Flame Scallop
- Thread starter hoff0077
- Start date
guineawhop
Member
obviously you should not have got this type of animal if you thought it could leave it's shell
goldenboy
Member
I kept an electric flame scallop for just over 2 years in a 45 gallon tank. The key is to let it go where it wants, and feed it phyto at least once a week depending on what else you keep. The life span isn't great in captivity, although I've never seen any stats as to the life span in the wild. I figure 1-2 years for something that costs less then $10 isn't that big of a deal.
fishtanknewbie
Member
I have a flame scallop and he is never in the light and I feed all my corals and him this filter food called Reef Chili and I have had him almost a year and he is doing great.
keonia
Member
Originally Posted by ncsc117
.... Oysters cant leave there shell, neather can giant clams either
..Flame Scallops dont need high intensity light as the giant Clams do! .Thorny Oysters aka spiny oysters are very cool. They get big, like a 4-6 shell size :yes: There mantle is nice to..yup :yes:
I was
when I asked if oysters leave their shells!!! heee heee.. I had to ask that because of what was said earlier!! heee heee heee
Fish tank newbie.. where do you get that reef chili ?
.... Oysters cant leave there shell, neather can giant clams either
I was
when I asked if oysters leave their shells!!! heee heee.. I had to ask that because of what was said earlier!! heee heee heee Fish tank newbie.. where do you get that reef chili ?
fishtanknewbie
Member
I get it off ---- just put in Reef Chili and it pops up about 11 diferrent kinds but they are all the same and it is $11.99 plus shipping. It came to $16.98 to be exact! :thinking: It is full of stuff for all filter feeders and has cyclopeeze in it also. :yes: Great stuff you should notice the difference in a week or so! :yes: I have been using it for about a month!
sankysyuck
Member
Originally Posted by hoff0077
My flame scallop has left the shell and i cant find where it is! Is this normal and will he die and raise the nitrates?
I'm sorry I had to chuckle when I read that :hilarious . You obviously don't know your stuff about saltwater creatures, because anyone that thinks that bi valved organisms can just swim around out of it's shell can't know too much about saltwater fish, molluscs anyways. This isn't a hermit crab we're talking about, so do yourself and animals a favor, and before you purchase something, do research on it! I'm not trying to be mean, but it's unfair to the animal that died at your expense because you don't know how to care for it.
P.S. Someone said in this thread that they need strong lighting, they don't, only the giant clams need strong light. They do require supplemental feeding though, I'd reccomend Selcon or Marine Snow, also use Phytoplankton.
My flame scallop has left the shell and i cant find where it is! Is this normal and will he die and raise the nitrates?
I'm sorry I had to chuckle when I read that :hilarious . You obviously don't know your stuff about saltwater creatures, because anyone that thinks that bi valved organisms can just swim around out of it's shell can't know too much about saltwater fish, molluscs anyways. This isn't a hermit crab we're talking about, so do yourself and animals a favor, and before you purchase something, do research on it! I'm not trying to be mean, but it's unfair to the animal that died at your expense because you don't know how to care for it.
P.S. Someone said in this thread that they need strong lighting, they don't, only the giant clams need strong light. They do require supplemental feeding though, I'd reccomend Selcon or Marine Snow, also use Phytoplankton.
sankysyuck
Member
Oh yea, and I'd also reccomend using a Calcium supplement to help them grow their shells, this will also benefit snails and giant clams in your tank.
ophiura
Active Member
It is a chuckle, everyone's had their laugh, but at the same time let's not cast too many stones at people. No, they can not leave their shell. But a lot of people are not invertebrate savvy. This person came here and asked for help, so let's not make it unpleasant to come back and ask for more advice. :yes: There are many things that people posting here don't know and someone could just as easily turn around and tell anyone of us "well you shouldn't be doing this or that if you didn't know such and such." How are we supposed to even know everything we don't know? How many of you have animals, chemistry, lighting, water quality issues, whatever that you learned after you had some problem? IMO, it is one thing to poke fun, and another to pass judgement. I do hope that hoff0077 still feels free to ask questions on this site. Because, IMO, there are no really truly stupid questions.
The answer to the question is that it IS dead and that might raise the nitrates. I do not suggest buying another flame scallop.
And unfortunately this person, who was having serious problems with all of their livestock at the time, has not been back since April.
I hope they got some help somewhere...
The answer to the question is that it IS dead and that might raise the nitrates. I do not suggest buying another flame scallop.
