# Freshwater clams?



## m4gichat (May 22, 2012)

I've been hearing from a few different places that freshwater clams are very good for aquariums. They basically filter out the water and don't disturb the fish. Is this true? Are they useful to have? Alright thank you.


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## benderisawesome (Sep 10, 2008)

They will filter phytoplankton out of the water column, as well as bacteria etc. But I wouldn't necessarily say that they are good, or bad. You are correct, they shouldn't disturb the fish. They're interesting. Hope this helps.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

been searching for info on freshwater clams myself, ... 
i'm running into a lot of hearsay, one person repeating what another person said over and over.
seems very few are actually talking about them (especially their care) in all but the most general and abstract way.

there is much confusion and misinformation separating the requirements and differences between the freshwater clam vs muscle. the latter has a parasitic larval stage it sounds like, but even there, i'm finding very little talking about them.

there's plenty of concerns about them dying in the substrate, and the stink, rot and related ammonia spike that would result, ... just a guess, only a guess, Malaysian trumpet snails would root the dead clam out and eat the remains (they sure did work on a neon tetra that didn't make it when i moved residence, ... a few hours and there was nothing remaining)

what i've heard about quality of water has left me skeptical about trusting what i've heard. the water must be clean, but it needs particles and critters (including water born bacteria) so it doesn't starve. ... so does it have to be clean or does it need stuff in the water ???

i don't know if freshwater clams are a bad idea for a lot of reasons not talked about or understood, or if they are not popular because they're new, or if they're not understood because not enough people are taking a serious interest in their care and maintenance (catch 22)

but i would adamantly believe they are definitely peaceful to everything else in the aquarium. a water filter - yes, but would one handle a 10 gallone, or a 30 gallon or a 50 gallon ?, dono. would 10 be good in a 30 gallon, or more clams in a 30 gallon.

how much do they eat ?
only reliable info i've come across requires hands on, ... find your clams, are they growing (provided they are not full grown). if they're growing they're getting enough to eat, if not, they may be starving. if they're starving it could take months before they finally die.

i've considered their use in my own tank, i've found the dealer my local fish store uses 'The Little Fish Company' they have common names only of the fish, plants, inverts and other they have available.

i've sent a request asking them to include the latin, because the first snail i look at "devils thorn snail" i can not find any info on the net about them. got a reply back, (great), asking what particular species i want to know the latin for. ... honest answer "everything!", that was a few days ago.

how to care for freshwater clams, ... after searching, and giving up, and searching again, searching more, i've still got nothing. 

well i found temperatures (20-22 celsius), i guess that's something.


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## miremonster (Mar 26, 2006)

I suspect that the claims that freshwater bivalves (clams and mussels) are very good for aquariums are mostly driven by the interest to sell them... it would be good to find reliable reports about long-term keeping of the different species.


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## Aquasapien69 (Dec 4, 2012)

Hi Guys, 

I work with freshwater bivalves for a living, so if you have questions, I'll do my best to answer them. 

Here's a couple of things for ya. 

As you know common names don't mean squat generally when it comes to buying plants and critters. One critter can go by a plethora of names. Personally, I've mostly seen "Golden Clams" for sale in the aquarium trade. These are Asian clams or more specifically Corbicula species.....generally most often Corbicula fluminea. In the U.S. they are an invasive species. Came into the west coast in the 1800s and are basically everywhere in the U.S. now. These "clams"...which are indeed true clams.....will burrow into your substrate very quickly and seldom be seen. I have a girlfriend with goldfish and have had one Corbicula in there for a number of months and it seems to be doing fine. She thinks it's cute. We have a very thin layer of gravel in that tank, so the clam really can't burrow and thus can be seen fairly easily and watched. From her stand point....she loves seeing it move about from time to time and thinks it's happy when she sees it siphoning away. 

Scientifically and my personal experiences..... Corbicula are known to inhabit some pretty nasty waters as well as quite beautiful and clean waters. When diving rivers in the midwest to perform faunal surveys, generally you will see a ton of dead shells on the surface and in the substrate which tells you they are there and if you dig a little in the gravels you will turn over dozens, hundreds and sometimes thousands. The little buggers are just everywhere in general. There are also hundreds of reports each year of corbicula "die-offs", whereby hundreds of thousands just up and die all about the same time. It is a yearly event in some waters. 

