how to catch a mandarin

[Leo_ian]

I have a. mandarin that’s currently eating copepods and brine shrimp, nothing wrong so far, except i want to train it to eat mysis shrimp and my rockwork is very extensive… when i say extensive i mean 2/3 of my tank is rockwork. any advice on how to catch the bugger? i have a mantis shrimp tramp with bbs for bait but i think all the bbs swam out alrdy overnight…

 

[laverda]

Why? Depending on the size of your mandarin mysis may be too big for it to eat. You odds of success are not very good. Use one of Paul B's bbs shrimp feeders add a second tube above it to feed mysid when the mandarin is feeding on the bbs.

 

[Leo_ian]

Why? Depending on the size of your mandarin mysis may be too big for it to eat. You odds of success are not very good. Use one of Paul B's bbs shrimp feeders add a second tube above it to feed mysid when the mandarin is feeding on the bbs.

my mandarin is about medium sized? also eating some medium sized amphipods, so i won’t see any issue. i might also try NLS pellets to feed it.

 

[KrisReef]

I have a. mandarin that’s currently eating copepods and brine shrimp, nothing wrong so far, except i want to train it to eat mysis shrimp and my rockwork is very extensive… when i say extensive i mean 2/3 of my tank is rockwork. any advice on how to catch the bugger? i have a mantis shrimp tramp with bbs for bait but i think all the bbs swam out alrdy overnight…

Drain the tank and pick the Mandarin off the bottom, then refill.

 

[attiland]

Get one of these to feed and leave him where his.

Coral Feeder Marine Acrylic Tube Liquid Feeding Marine Reef Aquarium Fish Tank | eBay

Used in marine reef tank to feed coral directly. 1 x Coral Feeder. As a high-brightness acrylic tube body, you can see a clear feeding amount. An improved second-generation super powerful suction head.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Brady4000]

Drain the tank and pick the Mandarin off the bottom, then refill.

ROFL made my night. The best part is, this would actually work.

 

[KrisReef]

Yes, it does work, really well actually @Brady4000

Pro tip: If you have sand, dig a hole in the sand towards the front of the tank before you remove the water. The fish will go into this puddle in the sand as the water recedes and you can pick him up right there after the water is drained enough.

 

[Brady4000]

Yes, it does work, really well actually @Brady4000

Pro tip: If you have sand, dig a hole in the sand towards the front of the tank before you remove the water. The fish will go into this puddle in the sand as the water recedes and you can pick him up right there after the water is drained enough.

Life hack. I am 100% not going to forget that lol.

 

[monkeyCmonkeyDo]

Take rock out. Chase fish with net. Curse. Call fish names. Catch fish. Love fish. Fish is friend.
Put rock back in...
D

 

[Cunning_plan]

ROFL made my night. The best part is, this would actually work.

Youd be surprised. I almost lost a few smaller fish in a tank move cause they were still hidden in my rock work when I took it out of the tank!

 

[Brady4000]

Youd be surprised. I almost lost a few smaller fish in a tank move cause they were still hidden in my rock work when I took it out of the tank!

Stayed in the rock til the water ran out?

 

[KrisReef]

Stayed in the rock til the water ran out?

Check out our local Rockweed gunnel. It lives in shallow water and at low tides it will hide out of water in bunches of surf grass on the edge of tide pools. I've caught them with my hands this way before.

Rockweed gunnel - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Leo_ian]

i think i’ll go with the way that i did for clownfish, chromis, damselfish and grammas.

rip up the rockwork and scoop the fish out

at least i don’t have much corals on the rockwork

 

[attiland]

i think i’ll go with the way that i did for clownfish, chromis, damselfish and grammas.

rip up the rockwork and scoop the fish out

at least i don’t have much corals on the rockwork

Now we are back to the real question of why do you want to take it out to train. You can do this in the display too.
turn of the flow for the feeding, Use a coral feeder and get as close to it as you can and give it little blasts of frozen food. At the end turn on the flow and the rest of the fis will pic up the scraps.
may least that is what I would do

 

[Leo_ian]

Now we are back to the real question of why do you want to take it out to train. You can do this in the display too.
turn of the flow for the feeding, Use a coral feeder and get as close to it as you can and give it little blasts of frozen food. At the end turn on the flow and the rest of the fis will pic up the scraps.
may least that is what I would do

i don’t see my mandarin when i’m feeding so i wanted to keep track of it when i’m training it

 

[laverda]

i don’t see my mandarin when i’m feeding so i wanted to keep track of it when i’m training it

I think that will be a mistake.

 

[Leo_ian]

I think that will be a mistake.

explain?

 

[Lost in the Sauce]

explain?

What you are proposing is going to be a very stressful thing not only to your one fish but all of your fish.

Can you explain to everybody who is confused why it's necessary to tear apart your tank to catch and (maybe) a fish that is already by your own admissions happily eating everything it naturally eats?

With 2/3 of your tank being rockwork, it should have PLENTY of food already.

What's the benefit you are expecting to make the risks work it?

 

[Leo_ian]

What you are proposing is going to be a very stressful thing not only to your one fish but all of your fish.

Can you explain to everybody who is confused why it's necessary to tear apart your tank to catch and (maybe) a fish that is already by your own admissions happily eating everything it naturally eats?

With 2/3 of your tank being rockwork, it should have PLENTY of food already.

What's the benefit you are expecting to make the risks work it?

i moved two rocks and scooped the fish out, i think it should be fine, my only other fish is still acting they way they did before i moved the rocks

 

[laverda]

explain?

They eat constantly all day long. Are you going to be able to provide food for it all day long?
Your taking it away from its natural food source and forcing it to eat something unnatural. . There is a good chance it never will. Watch its belly. If it starts to get thin it is not getting enough to eat. If it becomes concave your in trouble, as it is probably to late.