Excavating mussel?

SimonL · 09/14/2002, 06:59 PM

Hey everybody.
I am new to the reefkeeping hobby. I was not expecting the diversity of life that shows up on live rock!
I was pleasently surprised last month to find some kind of boring mussel in a piece of newly bought Fiji rock. It is about 3.5 inches long, with an extremely thin, dark brow shell. It appears to have dug a .75 inch wide, 5 inch long tunnel straight into the rock. The inside is extremely smooth. I know this because the mussel fell (crawled?) out the first night. I placed it back in the hole where it has been living since. It moves perhaps an inch out of the hole when it opens up (to feed?breathe?).

Anyway, I was wondering how to care for it. I have been squirting brine shrimp mush at it when it is open, about once a week. Trace elements and calcium are added to the water. Anything else I should be doing?

Thanx

Turtlesteve · 09/15/2002, 09:59 AM

No idea what it is without a pic, but brine shrimp won't do any good. Mussels (as well as all bivalves, as far as i know) are filter-feeders. It won't eat the brine shrimp, they are too large. They eat mostly plankton. Feeding it DT's would probably help, though.

steve

09/14/2002, 06:59 PM	#1
SimonL Registered Member Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Toronto, Canada Posts: 12	Excavating mussel? Hey everybody. I am new to the reefkeeping hobby. I was not expecting the diversity of life that shows up on live rock! I was pleasently surprised last month to find some kind of boring mussel in a piece of newly bought Fiji rock. It is about 3.5 inches long, with an extremely thin, dark brow shell. It appears to have dug a .75 inch wide, 5 inch long tunnel straight into the rock. The inside is extremely smooth. I know this because the mussel fell (crawled?) out the first night. I placed it back in the hole where it has been living since. It moves perhaps an inch out of the hole when it opens up (to feed?breathe?). Anyway, I was wondering how to care for it. I have been squirting brine shrimp mush at it when it is open, about once a week. Trace elements and calcium are added to the water. Anything else I should be doing? Thanx

09/15/2002, 09:59 AM	#2
Turtlesteve Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Upstate South Carolina Posts: 478	No idea what it is without a pic, but brine shrimp won't do any good. Mussels (as well as all bivalves, as far as i know) are filter-feeders. It won't eat the brine shrimp, they are too large. They eat mostly plankton. Feeding it DT's would probably help, though. steve