Giant clam stats  12/14/05
Hey Guys,
<James>
I was reading this report again and thought you might
find it interesting. The import data for clams is on
page 31 (wild caught vs. farmed). This is from 2001,
but I doubt things have changed significantly since
then...
<... a bunch of data are lacking here... mostly missing. The numbers stated
for import/export of fishes for instance... how can twenty some percent more
be imported/exported? But/and am still surprised at the (stated) current
percentages of wild-collected (versus cultured) tridacnids... These numbers
aren't accurate... but... why?>
Still chugging along steadily on the book, and have
started looking for jobs. Hopefully something will
come up soon.
Later,
j
<Hope so. Bob Fenner, who would write a review of this piece (you can see my
earlier one on the same outfits "World Trade in Coral", posted on WWM...
such reports are useful, but indicative of a lack of diligence on data
gathering... to put this euphemistically.>

Tridacnid systems 9/21/05
<Hi Adam J here.>
I have a ten-gallon nano with pc lighting. The Lighting is a Coralife 96
watt 50/50 power quad lamp. I was wondering if I could keep any clams under
my lighting ?
<The lighting is ok, it is the volume of the tank that worries me.>
I dose calcium and have a CPR Bak-pak also. Would it be possible if I put the clam at the top of the tank ?
<Well the four clams commonly seen in the trade are in the genus Tridacnid, unfortunately 3 of which  (T. Deresa, T. Squamosa, T. Maxima) grow too large for your system. T. Crocea stays small enough but is the most sensitive and most light loving of the group.  You would have to place it in the upper ? of the tank on a rock to which it can attach its byssal foot, replace the light bulb every 6 to 9 months and keep the water chemistry stable, which is not easy in such a small tank.>
<Adam J.>

Uhh...Clam? 8/2/05
What is the best size to buy a T. Clam for my aquarium.
<Hi Steve, if you would be so kind as to give us a little more detail about your aquarium, it would be greatly appreciated.
p.s. What are the best lottery numbers to play tonight? - Ali>

Re: Ughh...Clam? 8/2/05
What is the best size to buy a T. Clam for my aquarium.
p.s. What are the best lottery numbers to play tonight? - Ali>
Hi,
<Hi again Steve!>
well my tank is a 60 gallon aquarium with a two inch crushed coral sandbed. My filtration is a 10 gallon under the tank refugium with Chaetomorpha 7inch deep sand bed and bout 10 pound of live rock rubble. My lighting is a JBJ 4x65 watts PC lighting Two 10k Bulbs and Two Antic blue bulbs for a total of 260watts.
<Unfortunately, your lighting at this point might be a little too weak to keep the clam growing and happy long-term. Please consider upgrading to at least 175watt metal halides. If you are planning on upgrading to halides soon, then a T. derasa, T. hippopus or T. squamosa would be good beginning candidates. For what it's worth, you will be 'okay' keeping the above clams with your current lighting set-up (since it's more than likely less than 24" in height) for a good while, however you should look into the lighting upgrade as soon as possible. Otherwise, just wait until after the upgrade to add one of these awesome animals to your system. Good luck Steve and keep searching/learning on Tridacnid species and husbandry. - Ali>

Squamosa or Crocea
Hi Bob,
<Brian>
I am looking at buying a Tridacna Clam. My friend is a clam supplier, and he has a great looking Crocea Clam that is 4.5" that has great reflexes to stimuli and a beautiful mantle. He also has a 5" Squamosa that is in great condition also. I was wondering which would be healthier and live longer.
<No way to tell>
I have Compact Fluorescents (130 watt, 10,000k) in a 54 gal corner reef tank. And is Kent Marine Micro-Vert food enough of a feeding supplement. Calcium and alkalinity are at adequate levels (according to your site) so I figure I'm ready to add one.
<Have you read through WWM here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/cav1i3/Clam_care/Clam_care.htm and the links below? Bob Fenner>