And unfortunately this person, who was having serious problems with all of their livestock at the time, has not been back since April.
sankysyuck
Member
Originally Posted by ophiura
It is a chuckle, everyone's had their laugh, but at the same time let's not cast too many stones at people. No, they can not leave their shell. But a lot of people are not invertebrate savvy. This person came here and asked for help, so let's not make it unpleasant to come back and ask for more advice. :yes: There are many things that people posting here don't know and someone could just as easily turn around and tell anyone of us "well you shouldn't be doing this or that if you didn't know such and such." How are we supposed to even know everything we don't know? How many of you have animals, chemistry, lighting, water quality issues, whatever that you learned after you had some problem? IMO, it is one thing to poke fun, and another to pass judgement. I do hope that hoff0077 still feels free to ask questions on this site. Because, IMO, there are no really truly stupid questions.
The answer to the question is that it IS dead and that might raise the nitrates. I do not suggest buying another flame scallop.
And unfortunately this person, who was having serious problems with all of their livestock at the time, has not been back since April.
I hope they got some help somewhere...
I understand what you are saying. Obviously everyone has problems in this hobby, I'm not saying I'm perfect, but this person seems to have done no research at all before buying this animal. Believe me, I've had my share of problems, but I never buy or do anything without researching it, because you have to. You can't expect to be successful in this hobby without at least knowing the basics, I mean, this scallop is the same as buying any other animal. Most people wouldn't buy a reptile or dog or anything without making sure you knew about it, what it eats, heating requirements ect. . . So why would you buy a scallop without knowing anything about it? Because it's cheap? Because it doesn't have the same loveable personality as a dog or cat? Because to me, it's life is as equal as my life, it has the same right as I do to live on this planet. I treat every fish and living thing that enters my house like my life depends on it . I know everybody doesn't feel that way but that’s just my opinion. So, if I came off strong, I apologize, but please know the next animal you purchase's proper living conditions.
It is a chuckle, everyone's had their laugh, but at the same time let's not cast too many stones at people. No, they can not leave their shell. But a lot of people are not invertebrate savvy. This person came here and asked for help, so let's not make it unpleasant to come back and ask for more advice. :yes: There are many things that people posting here don't know and someone could just as easily turn around and tell anyone of us "well you shouldn't be doing this or that if you didn't know such and such." How are we supposed to even know everything we don't know? How many of you have animals, chemistry, lighting, water quality issues, whatever that you learned after you had some problem? IMO, it is one thing to poke fun, and another to pass judgement. I do hope that hoff0077 still feels free to ask questions on this site. Because, IMO, there are no really truly stupid questions.
The answer to the question is that it IS dead and that might raise the nitrates. I do not suggest buying another flame scallop.
And unfortunately this person, who was having serious problems with all of their livestock at the time, has not been back since April.
I understand what you are saying. Obviously everyone has problems in this hobby, I'm not saying I'm perfect, but this person seems to have done no research at all before buying this animal. Believe me, I've had my share of problems, but I never buy or do anything without researching it, because you have to. You can't expect to be successful in this hobby without at least knowing the basics, I mean, this scallop is the same as buying any other animal. Most people wouldn't buy a reptile or dog or anything without making sure you knew about it, what it eats, heating requirements ect. . . So why would you buy a scallop without knowing anything about it? Because it's cheap? Because it doesn't have the same loveable personality as a dog or cat? Because to me, it's life is as equal as my life, it has the same right as I do to live on this planet. I treat every fish and living thing that enters my house like my life depends on it . I know everybody doesn't feel that way but that’s just my opinion. So, if I came off strong, I apologize, but please know the next animal you purchase's proper living conditions.
ophiura
Active Member
I would agree that there is an obligation to learn about the animals we keep - totally agree on that - but that most of us have made mistakes regardless. Maybe the LFS told this person totally wrong info about the scallop. Maybe they've heard, I know I have, how easy they are to keep. We don't know what they did. Because probably no where in researching these animals does it say "can not leave its shell." Why? Because obviously it can't leave its shell. But it is obvious to people who could write articles on them, and maybe not to the people who are reading those articles.
I hear the same things about snails...or people thinking that hermits grow their shell. And I would probably make some idiotic comment to someone into cars as a hobby.
FWIW, I studied brittlestars for many many many years. But when I first got into this hobby over 10 years ago now, I bought a 10g tank, some white gravel, and undergravel filter...mixed everything up, threw in at least 2 damsels (I remember also a bar goby), a condylactus anemone, an arrow crab, and a brittlestar. Yup, that was day 1.
And boy did I learn a lesson from watching that brittlestar die, right before my eyes. I don't think they can feel "pain" but if it could scream, it was....So even though I was effectively a "world's expert" on brittlestar taxonomy I obviously didn't know anything about keeping them in a tank.
