New babies

[trido]

Two new clams

This first is just a baby maxima. I just can't get the colors to come through. Or the focus. Its going to be green and gold.

This is one of the crocea maxima hybrids that are new on the market. IMO it has the shell of a maxima, color of a maxima and mantle of a crocea. Depending on where you look at it it has two distinctive colors. Metallic gold from the top and blue from the side.

When I get our new SLR camera next week Ill try to capture these colors a little better.

 

[danno14]

Nice

 

[Red C Aquarium]

Nice clam D!

 

[chris&barb]

Trido, dont get me wrong they are both nice clams but the hybrid thing is a marketing ploy. The second clam being sold as a hybrid is a cultured crocea. In the US we rarely see cultured croceas, only wild collected croceas. Wild collected dont have scutes because they are embedded in the reef. When they are cultured they cant do this. I talk more about this here http://www.reefaquariumforum.com/the-debunking-of-the-hybrid-clam-maxea-t4183.html

 

[skinz78]

Very nice looking Maxima, and that is a beautiful Crocea. Yep there is no such thing as a Maxea. A clam that is being called a Maxea is a clam that used to be culled out by most clam farms. Now they have this new sales gimmic and selling these clams that used to be released back into the reefs to meet thier given quota of restocking.

Ya see it go's like this.

Us Americans have demanded either blue or green Crocea's for so long that the clam farms just culled anything but blue or green. Now one clam farm has given these clams this faux name and have been marking them up tremendously, any smart buisnessman does this if they can.

If they could have crossbread they would have done it thousands of years ago in the oceans reefs. Farms have tried to crossbreed clams and always failed. This particular farm is saying that there was a few Maximas in the same tank as all the Crocea's that they breed and since this happened they must be hybrids.

There has been arguement that since it has scutes that it must be a hybrid. Not true, Crocea's are rock burrowing clams. In doing so they break thier scutes off. Now a clam that has been grown in a concrete raceway and hasn't had the chance to burrow is gonna keep it's scutes.

Until I see scientific proof that there is such a thing as a Maxea hybrid then it is just fiction to me.

Now I am not slamming these clams, I personally would take one of them over 100 blue or green Crocea's, blue and green just doesn't do it for me personally. Did you buy it local, I too would love to get one?

If you wish you can read up on it more in this thread.

 

[skinz78]

Blast you Chris&barb, you beat me to it...........

 

[skinz78]

FWIW this is a Crocea that I had that had very similar markings to yours just a little different shade of color.

 

[Barry N.]

Here are a few nice croceas.

 

[trido]

Thank you both for the insight.
I picked the clams up at Barrier Reef.
Do either of you think the crocea will be happy long term on my sand bed next to the maxima?

 

[Barry N.]

In nature, Tridacna crocea and maxima are rock dewelling creature where Tradanca derasa, squamosa and gigas are found on the substate. I have kept crocea and larger maxima on the substrate but normally place a flat rock or something just under the sand so that they can attach and not keep digging till the hit the tank bottom. Doing that, it is easier to move them if you decide to where if they attach to the tank bottom, it can be tricky to move them but can be done if you take your time.

 

[trido]

In nature, Tridacna crocea and maxima are rock dewelling creature where Tradanca derasa, squamosa and gigas are found on the substate. I have kept crocea and larger maxima on the substrate but normally place a flat rock or something just under the sand so that they can attach and not keep digging till the hit the tank bottom. Doing that, it is easier to move them if you decide to where if they attach to the tank bottom, it can be tricky to move them but can be done if you take your time.

Thanks, Ill get something under them both today then

 

[NC2WA]

but the hybrid thing is a marketing ploy

when I think marketing ploy, I think "new fad"on the block equates to high prices..

my .02

 

[ibionika]

Congrats :beer:

DO you have any pics of the parents and babies? I"ve never seen the gold variety before