Delbeek, AFM article, T. gigas
This is what was in the article.
Q.  I love the beauty of giant clams. I really want to add a clam to my 29 gallon tank, which has two small clownfish, a clearer shrimp, a large-polyped stony and many soft corals. Lighting consist of two 65-watt power compacts. I have a Red Sea Prizm Skimmer and a Magnum 250 Hot filter. I use some additives (calcium and coral food). Do I need to add anything else to a clam tank? Are there any other things I need to know about keeping clams?
A.  "Several species of giant clams are available to aquarists. Your best bet for success would be a true giant clam (Tridacna gigas). This species
does well in captivity and should initially do well in your setup. As it grows, however, it will need more light. You are just on the border for light intensity at 4 1/2 watts per gallon, but keeping this species should be within your system's capacity. At the same time, you will need to move the clam to a larger tank as it grows and grow it will, very rapidly, provided the water parameters are adequate."
Now he does go on to say more regarding light and water chemistry. : )  Guess to each their own but I would never suggest a Tridacna gigas in a 29 gallon that seem to have a lot of animals in it so far. JMO.
<Doggone it, I thought I had Charles email to ask him re. Can't find on MSN addy list>
Nice article <G>
http://www.liveaquaria.com/general/general.cfm?general_pagesid=260&ref=3175&subref=AH 
<Oh, nice rendition. Bob F>
Cheers, Barry
www.clamsdirect.com  

Where to buy Gigas clams - 2/3/04 
Where can I buy the gigas clam from? <try Barry at www.clamsdirect.com. If he doesn't have it, ask him to pick one up for you. He is a great guy and let him know that wetwebmedia.com sent ya> An internet site, I mean. That sells to hobbyists. <Have fun ~Paul> Thanks, Adam

Colored squamosas
Hi Robert:
<Steven Pro this evening.>
I got your contact info off wetwebfotos.com. Do you know where I could locate any colored squamosas?
<Do check out the links page on www.WetWebMedia.com, this is the original information website. WWF is moving towards the selling of images.>
I am looking for blue, green, or purple.
<Do be aware that certain species only come in some colors. Squamosas are generally not the brilliant colors of Maxima's and Crocea's.>
Thanks, Kris Duggan of BerlinMethod.com
<Good luck in your search. -Steven Pro>

Tridacnid clam Hi Bob,  <Anthony Calfo in your service> I have a really good relationship with my LFS.  <excellent! a blessing that not all aquarists enjoy> Due to this I am able to order some unusual items, and can pick them up on delivery from the suppliers, before they even enter their tanks. For this reason I sometimes have to rely on them for quality, and it works out to be beneficial 99% of the time. However about 3 1/2 months ago I asked for them to get some Tridacnid clams, and gave my list of preference. When I arrived they had hand picked a blue Maxima or derasa (my guess I was too excited to ask) for me still in it's bag and difficult to visualize.  <T. maxima it is> When I got home it unfortunately had some brown areas along both sides of the mantle (see picture enclosed).  <not unfortunate... perfectly natural and rather common pigmentation> I thought it was just due to being under poor lights and it would recover.  <will not change my friend> I have had it for over thee months in my 125g reef. It is within 2 feet of the lights which are 2-140 actinic VHO for 8 hrs/day and directly under one of three 175 cheapie 55K Venture MH for 4 hrs/day. I replaced the MH. about 6 weeks ago as it was slightly yellow, the new one is much whiter. Is this just some normal marking or am I in for trouble.  <relax and enjoy this beauty... a nice specimen> The clam is always extended and closes very fast when a fish swims too close.  <very good responses...healthy> Any ideas would be appreciated.  <tridacnids are graded by color on export and few of the "cover girl" blue seen in books and magazines make it to the USA. Some Germans and many more Japanese aquarists are willing to pay a much higher dollar for select ultra blue clams than American aquarists. So... we do get some very nice clams... but most/many have variable pigmentation. Your specimen is very nice overall and likely a better deal at under $100 compared to the $300-600 USD needed to get a hand picked (ultra grade) pure blue specimen> Thanks Larry <best regards, Anthony>