
first of all 2 months is not along time to keep a flame scallop alive.... claim victory over 6-12 months.
Hey no need to be like that...they asked me what the secret was, I didn't claim to be victorious by any means, just letting some folks know what I have been doing to keep it healthy...Jeeze you are rude, and not at all helpful. Hagfish thanks for the info, makes sence, it is where ever he has been...so mystery solved.

 

[n_sarno]

wooo hoooo Im victorious! I've had mine for 6 months!!!!

Just feed a wide variety of phytoplankton and invert food.. my tank is well fed.. my scallop has stuck around I just got another one the other day.. They are a cheap and easy way to add color!

 

[coachklm]

there are few keepers who have been able o keep these for longer then 12 months... I'm glad that it has lasted so long for you. These scallops in my opinion are best left in there natural habitat just like the moorish idol. It gets frustrating knowing that people buy these not for a beneficial reasons but because they look cool. I did not mean to seem rude just frustrated..I hope you full success with the scallop....make sure if it goes to the worst you immediatly pull it out so no problems will arise from it's perishing.

instead of griping i will set a peace offering instead....
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issu...002/toonen.htm
quick excerpt:
If, however, you are not feeding mixed phytoplankton and zooplankton of the appropriate size on a regular (and by this I really mean at least daily) basis, adding a flame scallop to your aquarium is quite simply a death sentence for the animal, because it is going to starve to death. If that is the case, then no matter how cool you think the animal is, you should not add one to your aquarium.

 

[swlover]

GOOD for you! Has yours ever left those things behind?? I'm hoping it's ok and not some sign that he is in trouble..do you have a pic of him? please post one if you do! Thanks for the comments.

 

[swlover]

Originally Posted by coachKLM
there are few keepers who have been able o keep these for longer then 12 months... I'm glad that it has lasted so long for you. These scallops in my opinion are best left in there natural habitat just like the moorish idol. It gets frustrating knowing that people buy these not for a beneficial reasons but because they look cool. I did not mean to seem rude just frustrated..I hope you full success with the scallop....make sure if it goes to the worst you immediatly pull it out so no problems will arise from it's perishing.

instead of griping i will set a peace offering instead....
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issu...002/toonen.htm
quick excerpt:
If, however, you are not feeding mixed phytoplankton and zooplankton of the appropriate size on a regular (and by this I really mean at least daily) basis, adding a flame scallop to your aquarium is quite simply a death sentence for the animal, because it is going to starve to death. If that is the case, then no matter how cool you think the animal is, you should not add one to your aquarium.
Offering accepted! Now that IS helpful..thank you. I don't add animals to the aquarium because they are "cool" I thought it would be an interesting addition to my tank and has proved to be. I don't ever move him (as stated in the artical) so I can look at him..thats not what I'm all about. I will use that guide and I am glad I found out a little more about them..I will have to get some other liquid foods such as he described for him..what I have is probably not enough but I do know where to get natural plankton suitable for them and as soon as I get done here I will be getting it...Like i said in my earlier post I will try to mimic their enviroment as best I can and you learn something new everyday. If everyone thought something was too diffacult and too scared to try something new..we would still all be living in caves. Trust me I will do my best to keep him alive and well..my husband alread complains I spend too much time with the fish and not enough with him!

 

[coachklm]

the tricky thing is the size of the food source.....

 

[coachklm]

Originally Posted by N_Sarno
wooo hoooo Im victorious! I've had mine for 6 months!!!!

Just feed a wide variety of phytoplankton and invert food.. my tank is well fed.. my scallop has stuck around I just got another one the other day.. They are a cheap and easy way to add color!
i'm sorry that you feel this way...I would nt say easy.

 

[swlover]

Yes..I found that out weeks ago, I have frozen plankton and I thought by sticking a piece in his mouth he would eat it...not! He spit it right back out...it was then I realized the partical size made a difference..when I clean the tank and stir things up he will open up really wide and snap..thats when I know he's filtering. He's picking out what he wants and spitting the rest out.

 

[clown123]

ive had mine for mauybe a month!

 

[drea]

do you acclimate these guys just like fish or?
and how do you know when one dies?

 

[swlover]

I did acclimate mine using the drip method, because they are filter feeders they are really sensitive to water change..at least thats is what I have read on them. I don't know about what it wll look like when one dies but my guess is the color would fade and probably the clean up crew would be all over it. My crabs don't go near mine..he will snap at anything that comes close to him to warn them off, he shook my rock when one of my snails was near him.

 

[greggti]

I got rid of mine after about 3 months cause in a smaller tank he would cause a sandstorm everytime he moved. Got sick of blowin the corals off with a baster. While I did have him , it was very interesting and he did leave the white things behind when he moved. They are called Byssal Threads.

 

[greggti]

And also it is hard to identify when they are dying. Sometimes it will be to late and it will have already done damage. My suggestion is to inspect it regularly. If you look in the shell and there is no scallop there, its dead. And I believe that the tentacles will start to shrivel and shrink if it is in trouble.

 

[swlover]

Thanks for the heads up, I do check on him everyday. Mine dosen't move much..until the other day he had stayed by the filter since I got him. Should I use a razor and get those things off or just leave them? They are concentrated at the top of my tank and really stuck on. Thanks for the info.