In my aquaria......which are all moderately planted shrimp tanks..... I personally have a passion for our native freshwater mussels ("unionids" to be more specific.....which are neither clams nor mussels technically) and thought a few corbicula would be fun in my aquarium. Usually only their little siphons (in-current and ex-current) are showing in the wild, but I thought that would still be ok and interesting. I have colleagues that toss a few in their kids fish tanks and they seem to do fine, but they have the "typical" layman's tanks that seldom get a water change, get overfed once in a while and are ignored most of the time. However, my aquaria....and most people's on these types of forums......are too "clean" to readily support a population or even a couple filter feeding bivalves. Mine all eventually died and I DO indeed feel the death of mine did cause ammonia problems in my tank.....they die buried and you don't know they are dead. The shell still stays fairly tightly shut because the gravel around it keeps it shut. Then the thing just rots inside and slowly releases it's rotten soft parts. It was just a small Fluval Edge and I had placed 15 or so small specimens in there. Different resource agencies around the U.S. are doing their best to culture our endangered freshwater mussels (again....unionids), which do indeed require an intermediate host to reproduce (generally a fish), and supplying food is one of the major hurtles in these facilities. These facilities grow various species of free-floating algae such as Chlorela sp. and some of the most recent research has indicated these critters get a lot of their nutrition from in-situ bacteria.

SOOooo....... IMHO...... they really aren't worth the risk or money if you are purchasing them. They stay buried all the time and, at least in my case, die fairly easily. After mine died, I searched the forums and found quite a few others that had the same experience as myself. But like I eluded to earlier......fisheries and other aquatic biologists consider them to be cockroaches of our inland waters and generally can live in nasty waters when most native species can not. 

Again, these are filter feeders. Generally, they filter out free floating algae and other microorganisms from the water column to get their food. They do eat some of the bacteria and other organisms that are found in the gravel, but in the wild that is most often the case when you have water that percolates or flows through the gravel. This brings O2 and food to them on a regular basis. 

I hope this helps a little. I tried to speak in layman's terms so as not to bore you, but at the same time give you a bit more in depth info than you probably have found in the forums. I went back and added a bit here and there and realize it doesn't flow well, so please overlook for me this time. 

Again, feel free to ask more questions. If I don't know the answer, I'll tell you straight up I don't or I'll research it to find you the answer.

Take care, 

Brent


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## Aquasapien69 (Dec 4, 2012)

Just found these links if it helps any. Found them in a little older thread on this forum. Did a search. I have not tried anything in here, but this person seems to have luck with "clams" and her methods. Good luck!

http://isadorapandora.hubpages.com/hub/Introduction-Keeping-Clams-In-Aquariums#img_url_2524730

http://isadorapandora.hubpages.com/hub/Freshwater-Clam-Food


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

so they're fine in an overfed tank ? not that i want to keep a tank overfed for the sake of clams i do not currently have, but tends to reaffirm my initial hesitation to get them.

or turn the water filter off ?


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## Aquasapien69 (Dec 4, 2012)

All i can say is use your better judgment. Depends on number of clams and the size of your tank.....etc, etc. Not sure if your filter is your only source of oxygen as well as water movement. Must consider that. I know it sounds like a cop out, but even with shrimp and fish....one person can copy another persons parameters "exactly" and still not have good success while the other guy has more offspring than he can house. Me.....i probably won't try them again in aquaria.....but i watch them a lot in the wild and get my fix there. 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

from the lady who put the articles you posted links for, ... sounds like the clams as "low maintenance" to keep alive are more maintenance to feed than most fish.

not that it's a lot, but does require a lot more attention to do it right.


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## Aquasapien69 (Dec 4, 2012)

I would completely agree with that. Its a balancing act in aquaria.....not enough food....too much food. I'll stick with shrimp! 


.....and then there is Joe Schmoe that doesn't care if the clams live or die.....they live happily in his neglected tank for years! Lol 

Sorry i couldn't be more help

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

aquasapien, with the distinct lack of knowledge about freshwater clams in the aquarium, you covered everything and them some.

they don't open up in the sand, the weight of the sand keeps them closed, ... plain and obvious, yet didn't think about that, ... and that had been mentioned to me time and time again.

as mentioned in your links, she described them as "filter feeders", quite different from how the aquarium community shortens it to "filterers" and equates that to everything our power filters do ... particles and toxins. one of those important times there is a distinction.


