Just joined the clam crazy

[FiRsT-aNd-LaSt]

Poor LebaneseDlight lol .....He was so excited to get a new clam and everyone just rained in on his parade, he's never going to order another clam.....Greg I know your clam will be fine ("says the clam noob") anyhow stay positive and I'm sure the clam will come out ahead.

[Jungle_John]

i have a clam under 1" right now and hes doing great. however i know what im doing. see clams under 3" have hight death rates because they look cute. so people that dont know about clams get them and kill them, bringing up the death rate. if you know what your doing a small clam is not hard.

 

so on that i say if you know what your doing the clam size doesn't matter. but thats me.

 

second, feeding. if i can fine the study (and there hundreds that contradict each other) feedings is not to helpful because the energy taken in from the food is almost equal to the energy spend processing the food. so most time its bad for the clam because people stress there clams out thinking they have to feed them.

 

as for CITES, since i work with wholesalers i know all clams wild caught must be 3". all clams from Vietnam must be 3" aqua culture or wild caught. other aqua culture places, like ORA, the clams must be 1". thats the rules.

 

 

so how did i get my under 1 " clam. well if the clam is attach another clam no matter what size it is it does not need CITES. mine came in on another ORA clam. however they cant sell these clams, so most the time they give them as freebies.

 

soooooo

 

in the end, i think if you know what your doing do what you want. but if you have not a clue, leave the small clams alone get a big one.

[Urchinhead]

I am going to step back from GT's statements because its spiraling down into a 3rd grade school fight.

 

What John pointed out is correct. Operative words are "if you know what you are doing".

 

As to clam mortality statistics and why smaller ones die he also hits it on the head. As I pointed out they are not able to adapt to changes as well as larger clams and thus die more often. He also pointed out that people who should not buy them do because they are cute.

 

On the feeding topic I have seen that study. I have also seen studies that contradict it. Sadly there are allot of studies, as he said, that contradict each other. In my OPINION (note the emphasis) based on evolutionary biology et al. an organism would not have a digestive system if it didn't derive a benefit from it that was greater than the cost of it.

 

I think that they have slammed Vietnam even more in terms of size recently. I remember something about them having to be 5" now from an importer I know/work with who deals exclusively with Vietnam and now can't get clams because of this.

[GT AQUATICS]

I am going to step back from GT's statements because its spiraling down into a 3rd grade school fight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Rockfish]

I am going to step back from GT's statements because its spiraling down into a 3rd grade school fight.

 

What John pointed out is correct. Operative words are "if you know what you are doing".

 

As to clam mortality statistics and why smaller ones die he also hits it on the head. As I pointed out they are not able to adapt to changes as well as larger clams and thus die more often. He also pointed out that people who should not buy them do because they are cute.

 

On the feeding topic I have seen that study. I have also seen studies that contradict it. Sadly there are allot of studies, as he said, that contradict each other. In my OPINION (note the emphasis) based on evolutionary biology et al. an organism would not have a digestive system if it didn't derive a benefit from it that was greater than the cost of it.

 

I think that they have slammed Vietnam even more in terms of size recently. I remember something about them having to be 5" now from an importer I know/work with who deals exclusively with Vietnam and now can't get clams because of this.

 

 

 

have to agree with this...But Gt makes some valid points as well

[Oceanus]

Equal imo.

[Urchinhead]

have to agree with this...But Gt makes some valid points as well

 

Yes. He does.

[Urchinhead]

 

Case in point on disintegrating into 3rd grade school yard stuff.... Well done GT Aquatics!

 

I agree with Rockfish, you did make some salient points in your postings. Please though do realize that what may work for you because of the experience level you have will not work for others necessarily. Please also realize that other people, like myself, both have experience (sometimes more than you) as well thus you need to have an open mind and can have bad days where we get more snappy than we should be.

[cptbjorn]

OP I got an ORA maxima the same size as yours last week (same price even), I'm stoked about it and it looks great but I didn't post a thread about it because I knew that would happen ^ lol.

 

I'm excited for you and hope you post some pics when you get it It'll look even better in person

 

Here's mine the day after I got it, I have a big frag disc under it now and it has settled in and looks very happy:

 

[SpringFever]

Thank you for the intertaining (and informitive) hijack. School-yard fights were always one of my favorite spectator sports.

[Rockfish]

OP I got an ORA maxima the same size as yours last week (same price even), I'm stoked about it and it looks great but I didn't post a thread about it because I knew that would happen ^ lol.

 

I'm excited for you and hope you post some pics when you get it It'll look even better in person

 

Here's mine the day after I got it, I have a big frag disc under it now and it has settled in and looks very happy:

 

 

 

 

nice clam!! the blues and the greens require the MOST light though so make sure he's getting enough

[Urchinhead]

Wow! That is an awesome looking clam! RF is right. But if its not extending its mantle it may be fine where it is.

