new clam dying

[so-smrt]

i just bought a clam yesterday from a LFS. i put it in the tank (aclimated it correctly) at night. it looked ok but closed slightly w/ little mantle showing, same inthe AM. i got home from work and the mantle had pulled in completely and looked like it had slimed. it is less than 24h old and looked very healthy in the store . i put it on the rockwork about 1/2 way up. lighting 250 MH. any ideas is it dead? what do i do now????

[JimD]

What kind of clam is it? What kind of lighting did it come from as opposed to what kind of lighting you have???

[so-smrt]

not sure to either question he told me when i bough it but i dont remember. i know it was under a MH but not sure of the wattage

[z28pwr]

Do any of these sound familiar?

Squamosa
Derasa
Maxima
Tridacna
Crocea
Hippopus

[so-smrt]

it was a Crocea but it is dead. in just over 24 hours. it looked great at the LFS bt now the shell is empty oh yea and the water was perfect confirmed w/ LFS tonight. was there somehting i could have done wrong so that i dont repeat it??

[Viet-Tin]

Did you burp it? Air tends to get inside the clam and will choke it if not released. I almost lost a squamosa because I forgot to do that but afterwards it pulled through fine.

[Richard]

It's unusual to lose a clam so quickly. They usually hang on for awhile even when something isn't right. How big was it and what kind of fish/critters do you have in the tank?

[GaryP]

Also, was it a small clam? I have never had a lot of luck with the smaller clams. They seem to be very sensitive and do not travel well.

[Willow]

Did you burp it? Air tends to get inside the clam and will choke it if not released. I almost lost a squamosa because I forgot to do that but afterwards it pulled through fine.
ok.. gotta ask... how do you burp a clam?

[GaryP]

Hold it in the tank and rock it from side to side to make sure there are no air bubbles caught inside. Of course the trick is to do it when the shells are open. You may have to set it down and let it open before you do this. When you move it, you have to do it slowly and gently to keep it from closing up again. Maybe someone else has another method?

[Polkster13]

You can also touch it lightly on the side or pass your hand over the top creating a shadow. Both will cause the clam to close quickly which will also help to get any air bubbles out. I do this until the clam has forcefully closed at least three to four times. This is done after I have moved it from side-to-side and around-and-around to get any trapped air out of it.

The best way to move a clam is to never expose it to air. Also make sure there are no micro bubbles in your tank that might get trapped in your clam.

What other inhabitants do you have in your tank? That was an awful quick demise for a clam that was doing so well before. It sounds to me that there may have been something in the tan that attacked or stung the clam which caused it to die so quickly. Just a thought.

[brewercm]

Same thinking as here as Richard and Polkster. I had a trigger fish that would pick at the mantle until it would kill one.