hinge damage

[tebstan]

My squamosa has some hinge damage.

It's odd that the clam seems to be fine, while I'm freaking out.

The clam looked a little crooked and when picked up, the two shells moved independent of each other. It's hard to tell if the ligament is gone entirely, or just damaged. I don't want to handle it too much.

All the posts I've found on this topic either end badly, or have no updates. Of the ones that ended in clam death, the clam was usually ill otherwise. I really wish people would post feedback, even if its negative.

My squam appears healthy. The mantle is fully extended, no pinching or gaping. It has signs of new growth. It never would attach to anything no matter what I tried, so I've moved it to an acrylic box to keep it stable and safe. Some sources say it can regrow the hinge in a few weeks, so I won't give up yet.

Sorry the pics are bad, it's through glass and then a layer of acrylic, and at an angle. I'll have to scooch him back in the box a bit so his mantle won't flap up against the edge.

http://i556.photobucket.com/albums/ss9/TebstansTank/Clam/Claminbox1-23-11.jpg

Here's a shot of the hinge, the best I could get without handling him. There's tissue there.... I'm not sure if it's what is left of the ligament (I hope) or just some clam tissue poking through the hole where the ligament should be.

http://i556.photobucket.com/albums/ss9/TebstansTank/Clam/Clamligament1-23-11.jpg

[tebstan]

There is apparently an infection that can cause this. I'm suspecting the obvious though... the bristle worm I found living in the hinge area. It didn't appear to be eating the clam, since the clam is healthy and the worm was not near edible tissue.

If it was just hiding out, eating the ligament, whatever... the worm was there, the hinge is now damaged. (Hence my other thread seeking out a good bristleworm eating wrasse.)

I've read a few reports of worms hiding out in the hinge area. While they may not be intending to harm the clam, they cause irritation and damage anyway. Time for the little nasties to go.

[Europhyllia]

any other critters like tiny pyramid snails, etc?

I will need to review the Clam Book by Fatherree before I can offer any real advice. What I do remember though is:
crocea and maxima like to be on rock and squamosa and derasa prefer sand

I wonder if the substrate adds any support? In which case it might be nice to add some sand to the acrylic box to give it some support while it repairs itself?

[tebstan]

Fatheree's book mentions a bacterial infection known to cause ligament degeneration. There have been studies on it's treatment in oysters, but not our clams.

I could see how the presence of irritating bristles damaging the ligament could in turn lead to an infection. Cause and effect is all hypothetical in this hobby. (That's irritating for someone like me, who prefers definite answers.)

Good point, I will add some sand to the box. I'll sift it carefully first.

No pyramid snails. When I first got this clam well over a year ago, there were a few present. I diligently plucked them off until no new ones were visible. I still check occasionally since this clam was not attached to anything, but there hasn't been any sign of them since I first got it. This was sold as a captive bred clam, and still had the pyramid snails, so I'm cautious and skeptical of "clean" specimens.

This clam is happiest on the sand bed. I've tried putting flat rocks and shells under it, but it prefers to rest on sand.

[Europhyllia]

how is it looking now 2 months later?

[tebstan]

I've been thinking about posting an update. I was just trying to come to terms with it emotionally first. :(

It didn't end well. I knew that was highly likely but I still had to try.

When I searched for similar cases, I found only a few. And none of them had posted any positive results. (They hadn't posted negative results either, so I held out hope.)

The clam did remarkably well for about a month. It had the mantle extended normally and would still retract on its own. I always thought clams would decline quickly with some obvious signs, so I thought this was going well.

There was never any new hinge growth. After a while, the clam wasn't able to close fully - its first sign of weakness. It still tried to feed and never showed signs of pinched mantle. (Interesting.) It just slowly became weaker. The mantle wasn't even receeding.

But then... I saw nassarius snails swarming around it, so I knew it was going downhill despite it's normal looking appearance. When I returned to the house, the clam was no longer able to close at all and had its mantle pulled in.

It was hard to pull it from the tank. I felt bad knowing it was still alive, but I knew it wouldn't survive and didn't want to risk my whole tank. I'm still coping with the guilt.

[Europhyllia]

Oh that's sad. Sorry :(

You make me want to purchase some FinQuel just for the odd case when something needs to be euthanized...