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## Aquasapien69 (Dec 4, 2012)

Flear said:


> aquasapien, with the distinct lack of knowledge about freshwater clams in the aquarium, you covered everything and them some.
> 
> they don't open up in the sand, the weight of the sand keeps them closed, ... plain and obvious, yet didn't think about that, ... and that had been mentioned to me time and time again.
> 
> as mentioned in your links, she described them as "filter feeders", quite different from how the aquarium community shortens it to "filterers" and equates that to everything our power filters do ... particles and toxins. one of those important times there is a distinction.


Thanks Flear. I am so happy that I may have finally given back a little. I hope I can do a lot more.

I'll do my best to read the non-food making article myself this week. I spent most of my weekend reading about shrimp instead of getting other things done around the house! ;D

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

ya, i know what that's like, ... not so much shrimp myself, but sand beds, freshwater plankton (some silly reason they refuse to call it "plankton" so i have to search each individual type 

want to spend time writing a novel, learning psychology, spiritual disciplines, ... and the aquarium wins


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## yellowcrx1 (Jan 22, 2013)

does anyone have any fresh water clams for sale?


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## rastoma (Sep 22, 2012)

They do not create sparkling clear water.

There's rarely enough for them to eat in an aquarium that is properly maintained with vacuuming and water changes so it's cruel to have so little food that they barely hang on for a few months and then die of starvation.

They are nothing more than a gimmick (for use in a home aquarium that is).


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## rastoma (Sep 22, 2012)

They do not create sparkling clear water. They may assist your other filtering device(s) SLIGHTLY, but not enough that it's going to be a marked difference.

There's rarely enough for them to eat in an aquarium that is properly maintained with vacuuming and water changes so it's cruel to have so little food that they barely hang on for a few months and then die of starvation.

They are nothing more than a gimmick (for use in a home aquarium that is).


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

so how 'unmaintained' can a tank be to support a happy clam ?

from one report somewhere it looks like a greenwater algae bloom will feed a clam, ... but for how long, will the clam filter that out of the water or just have phytoplankton to eat ?


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## Ghost shrimp (Oct 27, 2012)

Not sure on the "unmaintaince" part but from what I've heard is that you really never see them intill they die and cause a really bad ammonia spike.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

getting things together to setup a new tank, ... want to use glassbead sandblasting media, ... if a clam dies i'll be able to find it easily.


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## Ghost shrimp (Oct 27, 2012)

Alright sounds good and it would be able to feed it better then if you used Gravel, Eco-complete.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

information on the net about taking care of clams is, ... this thread covers almost all the info i've ever come across on the net about clam care in aquariums, ... that's really sad


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

there may be a dozen different freshwater clam available, but i think most are only aware of one or two. as i've been on the hunt for any information about there care at all, i haven't looked into species specific requirements.

the more specific info about feeding i've come across sounds geared to feeding a tank just for clams with a blender-mix diet using a tank with either individual holders to keep the clams from buriying themselves into any sand, or just enough sand they can move 1/2"

Edit:
LFSs dealer has access to 4 types
-emerald
-sanpam
-gold betta
-gold filtering

no idea what there scientific names are yet


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## gundaman (Feb 24, 2013)

never heard of people keeping freahwater ones, just in saltwater.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

i couldn't find much consistant info on saltwater clams either


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## JawaSnack (Dec 6, 2010)

Just to throw my two cents in, I can't say if the fw clams I've had at different times have made any noticeable difference in my aquariums. But, I always thought they were cool even if you don't get to see them very much and they never seemed to live longer than 6 months or so.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

i've heard "clean water" but no explaination on what that means, ... just low ammonia/nitrites/nitrates ???
i've heard conflicting info on if they reduce nitrates or not on their own, some say yes, some say no.
i've heard they do better in a tank that is not maintained, ... so they live longer if you're lazy about your tank.

so long as your clams are getting larger then you have nothing to worry about, 

yup, and have heard while they're called 'filter feeders' it's not like you can put them in your tank and get rid of your water filter.


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

but i might try that actually.

my aquarium is almost the laziest i could imagine, i do almost zero maintenance, (i top up water and add food), maybe this is what's needed, add a few clams & ditch the water filter


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

jawa, they should be living years, yours were starving would be my guess


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## Flear (Sep 29, 2012)

http://www.dtplankton.com/articles/necessity.html

while based for marine clams, the info is still rather universal

if you want clams, get your tank going with greenwater first.


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