[cptbjorn]

I had some SPS bleaching so my LEDs are dimmed down lower then I want them right now, the blues are at 66% and the whites at 50% and I just started bumping them up 1% per day and will continue until something stops me so the clam should be getting more light soon. It is only 12" away and directly beneath a cluster of 7 LEDs though so it is getting quite a bit of light already I think? That last pic was taken during sunrise too and the corals/area behind the clam are shaded so it looks darker than it really is.

 

Here's a better pic I just took:

 

[Oceanus]

lovin that little guy! What a beauty! Keep us posted on how he does under led's!

[LebaneseDlight]

OP I got an ORA maxima the same size as yours last week (same price even), I'm stoked about it and it looks great but I didn't post a thread about it because I knew that would happen ^ lol.

 

Beautiful clam! Those ORA clams that are being churned out sure are hard to beat, and the fact that they're aquacultured makes it that much better. Look at the one that was sold (not to me) last night: http://www.liveaquaria.com/diversden/itemd...&ddid=81328. It sold within minutes! Wow it's hawt!

 

The bottom line is that I have the water conditions, lighting conditions, proper tank mates, and dedication to give the little guy as much hope for survival as anyone else. Also, I hold firm in my assumption that ORA would not sell clams with a dismal mortality rate just to make a quick buck. I feel confident that by being aquacultured, these clams have a higher than wild sourced clam survival rate. If anyone has had a negative experience with an ORA clam of this size, I'm all ears. In the meantime, every hobbyist loses some livestock over their tenure, and although I'm hoping it wont go that route with clammy, it's a risk I am willing to take.

 

BUT, that being said, I appreciate everyone's passion on the subject = the hobbyists in this forum TRULY CARE about the hobby and the survival and sustainability of the creatures we procure.

 

BTW, my clam comes in today (along with my ORA Birds of Paradise, My Rainbow Acan Lord frag, and my Acro Crab pair ).

 

Greg

[LebaneseDlight]

Got my diver's den shipment on Tuesday, and the little clam looks great. I ended up calling DFS because my acan frag isn't looking happy (wanted to document to them in case I need to use their 14 day guarantee). While on the phone, I had a lengthy conversation with the highly informative custom service rep. He asked about the maxima. Apparently, each of their ORA maxima clams are QTd for AT LEAST 3 months, and usually over 4 months prior to being offered to the DD. They also DO NOT recommend feeding. Just an FYI - clearly the feeding of clams < 2" is a controversial topic on the forum, but I will follow their recommendations, which is also recommended from ORA per the rep I spoke with. I will have to take some pics when I get a chance.

[pineo]

Did DD rep mention what be meant by feeding? I do not "spot feed" my smaller clams, but twice a week I drop a frozen cube of phytoplankton. I've had luck with smaller clams and I've never spot fed, and just started to add this phytoplankton.

[LebaneseDlight]

Did DD rep mention what be meant by feeding? I do "spot feed" my smaller clams, but twice a week I drop a frozen cube of phytoplankton. I've had luck with smaller clams and I've never spot fed, and just started to add this phytoplankton.

 

Yes - he meant no spot feeding is necessary, and they feel this brings unneeded stress to the clam.

[pineo]

yea, I meant I do not spot feed. just drop in a cube of phytoplankton.

[Rockfish]

you really don't need to feed clams at all.....

[pineo]

ehh. I've heard both sides of this argument. I have a small crocea that was bout 2'' when I bought it about a year ago. never fed it anything - and it is grew well. I recently purchased 2 small maximas and have been feeding a little bit...we shall see.

[Rockfish]

ehh. I've heard both sides of this argument. I have a small crocea that was bout 2'' when I bought it about a year ago. never fed it anything - and it is grew well. I recently purchased 2 small maximas and have been feeding a little bit...we shall see.

 

 

well when you think about it they're 95-98% photosynthetic so what does feeding them phyto really going to do for them??

 

not much

[pineo]

well when you think about it they're 95-98% photosynthetic so what does feeding them phyto really going to do for them??

 

not much

Common response to that claim would be that when they are smaller their mantles are not large enough to capture enough light to provide sufficient nutrition. At least, in the past, that has been a very popular belief.

[Rockfish]

Common response to that claim would be that when they are smaller their mantles are not large enough to capture enough light to provide sufficient nutrition. At least, in the past, that has been a very popular belief.

 

 

good point in theory but they can in fact take in enough nutrients for something that size

 

that's like saying a 4 inch clam's mantle can't take in enough nutrients for a 6 inch clam.....that's true BUT why would a 4 inch clam need the nutrient equivalant to a 6 inch clam??

[Oceanus]

good point in theory but they can in fact take in enough nutrients for something that size

 

that's like saying a 4 inch clam's mantle can't take in enough nutrients for a 6 inch clam.....that's true BUT why would a 4 inch clam need the nutrient equivalant to a 6 inch clam??

+1 to this. It's like how a 2 year old doesn't need the food a 40 year old does.