Hippopus porcellanus

Rosewater, 1982

China Clam, Porcelain Clam

Range: Indo-West Pacific Ocean: Indonesia, Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Palau.

Size: 16 inches (40 cm)

Natural Environment: Inhabits shallow coral reef sand flats and grassy areas living on sandy bottoms where they are generally not attached to any firm substrate.

General Husbandry: Extremely rare in the trade.

Similar to H. hippopus and T. derasa, yet has a much thinner and smoother shell, and its inlet siphon is always ringed by tentacles, making it quite different than H. hippopus.

Also filter feeders and almost constantly filter the water for small particulates. Small specimens, < 2 - 3 inches can be fed a phytoplankton or greenwater supplement at least three times per week, which may encourage their growth. Larger specimens will do extremely well without any additional feedings.

So as not to repeat some of the Introduction to this section, review it for more information on their aquarium husbandry.

Taxonomy:

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Mollusca

Class: Bivalvia

Subclass: Heterodonta

Order: Cardiida

Superfamily: Cardioidea

Family: Cardiidae

Subfamily: Tridacinae

Genus: Hippopus

FYI: Overharvested in the wild, where it serves as 'people' food or shell items for souvenir trade.

Experience Level: Intermediate

Diet: Photosynthetic/Omnivore

Temperament: Peaceful

Aquarium Environment: Reef or fish-only aquarium

Coral Safe: Yes

Fish Safe: Yes

Invertebrate Safe: Yes

Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+

Aquarium Hardiness: Moderately hardy

Calcium (Ca): 380 - 430 mg/l

Alkalinity: 2.5 - 3.0 meq/l

Phosphate (PO4): <0.05 mg/l

Magnesium (Mg): approx. 1350 mg/l (relate to specific gravity)

Temperature Range: 72 - 83°F (22 - 28°C)

Minimum Tank Size: 100 gallons

Lighting: PAR 300 - 500+

Water Movement: WM 1 - 2

Specific Gravity: 1.023 - 1.025

pH: 8.0 - 8.4

Iodine/Trace Elements Monitor/as necessary to maintain quality seawater.