Crocea Clam w/ PC Lighting

[dbartkow]

Has anyone successfully kept a crocea clam under PC lights? I have a 29 gallon BC with 144 Watts of PC lights. I am tempted to give it a try, but I want to hear from others that have done it successfully first. Anyone had success? If so, for how long?

 

Thanks,

Dave

[douglam]

if your going to do it you will have to put it at the very top of the tank. You even then you might not have enough so i would wait to someone else chimes in.

[vangvace]

no

 

and to add... Clam Discussion

[GobyDude]

Croceas require the highest amount of light as far as the giant clams go. It's a no go from me as well.

[StevieT]

Do not attempt, it will fail

[annamarie421]

Do not attempt, it will fail

 

+1

[AlexNUFC]

Let me give u an example. To put a clam in there is like sticking u in a small hole. Soon or later u cant breath, u slowly begin to die,u want ur suffering to end. Its not worth it mate. Take ur time and and but better lighting if u want them.

[reefman225gal]

Lighting:

The short answer to the question of what lighting is required for clams comes down to: It depends...

 

The long answer is that after an exhaustive search for empirical studies on the lighting requirements of clams kept in the amateur/hobbyist aquarium no actual studies have been published at time of writing of this article. It is rumored that James Fatheree has a study of clam species under PC, T5, and MH lighting but at time of writing of this article there is no information in the public domain on this study.

 

The common wisdom by experts in the field of aquarium husbandry[1], review of hobbyist articles[2][4] and deductions based on scientific articles on commercial clam husbandry[3] is that the higher the light level the better for the clam depending on the species of clam.

 

This means that it is possible to keep a healthy clam under PC lighting just as it is possible to kill a clam kept under Metal Halide lighting depending on the species of clam and the individual clam itself.

 

In general a minimum of T5 is best for the clams that will be comfortable in a nano tank with MH being optimal and PC possible with lower light requirement clams. The key being the lower the lighting the closer to the light the clam must be placed. So with PC lighting the clam should be near the top 10-15% of the tank or in a shallow depth tank. With T5 and depending on the species of clam and depth of the tank the upper third of the tank is best. With MH and again depending on the species of clam the clam should be in the lower third of the tank.

EDIT: you kinda contradicted your self with the no answer then sending him to that thread that reads^^^

no

 

and to add... Clam Discussion

[Galloping Goose]

I beg to differ. 1 year 9 months and going... Was about 4inches, now 5 +. Does suck a lot of CA thought out of the 9G cube. I have 3 pendants each of 18w 50/50. Lighing came from the TomTom mini deco kit 3G set up.

[stanlalee]

I beg to differ. 1 year 9 months and going... Was about 4inches, now 5 +. Does suck a lot of CA thought out of the 9G cube. I have 3 pendants each of 18w 50/50. Lighing came from the TomTom mini deco kit 3G set up.

 

there's always the few exceptions but by in large its a VERY bad idea to attempt to keep a crocea under pc lighting. I did this after an emergency (tank break). I had a deresa and crocea. the crocea fell apart under pc while the deresa lasted and lasted.

[dbartkow]

I am curious, what wattage PCs were you using and how far from the lights was the crocea?

 

Thanks,

Dave

 

there's always the few exceptions but by in large its a VERY bad idea to attempt to keep a crocea under pc lighting. I did this after an emergency (tank break). I had a deresa and crocea. the crocea fell apart under pc while the deresa lasted and lasted.

[blizzardscout2]

I beg to differ. 1 year 9 months and going... Was about 4inches, now 5 +. Does suck a lot of CA thought out of the 9G cube. I have 3 pendants each of 18w 50/50. Lighing came from the TomTom mini deco kit 3G set up.

 

Kinda off topic, but I gotta say that your tank is awesome! The coolest little tank I have ever seen!

 

Reese

[azncoduyen]

If you want to put it in a nanotank without much modification... just add an additional lamp light to it... What i mean is that you have your little lamp blazing the additional light into the tank. As long as you have enough lightning, it shouldn't be a problem.

[vresor]

I've had a Crocea in a BC14 with stock lighting for nearly a year now. If anything, mine is wedging itself under my rockwork as if to escape the light. I'm sure that's not true, but I'm at a loss to explain why it's trying to hide. I had torch trouble with some Acanthastrea, could the torch be bothering the clam too?

