Death of a clam

I have not posted for a while because I am really depressed for what you can read in the title. My beautiful five inch Tahitian Maxima clam died four days after I performed the fresh water dip. The clam first showed signs of revival the first day, and then things just went downhill really fast after the second day.

I soaked what was left of the clam in chlorine to bleach out all and any microscopic lives on the shell to investigate the cause of death. As you can see, there is significant boring algae infection in the core of this clam.

In this photo, you can see the little holes in the bottom of the clam shell, caused by boring sponge while the clam was young, the boring sponge left holes for boring algae to invade and take over. The shell infected is significantly thinner than the other half.

The Inside view of the infected area. It looks like death is only a matter of time for this clam.

So the lesson learned here is that before you purchase any clam in the future, You MUST lift up the clam and observe the entire surface of the clam's shell (including the bottom) to detect any infections that may be otherwise be hidden while you view it from the top and its side. To me, that was a $230 lesson. Actually, make that $430 as three days following the Maxima's death, the raised nitrate level in the water also killed my 6" Derasa clam. 

Maxima clam pinched mantle

Very Sad Story, My Tahitian Maxima clam suffered what many hobbyists refer to as "Pinched Mantle" syndrom. The "pinched mantle" is caused by a protozoa infection, similar to that of the malaria type for human infection. This type of infection is widely spread amongst Maxima and Crocea clams, and has recently spread towards other Tridacna clams such as Derasa and Squamosa.

After doing lots of research, I decided to perform the freshwater dip (FD) treatment. The principle of freshwater dip is to kill invertebrates and bacteria cells by osmosis while the water finds equilibrium between brime and fresh. The Tridacna clam is actually surprisingly hardy when completely submerged under the freshwater. The key is the water must be of the same temperature and of the same pH level as the home aquarium. The photo above is my clam being soaked in freshwater for 30 minutes.

The photo above shows the pinch of the clam prior to the dip. You can see the second scute of the left mantle is slightly shrank. It is better to detect the distress and treat it while the clam is still strong and relatively healthy versus making the very invasive freshwater dip during its latter stage.

This photo shows the clam an hour after the dip. The clam is obviously distressed and is gasping for both the "right water" and fresh oxygen. The clam remained in this stage for the remainder of the day without much change. I will post follow up article if the clam's condition worsen or improves.

Rose bubble tip anemone

Anemones are basically a bag of water. So a large part of your success in keeping them alive depends on the water quality. Rose tip bubble anemones (RTBA in manynonline forums) is actually one of the hardier options with stunning beauty. I bought a couple from a fellow reefer whose anemone split from one into a dozen within 12 months. I have had them for three months now and they've increased to three. Althought strong lighting is preferred they will do just fine in medium lighting, actually from my observation, They tend to breed faster under dimmer lighting. I feed my anemones a mix of mysis dhrimp, brime shrimp, and marine cousine. I actually feel that the most important thing for these creatures are the symbiotic relatuonshipnwith a host clownefish (will talk more about that relationship later). So before you decide to have one of these beautiful creatures, I strongly advise hacing a clownfish with an established territory in your tank.

Zoanthid in home, abbreviated version

Zoanthids are one of the most commonly found "corals" in the home aquarium. Not only they are brightly colored and have a compact size, they are normally really easy to keep, grows and spreads in a steadily fast pace. They are ideal for new marine hobbyists who want to try their hands in invertebrates.

The reason why I put "" around the word coral is because technically Zoanthids are more anemone than coral. And just like anemone, they can be poisonous so handle with care (Personally I have brushed my hand and handled both anemone and zoanthids and have never engaged any harm from them, but please use caution as some people may develop allergic reaction to certain aquatic lives.).

Zoanthids do come in many many different shades and colors. The price can also vary greatly depends on their color and rarity. Generally a colony about 2 square inches would cost between $15-30. But in some occassions you will find stores or breeders selling rare speciments at "per polyp" price. The most rediculous price I have ever heard was $45 per polyp (and it wasn't even that beautiful). Personally I suggest you use your own judgement in how much you want to pay for them. If they are increadibly expensive, it might pay to just wait a while as these critters grow really fast and once the "rare" types becomes more popular the price will eventually come down.

Caring:

Light: They are the most forgiving of all corals I have ever kept when it comes to light. I have the exact same species of zoanthids placed both 3 inches from the water surface with a 250W metal halide blasting over it and another colony at the very bottom and the edge of the tank. The lighting doesn't seem to make them grow any faster, however they do seem to open more generously with lower lighting. In addition, most of them will show and "pop" with the best coloration if you use more "blue" light such as actinic or 420nm bulbs.

flow: I have seen them thrive and extend their tentacles right next to a powerhead, I have also seen them open up and happy at a very still location of the tank. Again, use your judgement, but with either extreme, make sure you do it slowly so they can adjust to them.

