Did I just hurt/kill my clam?

[JayM]

Picked up a pretty 4" maxima about 2 weeks ago, it has been doing well in my tank. Tonight, while re-aquascaping to make space for my booty from Gustavo's, I had a rock slide, and the clam was torn from it's mooring (byssal filaments all tore off)

Is there anything that can be done? The clam retracted after it's fall, but when it was placed back in the rockwork,it opened within 60 seconds, and SEEMS fine. Will a (hopefully) healthy clam generate new byssal filaments and re-attach itself?

Any way to help it?

BTW, double checked, no predatory snails or jelly sacks of snail eggs while I was there

Hope it will be OK.

 

[willray]

It might not be able to create filaments anymore but should be fine.

 

[wrassefan]

I would put a rock under the sand and put the clam on top of it.....if it reattaches, then you know your okay and can move the clam around....otherwise, I would just leave it on the sandbed

 

[JayM]

The sandbed is an issue....due to a lack of real estate, and also wondering if there is enough PAR down there. It's in my rockwork, pretty high in the water column right now.....and in the sweet spot of my light

 

[Scott]

If you want him to heal and attach to a rock you can later move, how about a temporary sandbed in a shallow plastic dish with a rock under him. You can put the dish up on top of the rocks.

It'll be ugly, maybe impractical, but I thought I'd mention it.

 

[wrassefan]

depends on the light you have....I've always kept clams on the sand (maximas and croceas) under 250 SE...I would still move the clam onto the sand until you know the condition of the foot

 

[penguinsix]

As long as the byssal gland was not torn out of the clam then the clam should survive, if it was torn out it may not make it. It is one of those things that only time will tell. Unless you can see the byssal gland still attached to the byssal threads that are attached to the rock.

 

[JayM]

The gland on the clam underside looked pretty OK.

Also, I was pretty sure I saw a new byssal thread attached to the rock this morning....but I was looking by flashlight, and by the time I get home tonight, the lights will be off (after 11PM).

I will get a look Friday night, but the new thread (if that's what it was) is hopefully a good sign.