New clam owner, looking for advice

[rdmpe]

I have a crocea that is approx. 2.5". It is an ORA aquacultured clam http://www.orafarm.com/clams.html

Right now it is on my sandbed. It has 19" of water above it, and 6.5" of airspace to the bottom of the fixture. It is halfway between two 250W 14K MH lamps (Maristar fixture).

Here's an overall picture:

http://www.randysreef.com/images/180/180-653.jpg


Originally I was thinking it would be able to stay in the sandbed. But it seems like it may be really stretching out to get light. What do you think? Here are some pictures of it when I thought it seemed like it was stretching out needing more light. Does it look OK or does it need to be moved up onto the rocks?

http://www.randysreef.com/images/180/180-643.jpg

http://www.randysreef.com/images/180/180-645.jpg

http://www.randysreef.com/images/180/180-646.jpg

http://www.randysreef.com/images/180/180-648.jpg

[starseed]

I think most people will say to place it high on the rocks like they are in nature. Also, I think they perfer being on rock so they can attach and move/adjust to the light/angle they like best.

[Fridmani]

It looks fine to me. I have mine on the sand bed with no problems. I'm running 250 DE bulbs around 28" high.

[mbbuna]

the mantle extension looks fine to me, but if you were to slowly(over the next month or so)move it up in the rocks the color should intensify nicely

[rdmpe]

If I move it up onto the rocks, how fast will it attach? I'm concerned that it will attach at some intermediate location that is not high enough and I will not be able to move it to where I ultimatly want it.

Thanks for the help!

[mbbuna]

place a small flat rock under it now for it to attach to, then move both up.

[rdmpe]

Thanks for the advice. Last night I got a small flat rock and placed it in the sand under the clam. The rock is slightly buried so that the clam is resting on the rock but has sand all around it to support it until it is attached to the rock.

What is a typical time frame for the clam to attach to the rock?

[mbbuna]

it could take a day or a few weeks

[Fridmani]

I've tried the clam on the rock thing and they will attach in due time, however, it does not mean they will stay attached. I've had them attach for months to have them only detach later on. In the long run, my best advice is to just find a spot for them and leave them alone. The more time you spend trying to make them do what you want them to do, the bigger the chance they just bite the dust.

With your lighting, you should have no problem keeping them on the sand for a very long time. If you look at alot of pictures of established reef tanks, you'll notice that most people keep their Croceas on the bottom. They all seem to be thriving.

[spoiledcats]

It can attach very quickly if it wants to. Ours took about 30 min. to attach, however it detached cause it didn't like the location. We moved it up gradually, and now it seems to like where it's at (close to the top of the tank) because it has grown about 1/4" in approximately 3-4 months. Still, the mantle extends quite a bit-I think crocea's extend their mantles further than other clams like the maxima.