[Greenstar]

that is a year old? It should be a lot bigger by now. Nice hair algae

[vresor]

Yeah, I've been battling the GHA since it arrived with the clam last winter. And no, the clam hasn't grown appreciably in that time. The zoas have all grown, the GSPs have grown and the torch has divided to three heads. What sort of growth should I expect from a 2.5" clam? Any why does it continue to pull itself under the rock? Thanks.

[BKtomodachi]

Yeah, I've been battling the GHA since it arrived with the clam last winter. And no, the clam hasn't grown appreciably in that time. The zoas have all grown, the GSPs have grown and the torch has divided to three heads. What sort of growth should I expect from a 2.5" clam? Any why does it continue to pull itself under the rock? Thanks.

Well under PC's you wouldn't expect much in terms of clam growth, because they don't generally provide the amount of PAR needed for healthy growth.

 

In a year, a healthy crocea should be able to put on ~ 1" of shell. No idea on why it pulls itself. Perhaps it has its byssal threads attached to that rock. Croceas really don't like being in sand either.

 

But from my estimation, you're not really all that interested in providing a good environment for the clam either way.

[xbwolfx]

you should probably remove the clam, place it in some tupperware, and feed it phyto like every other day.

 

that's what all of the pros do.

[vresor]

I did buy the clam under the advice (or perhaps approval) of my LSF before fully understanding the implications of PC lighting. It lives within 12" of the lights which in most larger tanks would be quite close. It had occurred to me to simply give up and give it back to them, but it seemed to be doing so well. It has clean, white margins indicating shell growth, is responsive to sensory inputs and was opening wide until it started wedging under the rock. While there is about an 80 percent concensus in this thread that my clam is doomed, I'd like to try moving it higher in my tank. That would put it like 8" from the lights. I'm also installing the 3.24 lighting upgrade from Nanotuners. What is the function of the Tupperware?

[Greenstar]

I would definitely move it off the sand and onto the rockwork.

[xbwolfx]

What is the function of the Tupperware?

sorry. i was joking.

[clifford513]

Yeah, I've been battling the GHA since it arrived with the clam last winter. And no, the clam hasn't grown appreciably in that time. The zoas have all grown, the GSPs have grown and the torch has divided to three heads. What sort of growth should I expect from a 2.5" clam? Any why does it continue to pull itself under the rock? Thanks.

Nice colors in your tank. That will be awesome once you get the gha under control. Clam looks healthy despite the position.

[vresor]

I started with the clam on rock, but it flitted off every time so I buried a flat piece of rock in the sand and put the clam on the rock in the sand. Unfortunately that didn't take. The piece of rock was a few inches across by only a half inch thick, but it still scooted off the rock into the sand where it moved its way to the edge of the "reef" where it stayed apparently quite content for months. Looking back, I suspect it was wedging its way under the rock the whole time and just making very slow progress. In its present place it can still open wide enough for lip and siphon extension. I wanted it on rock the whole time, but that doesn't seem to be its will. How can I convince it otherwise?

[FCatCH76]

Hello everyone, had to chime in on this thread for my first post. Been in SW for 11 months and have kept my three clams for 9 of those.

 

 

 

I am running a BC29 and 14, but the 29 has the CPR fuge w/ skimmer, Nanotuners 4.36 upgrade which is 144w of PC's. I run 2 Act. 1 10K and a 50/50.

 

HTH

[dbartkow]

FCatCH76,

How have your clams done during those 9 months? Have you seen any growth?

 

Thanks,

Dave

 

Hello everyone, had to chime in on this thread for my first post. Been in SW for 11 months and have kept my three clams for 9 of those.

 

I am running a BC29 and 14, but the 29 has the CPR fuge w/ skimmer, Nanotuners 4.36 upgrade which is 144w of PC's. I run 2 Act. 1 10K and a 50/50.

 

HTH

 

 

Everyone has mentioned the importance of a high PAR lighting value to support clams. Does anyone know what the ideal PAR range is for clams?

 

I don't doubt they need intense lighting, but that can be adjusted based on placement height in the tank. I am going to try and get some PAR readings at various levels in my tank.

 

Dave