What is this????

daveb

Member
Well here is the story... about nine months ago, I bought a piece of branch rock that had some frilly mushrooms on it. At the top of this branch was this flat piece of something, I never new exactly what it was, but it was attached and had two nice shrooms growing on it. The other day, I was doing something in the tank, and that piece fell off with the two shrooms on it...
I set it up on a rock near the top corner of the tank, and was waiting to see where I might put it permanently. Two days later the frilly mushrooms were GONE! Then I noticed that this thing was moving... It is some sort of shellfish, and it looks like it has teeth for crying out loud... I moved it to my refugium because I damn sure think it ate those shrooms, and didn't want it eating anything else... Here is a picture of this thing... can anyone identify it for me... Thanks, Dave
 

lopeyc

Member
That doesn't look like anything that would eat a shroom. Are those teeth or just soft tissue? Looks like the mantle of a scallop or clam.
 

daveb

Member
They actually look like sharks teeth as this thing opens up... I have not touched them to see how hard they are... There is absolutely no sign of the two shrooms that were on this thing. Once it was no longer attached to the top of that branch rock, it started moving... I have no doubt it ate those shrooms... they were too big to just disappear overnight.. when opened up during the day, those shrooms were a good three inches across... believe me, they did not just vanish into thin water LOL
This thing is very much alive...
I will look up some pics of scallops to see if I find anything that resembles this thing, thanks dave
Here is another pic from a slightly different angle
 

lopeyc

Member
Well, I wasn't suggesting the vaporized -- more likely they were knocked into a crevice. At least that's what would have happened in my tank!
It's a fuzzy picture, so I can't exactly say. But I do know this: There are no crustaceans or molluscs I've ever heard of that have teeth and walk around chomping things like one of those wind-up false teeth toys!
:eek:
 

promisetbg

Active Member
It looks like an oyster to me..almost like the thorny oyster without the thorns.The shrooms probably detached and floated behind the rocks somewhere..they do that.
 

nm reef

Active Member
Bang may be helpful in providing a positive...but a better pic may help. Sure sounds like some sort of oyster. I also doubt that it ate the 'shrooms....far more likely that the 'shrooms detached and just aren't someplace where you can see them.:thinking:
 

bang guy

Moderator
Believe it or not, it looks like Chlamys sp.
I suppose that's how I'd spell Clams after tipping a few too many pints.
 
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