Clam keeps falling

[fishtankrob]

How do i keep my clam from falling off of the rock i put him on? he fell off last time and when i picked him up a white thing (technical term) fell off of him. any ideas on how to get him attached?

[Tim Marvin]

Can you just leave it in the sand bed? If it keeps falling and gets injured it could die. I'm sure Jim will see this and come up with a solution for you..

[Chuck]

Mine was doing the same thing for awhile but seems to be happy in its perch now. I have noticed that some of my snails (rather large) spend a considerable amount of time cleaning the shell and I have often wondered if they caused him to fall or it gets out of position and falls while trying to adjust itself.

Tim,
I didn't know it was safe to put them in the sand bed. I guess I heard an "old wife's tale" about sand in the mantle causing problems. If the light is strong enough then its ok to be in the bed?

[TexasState]

What kind of clam do you have? Some clam should be left alone on the bottom of the sandbed.

[captexas]

I have a similar problem with my gold maxima clam I got from Jim. Its foot is out, but it won't attach to the rock and has a habit of falling off the rock I put it on. Whenever I had it in the sandbed it would bury itself about a 1/2in in the sand. It seemed happy there, but I asked Jim about it and he said that maximas should be on rock, not the sandbed. I'm not sure about the other types of clams though.

Chuck -
I haven't noticed any of my snails on my clam, but my hermit crabs climb all over it all the time. I had to ask Jim about it to see if the crabs would hurt it. He said certain types of hermits will pick at the mantle, but fortunately the ones I had were safe. Good thing they were, otherwise there would be some hermits looking for a new home! :-D

[fishtankrob]

the bed is crushed coral and it is a sclamosa (im sure it is spelled wrong). i have 4 65 watt PC's and i figured he would be happy closer to the lights. He also seems to be opening really wide which seems to be making him fall.

thanks

[Chuck]

I have squamosa and the last time he took a dive was when one of my 96w PC went out (got a free replacement :o ). Since then he has stayed on his perch but does seem to shift around. I still think it is the snails though as he is not very big and the snails are nearly half his size.
Can a squamosa stay in the bed if the lights are strong enough?
I should have mentioned what type of claim earlier....
Also any idea's how to breed them?
I assume dinner & a movie is not appropriate? :twisted:

[Jimnorris]

Hello!
Squamosas most of the time are on the bottom---gravel is best---fine sand is tuff for a clam but can work if there is NO bottom stirrers. On maximas and croceas if they keep falling place them on the bottom also but underneath them a nice flat rock or a bigger have shell is good also. Clams fall mostly because they are not happy with that spot---like too much water movement, to much light and not level.
Jim

[fishtankrob]

For my clam (squamosa) are the 4 65 watt PC's enough in a 75 for the clam to live on the bottem, he really does not seem to like being on the rock I (you know the god of my fish tank) have chosen for hime.

[Jimnorris]

Rob,
No 4 65 watt PCs the clam should be about 12 inches from them.
Jim

[fishtankrob]

I have placed him up on the rock one last time and kinda put some other rocks around him so he cant really fall, that didnt stop him before but this time he must have known it was his last chance. foot is out and he seems to be ok there. any ideas on stuff to help them out other than good lighting and good water? ca seems to hover around 420.