Clam compatibility question

[Gordonious]

Figure mbbuna will probably be best to answer this question, but instead of PMing him I would post the question so others could learn as well.

In <A HREF="http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=11564420#post11564420">this thread</A> one of melev's pictures shows a clam surrounded by zoanthids. I know many softies including zoas can be kept in the same tank as clams, but can they be harmed by animals such as zoanthids growing on the mantle? I figure anemones should probably be kept away from them, but I have to admit that the zoanthids just about overgrowing that clam look beautiful. If the clam is hardly effected one could create some awesome combinations.

mbbuna have you ever purposely allowed any corals to attach themselves to clams or perhaps just allowed them to? Just curious.

BTW anyone who has not seen this months <A HREF="http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&postid=11564420#post11564420">thread of the month</A> full of pictures of clams should check it out.

Jon

[a1amap]

In case you missed it, some of the clams in that thread are mbbunas'.
I see the picture you are talking about and it does look way cool. They seem to grow on the shell in between the mantle. I think eventually the Zoas would overgrow the clam so he is probably keeping them in check somehow. I beleive this is the pic you are talking about

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/jj132/skinz78/melev_maxima2.jpg

[DamnPepShrimp]

WOW! That is crazy! I also would question how safe that is, but very cool! Especially the contrasting colors, nice! I have some zoos that are really close to my clams, but it will probably be a year before they look like that.

[mbbuna]

clams seem to be pretty resistant to coral stings. Corals i would not let next to a clam would be aggressive anemones, aiptasia, hydnophora, elegance, torches, hammers ect.. lots of the soft corals and polyps don't really have a strong sting, they take over the reef because the grow very fast and some can emit chemicals that kill other corals.

i wouldn't worry too much about most corals. most clams are found right up on the reef mixed in with stony corals and some embedded right into the coral head.

http://img513.imageshack.us/img513/3208/dsc02265rb9.jpg

http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/9283/bluederasaut0.jpg

http://img444.imageshack.us/img444/5345/bluederasa3qf9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

[Gordonious]

Thanks. I knew that I had seen plenty of pictures of corals in the wild right along with a reef surrounded by other corals, but I also knew they didn't really shop of a peice of property with good light, current, nice views, and good school districts. :-D The planktonic larval of most of these critters ends up... where it ends up.

I suppose Ijust wanted to make sure if I purposly grew zoanthids or shrooms on the side of a clam that I wouldn't be doing it major harm.

Thanks for you response,
Jonathon