Posted by Dana Lapsley on March 12, 2005

Q: Will a saltwater clam eat fish food if not what do I feed it.

P.S. I don't have algi.

A: Clams, both freshwater and saltwater, are filter feeders and obtain their food by screening bits of food from the water. Your fish food will not be possible for them to eat unless it were in tiny bits floating in the water column. But, food floating in the water like that will simply foul your tank.

I know what I'd try if I needed to feed a clam. I'd take the clam out of the tank and place it in a smaller tank and then crush some food into a jar, mix it well with saltwater then pour into the clam's tank. This will allow the clam to feed on this food but again, it will definitely foul the water so you'll need to take the animal out after, oh, say 4-6 hours, and dispose of the water. This sounds like a lot of work but it will keep your main tank clean and the clam "may?" get some food out of this procedure. You don't have to do this daily - maybe once a week. If you can place some saltwater in a jar and set it on the windowsill so it can get plenty of light, you should quickly get some green water (lots of algae growing there). You could then feed that to your clam in a separate tank. If you do this, you can let the clam filter the water until all of the green color is gone. My best to you.

John Wiessinger ( March 13, 2005)