TGA Pink cockle - Cristaria tenuis

The pretty pink cockle (Cristaria tenuis, synonym: Cristaria discoidea) is a river dweller from East and Southeast Asia. It is a popular edible mussel and is also used for freshwater pearl production. In its native country it has a very large distribution area. Its shell is of a shimmering pink color, which is revealed by manually abrading the actually green periostracum. Because of the missing protective layer, this mussel must not be kept in acidic water with a pH below 7.5 to avoid damage to the shell!

The pink cockle becomes quite stately with up to 12 cm shell size. Therefore it should get an aquarium of at least 80 cm length. Here you can also keep several animals. With good care Cristaria tenuis is a quite persistent mussel, which has proven to be relatively robust in the aquarium. It likes medium hard to hard water and a pH above 7.5. The temperature for the tropical mussel should be 22 to 28 °C.

Cristaria tenuis is often separately sexed, but sometimes hermaphroditic. The sexes cannot be distinguished without close examination of the inside of the mussel (which would kill it). Their larvae settle into the gills of carp-like fish, where they grow. Therefore, reproduction is very unlikely in the aquarium.

The pink cockle likes a decent current and a not overly clean aquarium with sandy bottom or fine gravel as substrate. Since it likes to burrow all the way in, it must be of sufficient thickness.

Since mussels are filter feed ers, the pink cockle must also be fed 1 to 2x daily with special mussel food . Please switch off the filter during feeding and leave it switched off for about half an hour afterwards. For filterless aquariums the Pink Cockle is also suitable, but then it needs a flow pump. When filtering, the shell opens a tiny gap wide to allow the mussel to extend its funnel-shaped siphon to suck in water. Feeding should be done carefully with an eyedropper so that the mussel does not feel threatened when it is fed and closes up.

Pink cockles are well suited for a community tank with peaceful fish, fan and dwarf shrimp, snails, dwarf crabs and also with other mussels - provided their feeding needs and water requirements are met!

Our plant recommendation: Use for planting NatureHolic InVitros. These are free of snails, planaria and other unwanted co-inhabitants. Also free of algae spores, bacteria and fungi.

Expert Tip: We recommend for fish keeping the NatureHolic 3 Phase Liquid. The care set offers the best all-round protection for your animals. It ensures optimal conditions for successful breeding and keeping.