spiny oyster experiences? - tired in reef discussion with no success

[giants4pc]

Saltwaterfish has these guys but I know nothing about them. Anyone ever try to keep one or know about their requirements? They don't give any info about it???

[giants4pc]

I mean "tried" in reef discussion, not "tired"

[fish02]

I know that they are cool looking and get pretty sizable but not photosynthetic like tridacnid clams. I don't know if they can be classified in the flame scallop failure class or not. If you don't know, flame scallops have a high mortality rate.

[giants4pc]

I've heard that about flame scallops but have had one now in my reef for about 3 months. That certainly isn't considered success, but it seems to be doing ok so far. If they aren't photosynthetic, what do they need to be spot fed? The site claims that they are perfect for reefs; however, they don't list any requirements. I was hoping someone tried them before.

[Diatome]

Honestly, I think they are easier than scallops. I had two come as hithikers with some ricordia. Can;t say they really were hitchikers since the rics were on the back of one. The other was tiny and on the back of the larger one, with the rics. The large one lasted 18 months. It actually closed on a bristleworm and croaked. I saw the actual worm go in and get split in half when the oyster closed. If I had only been quicker. I left the shell pieces in the aquarium as there are two rics on the top and 1 on the bottom. I had three split from these that have been long since traded. I just upgraded from a 37 to a 60 gallon and discovered the tiny specimine was still alive. I never even checked. This is three years down the road now. It is very slow growing but seems fine without target feeding. I do feed my tank well with phyto, DT's and various concoctions. I have a lot of sponge growth and some tunicates so my water is not sparkling clean.

I did have a bivalve researcher say she was very suprised the first one lasted 18 months in an aquarium that size, since it was pretty big.