If I had come to a board like this and received the sort of feedback given in this thread, I probably would have never come back to learn more. There are lots of people here who probably think polyps and corals and anemones are plants. There are people who constantly call Caulerpa and other algae "plants" but of course the differences are quite significant. Some have no concept of the nitrogen cycle or food web - putting groupers with clownfish. They are wrong. Laughably or often tragically wrong in many cases. But they are here and asking and researching and that is a step in the right direction. Maybe you can help them out or maybe you won't convince them until they learn on their own, the same way many of us did. But every question asked here is an opportunity.
And, FWIW, this is not something directed at you, personally Sankysyuck (insert smiley here but it isn't working). You did give some very good advice :yes:
I hear the same things about snails...or people thinking that hermits grow their shell. And I would probably make some idiotic comment to someone into cars as a hobby.
FWIW, I studied brittlestars for many many many years. But when I first got into this hobby over 10 years ago now, I bought a 10g tank, some white gravel, and undergravel filter...mixed everything up, threw in at least 2 damsels (I remember also a bar goby), a condylactus anemone, an arrow crab, and a brittlestar. Yup, that was day 1.
And boy did I learn a lesson from watching that brittlestar die, right before my eyes. I don't think they can feel "pain" but if it could scream, it was....So even though I was effectively a "world's expert" on brittlestar taxonomy I obviously didn't know anything about keeping them in a tank.
If I had come to a board like this and received the sort of feedback given in this thread, I probably would have never come back to learn more. There are lots of people here who probably think polyps and corals and anemones are plants. There are people who constantly call Caulerpa and other algae "plants" but of course the differences are quite significant. Some have no concept of the nitrogen cycle or food web - putting groupers with clownfish. They are wrong. Laughably or often tragically wrong in many cases. But they are here and asking and researching and that is a step in the right direction. Maybe you can help them out or maybe you won't convince them until they learn on their own, the same way many of us did. But every question asked here is an opportunity.
And, FWIW, this is not something directed at you, personally Sankysyuck (insert smiley here but it isn't working). You did give some very good advice :yes:
sankysyuck
Member
I understand, it just seemed like such a no brainer, common sense question. To tell you the truth, these scallops ARE easy to keep, IF you follow everything instructed. To me, there are not many saltwater animals that I would consider "Difficult" or "Expert Only." I keep many, many animals that are considered difficult and expert only, you name it, from octopi to Seahorses to -- Flame Scallops, I've got it, and to tell you the truth, I'm definitely no expert. If you get enough information on it, follow all feeding, lighting, heating, and water quality requirements, you should be successful.
For anyone interested in buying one of these beautiful creatures, I'll tell you the basics on how to be successful with them.
1. Make sure water quality is ideal, this includes-
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - <20 ppm
Ammonia - 0
Specific Gravity/Salinity - 1.023 - 1.025
Ph - 8.1 - 8.4
dKH - 8 - 12
Temperature - 72 - 78 (I have mine at 78)
Water Flow - Medium
Light - low to high (Really doesn't matter)
Minimum Size Tank - Really doesn't matter, as long as it has enough room to find a comfortable place for it.
If your tank meets all those requirements, you are ready to buy a scallop.
2. When acclimated into your tank, do not place them in a specific place, as they will move, also, if it moves to a part of your tank where you can't see it pleasurably, DON'T move it. If you keep moving it to a viewable position where it is not comfortable, it will expel too much energy trying to find a comfortable position and will likely give up and die. If you keep moving it to a position it doesn't want to be in, but looks cool to watch, you'll only be watching it's empty shell soon.
3. Scallops should be fed often, I feed mine each individually everyday using a Pipette (straw.) I feed mine each Selcon, Phytoplex (Kent), and Zooplex (Kent.) I've also heard people use Marine Snow. I have to feed my Sea Cucumber and Sea Apple everyday this same stuff so it works out. Keep in mind, the reason most scallops die is from starvation, even if you've have it for months without feeding it, don't think it's ok, it takes months for them to starve, you MUST feed them. Also keep in mind, that a protein skimmer will remove these foods from the water, that it why using a pipette is so usefull, it allows you to bring the food right to them.
4. These scallops are reef safe and do well with all fish that don't try to eat them. That means, don't include them with Sea Stars which is a natural predator to scallops (brittle, serpent, and Linkia stars are an exception.) Most aquarium sea stars may not be able to prey on muscles and clams but scallops can't fully close there shell making them easy to be devoured by hungry starfish.
