clams remove nitrates?

[ick sucks]

does anyone know if clams remove toxic compounds from the water? i heard they remove ammonia,nitrates,nitrates. how do they do this? and what about having 10 or so for nutrient removal?

thx for any advice

[ick sucks]

Well since nobody wants to reply I will tell you what I learned. Yes they do remove all of the above. They use them to photosythesis food to grow. This is why they require light. In my opinion they would not be as effective as some macroalgae buy they still contribute.

[scubadude]

hey ick sucks

I think the reason why some havent replied is because there are a couple of threads already hitting this topic, heres one with a link to another in it.

Clams- Nitrate Control????

HTH

[kevinpo]

Hello,
Wow that was a long time for a reply!

Tridacnid clams (if those are the ones you were inquiring about) are quite good at absorption of dissolved organic and inorganic compounds from the water column. This process is separate from the harboring of symbiotic algae however but is used to feed and increase the numbers of zooxanthellae if needed by the calm to meet its nutritional requirements.
Here is a link to one of the studies conducted.
http://www.undip.ac.id/journal/June1999/435_441.htm
At the end of the article there are other studies for more information. A search using their titles will uncover a wealth of information. Most of the studies are available on the Internet.

This link is to a study done using clams as the only filtration for a fish tank.
http://www.spc.org.nc/coastfish/News...rochus8-07.htm

Regards,
Kevin