electric red flame scallop (not really sure what it is)

[SomeHairyOldGuy]

Hey all! Hope everyone and their tanks are doing well. Today my mom came by my house and she had one of these in her hand and said it was so neat she just had to buy it for me. All I know is it is a Scallop. Has a white shell, red tenticals red mouth and spits electric sparks off its lips! (looks pretty killer actually) Can't wait to see what it does at night with the lights off.
What I want to know is how to care for this thing. What does it eat? What type of lighting does it require? I know it will move to a place thats good for it for lighting just want to make sure the VHO I have is enough. Are they good in a reef tank? Any comments would be great.
Thanks!
SHOG

[Reefland]

SHOG,

Electric Flame Scallops is what they are typically called. Unfortunately, your scallop will probably only last in captivity for a couple of months and that is with heavy feedings. They require large amounts plankton to feed from, much more than our captive systems provide. To do your best with it, feedings of DT's phytoplankton are probably in order but be careful how much you dose as to not pollute your tank.

Scott Z.

[Ninong]

Unfortunately Scott is right on this one. Flame scallops (Lima scabra) are strictly filter feeders and they usually do not last very long in home aquaria. They do not have zooxanthellae, so lighting is unimportant to them. I would not subject it to bright lighting.

These molluscs are collected because they are easy to collect, they are colorful and people pay money for them. That's about it. They should probably be left alone.

[SomeHairyOldGuy]

This sucks...
I will be sure to ask him about them this next week when I stop in to get some phyto. I might ask him if I can bring him back and get some snails or something. But then I have to worry about making mom upset. (shes just weird like that) Surely she'll understand. Well then again, if he is most likely going to d-- anyway it might as well be in my tank. Atleast I know the tank can handle it.
SHOG

[Reefland]

With some good feedings (might even try a cap) you might be able to keep it alive for a couple of months.

[mike007]

With some good feedings (might even try a cap) you might be able to keep it alive for a couple of months.

Wats a cap? lol

[rluix]

Wats a cap? lol

Im preaty sure a cap is this:
But Why would a scallop need one?

[Parrothead]

Im preaty sure a cap is this: Attachment 13419
But Why would a scallop need one?

I believe what they are referring to, is a feeding cap, e.g. a 2L bottle cut in half, place over the difficult creature to feed and squirt food into the neck of the bottle, thus trapping the food for the creature to eat without be bothered by other inhabitants

[Doodaa]

I believe what they are referring to, is a feeding cap, e.g. a 2L bottle cut in half, place over the difficult creature to feed and squirt food into the neck of the bottle, thus trapping the food for the creature to eat without be bothered by other inhabitants

I believe that too...wonder if Reefland can remember over 5 1/2 years ago

[mike007]

I believe what they are referring to, is a feeding cap, e.g. a 2L bottle cut in half, place over the difficult creature to feed and squirt food into the neck of the bottle, thus trapping the food for the creature to eat without be bothered by other inhabitants

Ahhh... I knew about that but i just never knew what it was called. lol

Oh and sorry about bringing the thread back from beyond the grave. I Never look at dates! lol

Thanks Parrot

[yvr]

You can try to increase the scallop's life in your tank by feeding it a diverse diet. Although I have never kept a flame scallop, I do have many non photosynthetic gorgonians and carnation corals in my tank, all of which I have had for at least 4 years. I keep my corals well fed and feed 3 times per week alternating with live baby brine shrimp, frozen cyclops, Tropic Marin Pro-Coral Phyton and TM Pro-Coral Zooton. TM phyton is a photo plankton like product and Zooton is a zooplankton like food product for corals. Good luck with the scallop.

[zhenya]

Amounf of food needed for this scalop to survive would turn your tank into a toxic waste dump. These animals should be left in the ocean where they belong. On top of the amount of food needed they need tremendous amount of laminar water flow to have this food delivered to them.

[Ninong]

I agree with zhenya that it would be virtually impossible to keep a "flame scallop" long-term in a home aquarium. They're filter feeders and I don't think we know much about their nutrition requirements. Like all file clams (they're not really scallops, that's just their common name), they feed continuously. I think they might have a better chance of survival in a really large public aquarium like Joe Yaiullo's Atlantis Marine World, but that's just speculation.

If anyone comes across anything in the literature that covers their nutrition requirements, please post a link.

Thanks!

P.S. -- I just noticed that this thread is almost six years old.