Rod's original food enough for a clam?

[Magik]

Hey guys,

I have a small, <2" Maxima clam, got it about a month ago. It gets about 450 PAR and seems happy. I feed heavy, on average every day, often Rod's original food. It supposed to have particles of all sizes. Would be enough for a clam? Or do I need to supplement feed it? If so with what? Phyto? What brand?

My tank conditions are very stable, ATO, dosing, chiller. Calcium completely stable, pH changes 0.3 per day, temp. no more than 1.5F, working on stabilizing All, currently in 8-10 dKH range.

-Magik

[MondoBongo]

i wouldn't worry about supplemental feeding for clams.

with the exception of T. gigas, the other tridacnas don't get a significant portion of their carbon from filter feeding. unless you're running an ultra low nutrient system, the extra food from feeding your fish combined with fish poo and other things that naturally occur in the tank should be more than fine.

just make sure it's getting enough light, cal and alk are stable, and that it's not getting harassed and it should do just fine.

[Magik]

Originally Posted by MondoBongo

i wouldn't worry about supplemental feeding for clams.

with the exception of T. gigas, the other tridacnas don't get a significant portion of their carbon from filter feeding. unless you're running an ultra low nutrient system, the extra food from feeding your fish combined with fish poo and other things that naturally occur in the tank should be more than fine.

just make sure it's getting enough light, cal and alk are stable, and that it's not getting harassed and it should do just fine.

Thank you very much for your answer. My tank is heavily stocked and I feed heavy, I am not trying to run an ULNS, although my nitrate typically are at 0.75ppm and P04 at 0.06-0.12, trying to get nitrate a bit higher, to 1-2 ppm.

It seems to me that my clam is doing great, I have a peaceful community tank and no whelk, nothing is harassing it. Everybody was telling me I have to feed it though, especially a tiny one, so I get a bit worried.

BTW, can clam also use aminos and such?

[MondoBongo]

my understanding is that clams will adsorb most of the NPK kind of nutrients they need directly from the water. i'm not sure about amino acids specifically (i've always questioned the need for those products myself), but i haven't really seen anything convincing one way or another.

what i can tell you is that i have kept two clams for about 5 or 6 years now with no supplemental dosing aimed at the them. my crocea was larger when i got it, but my derasa was about 2.5" - 3"" or so when he came in to my possession.

i don't think it would hurt though. i would just keep doing what you're doing, and keep tabs on its health. if anything seems to be changing like shell growth, etc, then maybe look at changing something up, but otherwise i would stay the course.

[Magik]

Originally Posted by MondoBongo

my understanding is that clams will adsorb most of the NPK kind of nutrients they need directly from the water. i'm not sure about amino acids specifically (i've always questioned the need for those products myself), but i haven't really seen anything convincing one way or another.

what i can tell you is that i have kept two clams for about 5 or 6 years now with no supplemental dosing aimed at the them. my crocea was larger when i got it, but my derasa was about 2.5" - 3"" or so when he came in to my possession.

i don't think it would hurt though. i would just keep doing what you're doing, and keep tabs on its health. if anything seems to be changing like shell growth, etc, then maybe look at changing something up, but otherwise i would stay the course.

Thanks, that is exactly what I am doing, keeping an eye on my clam. So far it shows obvious growth (white stripe at the edge), good coloration and reacts to movement. I started also supplementing with Reef Energy A & B, although not sure if that is relevant for a clam.