# Asian Gold Clams?



## Earthsiege

Evening everyone!

Does anyone here have any experience with asian gold clams? I'm curious as I just received some from a friend and was wondering if anyone knows anything about them.

Thanks!


----------



## bmlbytes

If you are asking what clams eat, or how to take care of them I can explain a little. 

Clams prefer a sand substrate because they will bury themselves in it.
Clams have no brain, so they don't do anything.
Clams are filter feeders. This means that they take the water around them, and filter out stuff that can support them. This also means you need to keep a slightly dirty tank.
Clams are very sensitive to ammonia and nitrite. So you need to keep a slightly dirty tank without ammonia spikes. 

It is difficult to keep a clam long term in captivity, but if you have a well established tank, and you think you can handle them, then they are an interesting piece to your aquarium. Just don't expect them to do much.


----------



## maykaym4

I am a little late on this one, but figured I would give my input....

I have about 10 of these guys in my tank, ranging from the size of a pinky nail to a half dollar. They don't really need much, but keeping the water somewhat clean is a good idea. They are filter feeders, so your water can't be crystal clean all the time, but they are very sensitive to ammonia/nitrite, as bmlbytes mentioned. Also, they will do much better with a sand substrate than gravel, since they like to bury themselves. However, if your gravel is on the smaller side, they can still usually manage to bury themselves. 

They are very hardy and it is my understanding that they are very adaptable to most freshwater conditions, just as long as it isn't changed too quickly. 

I think they are pretty cool. Most of mine stay buried most of the time with their siphons sticking up from the sand, but every now and then they will pop up. It's pretty cool to watch them move around when they do. 

Good luck!


----------



## Corwin

If you want to keep clams I have read that they can cause dangerous toxic spikes in your tank when they die, due to them being filters and releasing toxins after they die. Not saying dont get them, just saying to keep a good eye on them when you do.

a bit off topic; so wait, if they have no brain, doesnt that mean they are essentialy plants made out of meat?


----------



## Guest

jelly fish as well are brainless (literally speaking). just cos they are brainless doesnt make them plants made out of meat. these things have intelligence that a plant could never display.


----------



## Corwin

alright. I knew that there are other things as well which sets them apart from flora, intelligence being one of them, though we still dont know exactly how intelligent some plants are (no i'm not insinuating that they are on the level we are or even near, but some tests show that some plants may have an awareness at least on level with some of the more basic animals out there).

Back on topic. I have a small tank in which I would like to keep snails, and clams, I intend to give it a sand bottom, will I need a special filter with this sort of bottom? due to a regular filter being clogged with sand particles?


----------



## Guest

why would sand clog up the filter unless ur aiming ur inlet tube/valve right at the subtrate? also are u plannin on getting live plants? if so just plain sand wont cut it.


----------



## Corwin

I very well may wind up picking up some plants for it so what should I add to the sand in order to help them thrive. As for the filter question, I was under the belief that sand bottom tanks are hard on filters (I had been told this by other people in the past) but if your saying that its ok then I wont worry about it.


----------



## Guest

if you wanna grow live plants and are on a tight budget get ur self some Laterite Soil. it the deep red color soil that u will find sold at plant stores. make sure that the mud has no added fertilizers. spread this over the base of ur tank till u reach a height of almost an inch. top this off with some fine river sand. make sure that ur sand is free of large piece of stones and gunk and is well washed down.

gently let the water seep into the tank so that u dont uspet the subtrate. i have used a plastic pipe on which i let the water gently seep on till it hits the bottom. let the water fill 1/4th the way up and add your plants to it and let this sit for a day till the cloudiness clears up. by day 2 can add more water till the desired level and add ur snails to the tank.


----------



## Corwin

thank you  your advice was obviously needed, and i'll have to take the steps with the tank that you stated


----------



## chocolatecrunch

Earthsiege said:


> Evening everyone!
> 
> Does anyone here have any experience with asian gold clams? I'm curious as I just received some from a friend and was wondering if anyone knows anything about them.
> 
> Thanks!


I'm sorry that I don't know much about them. All I know is they go great with lobster and butter


----------

