
NEW YORK SHELL CLUB NOTES No. 255 October 1979 Page 5 
COLLECTING MOLLUSKS FOR THE AQUARIA 
Dorothy Raeihle 
In our experience, species living in the intertidal zone or in v 
shallow water have adapted best to our home aquaria; Sheree o 3 ig 
ready established a tolerance to changes in temperature, light, and, 
very often, salinity. This is not to say that species found in 
deeper water would not survive, but it is to caution that their 
needs of a constant coolish temperature and proper degree of aera- 
tion should be considered. 
If you want to get your mollusks home alive and in good shape, start 
caring for them in the field. Please, do NOT use a plastic bag as a 
collecting bag, because they will fall to the bottom and be crowded 
and smothered by the collapsing plastic -- an entirely unnatural 
situation. Do use pails or other wide containers, nonmetal, with 
enough water to easily cover the mollusks; shallow water with a 
large area of surface exposed to the air will permit a natural aer- 
ation. (NEVER use deep water in the pails unless you are using a 
battery-operated air pump such as fishermen use to keep minnows and 
shrimp alive. These small pumps are available in tackle shops.) 
Try to pick up a sample of the mollusks' own station with them: a 
handful of sand with the sand dwellers; a bit of the vegetation on 
which you found the herbivore; a piece of old coral for the rock 
dwellers to find and cling to -- and look for a large chiton or 
limpet sitting on a small stone and take stone and all rather than 
forcing (and injuring) the animal from a too-big rock. Note whether 
they are feeding and if so take samples; if they are not feeding, 
guess. If you determine their natural food it will help you when 
you feed them in captivity. Try not to collect fouling organisms 
along with the things you take as possible food. Later, as you 
transfer the mollusks to other containers with clean water, examine 
the material and discard questionable matter. 
Bringing them home, do your best to accommodate the mollusks with 
shallow water with a large surface area of water exposed to the air 
(three to four times the volume of air to water is a good ratio). 
A great carrier is a tote bag which can accommodate plastic contain- 
ers such as the usually oblong vegetable crispers with snug-fitting 
lids. They are available in various sizes; select them according 
to the size(s) of your mollusks. Containers should be scalded and 
aired before use. Line the tote bag with one big plastic bag, set 
the containers of mollusks in, braced so they won't upset, and ix 
you're travelling by air they will do just fine, hand-carried, for 
the duration of your trip. If you are travelling by car and have to 
be on the road a few days, take along enough clean sea water to be 
able to change the water in the travel aquaria when it seems advis- 
able. If you are carrying "exotics" it. is a good idea to carry an 
air pump, too. A battery pump can be clipped on the top edge of the 
tote bag during the day and/or used when you stop for overnight. 
You will soon be able to judge if the mollusks have been gasping for 
the aeration. 
Need an emergency container? 
seems to happen that when you nee 
a tall olive or mayonnaise jar. 
Glass is, of course, ideal, but it 
d one you find only such shapes as 
Don't give up. Fill the jar about 
