Derasa clam has tear in mantle

G

Grumpyfish

Premium Member
Hello, Last night I noticed that my clam has a hole or tear just below the exhalent siphon. I have no idea how this happened.  I have two clowns, a cleaner shrimp, a few hermits, and an emerald crab.  Other than the shrimp climbing on it, I've never noticed any of the others bothering it. The clam has been in my tank since June 2016.  Is this fatal?  Is there anything I can do?  If it helps, here are my parameters: 
  • Salinity = 1.0245
  • pH = 8.2
  • Nitrite = 0
  • Nitrate = 0
  • Alkalinity = 179
  • Calcium = 410
  • Phosphate = 0
  • Magnesium = 1230 (first time tested)
I started dosing liquid calcium a few weeks ago when I noticed that it was low and that the clam did not seem to be growing like it used to.  I also noticed that the clam's mantle started curling around the edges.  I'd read a freshwater dip would help this, but I have not tried that yet.Any help would be really appreciated. Thanks,Harvey/GrumpyfishView attachment 2817
 
No, I am not dosing iodine.  I can try to buy some (and an iodine test kit) after work.  Thank you, Steve. 
 
None of the LFS's I normally visit had an iodine test kit in stock, so I ordered the Salifert kit online along with some Kent Marine Lugol's Solution.  I got the package last night and performed both the iodide test and the iodate/iodine test. Both tests resulted in clear water (no coloration at all), so my iodine was low (assuming I ran the tests correctly). My tank is about 70 gallons total water volume (tank plus sump), so I added 2 drops of the Lugol's Solution. I'll test again tomorrow when I do my water change. Thanks again for the suggestion to check iodine. It's probably too late for the clam, but I should have been doing this all along anyway. 
 
Thanks. I'll do that tomorrow. How long do you suggest? Should I dip it in a second bowl of tank water to wash off the iodine?
 
I sure hope it recovers! It's my first and only clam. I just did the first treatment. Clam doesn't look too happy. It closed up during the dip, so I'm not sure how good of a dose it got. Thanks again for your help. 
 
It's been just over a month since I asked for help, so I wanted to give an update on the clam in case anyone was wondering. After several iodine dips and one 30-minute freshwater bath, the clam looks better.  Not exactly the picture of health, but definitely better.  The hole is now covered with a thin layer of tissue and is slowly healing, and it seems to be spreading its mantle more than it was.  I also did a little reaquascaping to give it some more elbow room. My main concern now is that I haven't noticed any new growth lately (no obvious growth rings), and I have read that that is not a good sign.  I guess I just need to wait and see what happens. Thanks again for your help, Steve. 
 
I was afraid of that.  If you're talking par values, I don't have a clue.  When I set up the tank and got my first corals (mostly LPS), I played with the light settings until the corals all seemed happy. However, this was before I got the clam. I have two Kessil 160 LEDs. One is approximately 22 inches directly over the clam. My current lighting schedule provides a maximum of 50% intensity for 9 hours:Time=09:00 Color=0 Intensity=5Time=11:00 Color=60 Intensity=50Time=14:30 Color=80 Intensity=50Time=16:30 Color=60 Intensity=50Time=20:00 Color=0 Intensity=5Time=22:00 Color=0 Intensity=0In hindsight, that doesn't seem very bright for a clam, does it?  Should I try ramping up the intensity slowly (5% a week maybe) or stretch the amount of time they're at 50% to 10 or 11 hours? 
 
My personal opinion is viewing lighting like a sunny vs cloudy day. If you suddenly increase lighting it likely won't bother anything all that much. However if you significantly raise the temperature (because of more lighting) you'll make everything unhappy...
 
Thanks, Brian.  Unless I'm misunderstanding you, I don't think I need to worry too much about raising the temperature. It's a 65-gallon tank with a big open top (just a screen cover), and we keep the house at 75 or below. I think if I increase the lighting slowly, nothing will get too mad at me. 
 
I meant you can probably max out the lighting right now so long as it doesn't raise the tank's temperature too much.Changing lighting durations can make things sick but, typically simple lighting increases will only give way to potential algae bloom...
 
I didn't know that.  I thought increasing the light intensity all of a sudden might shock corals and clams.  Thanks again.  I'll dial it up a notch when I get home. 
 
Every organism on Earth reacts differently to change. My personal opinion is corals are used to cloudy days. View your current lighting as a cloudy day. I wouldn't make 12 lighting changes in a month. Honestly, for me I'd just max it out and tune down if anything looked stressed but, you could also go from 50% to 75% to 100%... 12 lighting changes is likely overly time consuming (for you) and pointless (for the reef).Finally, think of it this way; if your clam needs light to live and you are not giving it enough isn't it starving? How long do you want to continue to let it starve?1 last thought hits me - I'd be less concerned about growth after recent recovery. Think of recovery time like sleep or a coma for humans. You don't go from sleep or coma to super active...
 
1) My understanding is that clams do not need light acclimation.  Blast them and go, the more the better. Having said that I do not currently own a clam. 2) Corals do require acclimation. Up the lighting slowly and you can tan. Do it too fast and you burn.
 
Thanks, everyone.  I really appreciate the help.  Brian, your last thought occurred to me too; maybe the clam is putting its energy into healing itself instead of adding new shell. Makes sense to me.  For the sake of the corals, I'm going to take baby steps and increase the lighting slowly, so last night I bumped up the intensity a little: [Time=11:00 Intensity=50 to 55 ]<br style="box-sizing: border-box; box-shadow: none; color: #000000; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 14px; background-color: #f5f5f5;" />[Time=14:30 Intensity=50 to 60 ]<br style="box-sizing: border-box; box-shadow: none; color: #000000; font-family: Roboto; font-size: 14px; background-color: #f5f5f5;" />[Time=16:30 Intensity=50 to 55 ]That doesn't seem like much,  but I'll give it a few days to see how the corals react. 
 
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