5. Treat your tank with a calcium supplement to help them grow their shell, I use Invertebrate Calcium Supplement by Coralife, as I mentioned several threads ago, this will also benefit snails, giant clams, cleaner clams, and oysters.
Sadly, these scallops are not long lived, reaching a maximum life of 3 - 4 years (3 - 4 isn't so bad, octopi's life expectancy is only 6 months to a year and a half, my octopus Lola is at least 8 months if not older, I never know if I'm going to wake up and she won't be there
.)
But anyways, if all these requirements are met, you should be successful in keeping these really cool creatures! :joy:
For anyone interested in buying one of these beautiful creatures, I'll tell you the basics on how to be successful with them.
1. Make sure water quality is ideal, this includes-
Nitrite - 0
Nitrate - <20 ppm
Ammonia - 0
Specific Gravity/Salinity - 1.023 - 1.025
Ph - 8.1 - 8.4
dKH - 8 - 12
Temperature - 72 - 78 (I have mine at 78)
Water Flow - Medium
Light - low to high (Really doesn't matter)
Minimum Size Tank - Really doesn't matter, as long as it has enough room to find a comfortable place for it.
If your tank meets all those requirements, you are ready to buy a scallop.
2. When acclimated into your tank, do not place them in a specific place, as they will move, also, if it moves to a part of your tank where you can't see it pleasurably, DON'T move it. If you keep moving it to a viewable position where it is not comfortable, it will expel too much energy trying to find a comfortable position and will likely give up and die. If you keep moving it to a position it doesn't want to be in, but looks cool to watch, you'll only be watching it's empty shell soon.
3. Scallops should be fed often, I feed mine each individually everyday using a Pipette (straw.) I feed mine each Selcon, Phytoplex (Kent), and Zooplex (Kent.) I've also heard people use Marine Snow. I have to feed my Sea Cucumber and Sea Apple everyday this same stuff so it works out. Keep in mind, the reason most scallops die is from starvation, even if you've have it for months without feeding it, don't think it's ok, it takes months for them to starve, you MUST feed them. Also keep in mind, that a protein skimmer will remove these foods from the water, that it why using a pipette is so usefull, it allows you to bring the food right to them.
4. These scallops are reef safe and do well with all fish that don't try to eat them. That means, don't include them with Sea Stars which is a natural predator to scallops (brittle, serpent, and Linkia stars are an exception.) Most aquarium sea stars may not be able to prey on muscles and clams but scallops can't fully close there shell making them easy to be devoured by hungry starfish.
5. Treat your tank with a calcium supplement to help them grow their shell, I use Invertebrate Calcium Supplement by Coralife, as I mentioned several threads ago, this will also benefit snails, giant clams, cleaner clams, and oysters.
Sadly, these scallops are not long lived, reaching a maximum life of 3 - 4 years (3 - 4 isn't so bad, octopi's life expectancy is only 6 months to a year and a half, my octopus Lola is at least 8 months if not older, I never know if I'm going to wake up and she won't be there
But anyways, if all these requirements are met, you should be successful in keeping these really cool creatures! :joy:
mr_bill
Active Member
Originally Posted by SankysYuck
But anyways, if all these requirements are met, you should be successful in keeping these really cool creatures! :joy:
I wish this guy could have had you for a LFS guide. Too many of us new SW guys fall victim to the guy behind counter who can be just as convincing as anyone on these boards when it comes to advice.
I'm more concerned that he/she left the board in embarrasment and will keep listening to that snake oil saleman of a guide who sold them the scallop in the first place.
I for one have CC in my tank instead of sand because I took some bad advice. "Easier to clean" they said, but what do you do if you have no other means of advice to follow? :notsure:
Anyhow, you have some great advice in this last post. It would have taken me alot of work to find the info you posted and it is definetly beneficial to the community here.
Thankyou
But anyways, if all these requirements are met, you should be successful in keeping these really cool creatures! :joy:
I wish this guy could have had you for a LFS guide. Too many of us new SW guys fall victim to the guy behind counter who can be just as convincing as anyone on these boards when it comes to advice.
I'm more concerned that he/she left the board in embarrasment and will keep listening to that snake oil saleman of a guide who sold them the scallop in the first place.
I for one have CC in my tank instead of sand because I took some bad advice. "Easier to clean" they said, but what do you do if you have no other means of advice to follow? :notsure:
Anyhow, you have some great advice in this last post. It would have taken me alot of work to find the info you posted and it is definetly beneficial to the community here.
Thankyou
sankysyuck
Member
Thanks, I hope it is beneficial, certainly took me long enough to write! lol