Water quality: Obviously in order to keep anything else in your tank happy, the water needs to be free of nitrate and phosphate, But you might want the water to be "slightly" dirty as the zoanthids do absorb a good deal of nutrients from the water. I can tell that my zoanthids had really good growth (ironically) when they are placed in a quarantene tank without skimmer.

Disease and damages: Zoanthids do have a number of natural enemies in the wild ranging from fish to other invertebrates. If you spot a fish nipping at Zoanthids, you are pretty much left with the option of which one you want to keep more in your tank. If you find some small critters (snail, star, crab) nipping on them, you can carefully monitor and remove them as it happens. One good rule of thumb is to do a "Lugol's dip" when you receive them. To do so, get a bottle of Kemps "Lugol's solution", a super concentrated bottle of iodine. Follow the instruction for a coral dip indicated by the product to kill off any hitchhiking parasites that comes with it.

7 Saltwater fishes you should never get part 5

The next fish on my list of "not to keep at home" is the Moorish Idol, featured in Disney hit film "Finding Nemo" (Which by the way the word Nemo drove me crazy while I was working in the aquarium)

Moorish Idol

One of the worst thing about pop culture is to introduce a false image about certain practices. Keeping percula clown fish and/or the Pacific blue tang are usually not very challenging for average reefers. However, even some of the most experienced reef hobbyists have trouble keeping the elegant Moorish Idol alive in captivity.

Because of its need of swimming room and it's diet needs, not only you will need to have an extra large system for this fish to move around, you will also need to "teach" them to accept food in captivity. I have made attempts while working in the store to no success. And for a creature of this beauty to perish is not only a heart breaker, but a shame.

Banner butterfly fish

If you want something that possess the similar elegance as the Moorish Idol while swimming without the difficulty in keeping, the schooling banner butterfly fish is a great substitute. They are not only easier to keep (I have personal experience in seeing them eat like hogs), hardy, but also very robust in the home aquarium. So please spread the word and educate everyone you know to not follow the example of a children's movie and attempt to keep the Moorish Idol in a small system as shown in the movie.

bannerfish schooling

Intriguing Pulsing Xenia

The Pulsing Xenia (Heteroxenia sp.) is a mystery in the captive reef community.
I had a previous experience just like many others have had:
Got a small Xenia, watch it grow, watch it spread like weed, and then they all disappear within weeks for no apparent reason.
I was visiting a friend and he was selling some of these small pulsing frags (the ones he had was very very energetic and robust, sometimes you do encounters "lethargic" xenia). I wasn't planning on getting them but my wife was very intrigued and find them amazing to watch so I got a small colony.(below)

pulsing xenia

I am honestly not expecting much out of this thing since I had a previous experience similar to many. It's been about a month now and there seems to be no sign of slowing down in these critters' pulsing and also no shrinking of their polyp extension.

The common opinion about keeping them healthy is:

Light: Strong to medium light (T5 or PC is good enough, you might want to move them to the side and bottom if you are using MH like me)

Flow: Medium. Your current need to be strong enough to bring water and food to it, but not too strong to cause any flesh damage.

Water Quality: From my understanding, not too clean. As a matter of fact, the pulsing movement can logically be their act of "capturing" planktonic food from the water current (though not scientifically proven), but it seems that everyone who keeps their water "too clean" has problem encouraging growth and proper polyp extension.

Lastly, as you can find online, I too have read mixed opinion on the maintenance of this unique creature and have personally experienced various results in various conditions. Fortunately they are not too expensive to come by and are mostly aquacultured. You will definitely have better luck in hardier specimen home cultured and also save some $$.

Lastly, due to the speed they can grow and spread and the level of ease to care for, I honestly don't think anyone should pay more than $15 for a colony of the size shown in the photo above, if you are paying more than that, you are being overcharged.

Marine popeye an cure

My black clarkii clown fought with the tomato clown (similar size) and injured its left eye. He then had an infection to it and reaulted in the popeye. It has been going on for over two weeks now. At one point (about the 4th day mark) we really thought the eye ball was going to dropout as it was so far out of the body and part of the eye became cloudy. But it looks like my perseverance in treatment is paying off. Each day when prepare frozen meal for the tank, I always mix in a pinch of minced garlic from a small glass jar bought from local grocery store. The addition of garlic helps with immune system boost as well as disinfecting. I am looking forward to this little thing's full recovery.