Mandarin dragonet care requirements?

[JayChen]

Recently my tank has Brook and it killed my clownfish. My tank has no fish at the moment and I am planning to run a fishless tank for at least 2 months to allow whatever parasites are gone. After that, I really want to get a Mandarin dragonet, I saw bunch of them at my LFS and I was told that they eat frozen food. However, I want to know more about these guys before investing into one. If they eat frozen, how many times do I need to feed daily? I have some pods in my tank and I can buy some from algaebarn and let them reproduce in my tank. Any info about these guys would be appreciated.

 

[rastareefs]

I would wait the full 76 days when you run fallow just to be safe. What size tank do you have and how long has it been running?

I've seen some people get their mandarins on frozen but they generally do best in mature reefs with a sustainable copepod population.

 

[Reef AquaCult]

You need to have a large established reef with teeming with copepods before considering a mandarin.

 

[Slawman]

+1. Mandarins usually die because they don't have enough live food. They can stop eating frozen anytime and then they starve. I have found them resistant to most common diseases if they are well fed and in good condition but do wait for 10 weeks before introducing any fish to a tank which has had disease.

 

[Albertan22]

Now is a great time to seed your tank with pods and let them reproduce while you go through your fallow period! You may want to feed some phyto to keep them reproducing while you're running fishless, which may help keep your nutrients up and bacteria healthier as well while you wait for fish. Make sure the tank has been running a good year or more before introducing the mandarin though. I've had a couple over the years and managed to keep them fat and happy. Just avoid introducing something that might compete with them for that live food and add some pods once in a while. If you can run a refugium all the better.

 

[NinnJinn]

Exactly what Albertan22 said!
Start your copepod population now would be an excellent idea.

If you have a sump will make it all the better. I have chaeto in my sump and copepods are reproducing like crazy. They also like to hid in and on your live rock.

If you start seeing little white specks on your DT glass, that is a good thing!!

 

[fish farmer]

Now is a great time to seed your tank with pods and let them reproduce while you go through your fallow period! You may want to feed some phyto to keep them reproducing while you're running fishless, which may help keep your nutrients up and bacteria healthier as well while you wait for fish. Make sure the tank has been running a good year or more before introducing the mandarin though. I've had a couple over the years and managed to keep them fat and happy. Just avoid introducing something that might compete with them for that live food and add some pods once in a while. If you can run a refugium all the better.

I will stress the competition from other fishes. I had a mandarin in a 38 gallon which I was able to get to eat frozen mysis. She was doing very well and the only other fish was a clownfish. I added a purple dottyback who had serious issues with the mandarin, keeping her from chasing food and staying near the bottom. I had to remove the dottyback.

 

[bluprntguy]

It‘s easiest to care for a dragonet if you have a large tank with a thriving population of copepods. You can keep them in smaller tanks though, it just requires a bit more dedication. You’ll want to train them on frozen if you can. In the meantime (or as an alternative to frozen food), you can culture grindal worms and hatch live baby brine shrimp. Feeding them a few times a day with these types of lives food will help keep them fat and happy and take some pressure off your pod population.

 

[JayChen]

I have a 13 gallon. If I ever get a Mandarin, that will be the only fish that I get in that tank, so food competition will not be a problem. I am just wondering how many times I have to feed per day because I can't stay home all day just to feed the fish.

 

[DHill6]

I purchased one from Algae barn, tank raised from Biota, he eats pellets. I haven’t seen him eat frozen. Occasionally I purchase tisbe pods and dump in. He’s bright, fat and happy.

 

[JayChen]

I would wait the full 76 days when you run fallow just to be safe. What size tank do you have and how long has it been running?

I've seen some people get their mandarins on frozen but they generally do best in mature reefs with a sustainable copepod population.

I have a 13 gallon and it has been running for 6 months. If I decide to get one, I will buy pods from algaebarn and let them reproduce, and I already have some pods in my tank.

 

[JayChen]

+1. Mandarins usually die because they don't have enough live food. They can stop eating frozen anytime and then they starve. I have found them resistant to most common diseases if they are well fed and in good condition but do wait for 10 weeks before introducing any fish to a tank which has had disease.

Yes, I'm running a fishless tank now for at least 2 months or more. Anyway, I will get the pods population to go up until I decided to purchase a mandarin even if they eat frozen.

 

[JayChen]

I purchased one from Algae barn, tank raised from Biota, he eats pellets. I haven’t seen him eat frozen. Occasionally I purchase tisbe pods and dump in. He’s bright, fat and happy.

Interesting, how big is your tank and do you have a huge population of pods?

 

[JayChen]

It‘s easiest to care for a dragonet if you have a large tank with a thriving population of copepods. You can keep them in smaller tanks though, it just requires a bit more dedication. You’ll want to train them on frozen if you can. In the meantime (or as an alternative to frozen food), you can culture grindal worms and hatch live baby brine shrimp. Feeding them a few times a day with these types of lives food will help keep them fat and happy and take some pressure off your pod population.

Thanks, it's good to know. If I ever get one for my 13 gallon, it will be the only fish in my tank.

 

[JoshH]

I have a 13 gallon and it has been running for 6 months. If I decide to get one, I will buy pods from algaebarn and let them reproduce, and I already have some pods in my tank.

Personally I feel that tank is just too small for a mandarin to survive long term. Mandarins can decimate a pod population in a tank that size in a matter of days. If it survived long enough to start eating frozen and it ever stopped you would have no way to maintain a pod population sufficient to keep it alive...

Just my thoughts, as beautiful as they are, I think you would be doing a mandarin a disservice by attempting to keep It.

 

[JayChen]

Personally I feel that tank is just too small for a mandarin to survive long term. Mandarins can decimate a pod population in a tank that size in a matter of days. If it survived long enough to start eating frozen and it ever stopped you would have no way to maintain a pod population sufficient to keep it alive...

Just my thoughts, as beautiful as they are, I think you would be doing a mandarin a disservice by attempting to keep It.

That's why I am asking in here lol.

 

[Eric R.]

What size tank is reasonable for a single Mandarin with no other fish if you were culturing and feeding pods to the tank once or twice a day? I see a lot of comments about needing a large tank to get sufficient pods but not a lot of discussion of culturing pods. Would love to hear from those that have been successful with smaller tanks and feeding cultured pods.

 

[Wolf89]

A mandarin in a 13 gallong will never work. Sorry

 

[JayChen]

What size tank is reasonable for a single Mandarin with no other fish if you were culturing and feeding pods to the tank once or twice a day? I see a lot of comments about needing a large tank to get sufficient pods but not a lot of discussion of culturing pods. Would love to hear from those that have been successful with smaller tanks and feeding cultured pods.

Yep, everyone just said it doesn't work.

 

[bluprntguy]

What size tank is reasonable for a single Mandarin with no other fish if you were culturing and feeding pods to the tank once or twice a day? I see a lot of comments about needing a large tank to get sufficient pods but not a lot of discussion of culturing pods. Would love to hear from those that have been successful with smaller tanks and feeding cultured pods.

Bigger question is what size of cultures are you planning to have and how dedicated will you be? IMO, you could maybe get by with four cultures at least 2 gallons each. That allows you to harvest a different one every week. It also gives you some redundancy when one or two of them crash. It’s a fair amount of work and if you can fit that set-up in your house, why not just get a bigger tank?

IMO, it‘s way easier to feed a manadarin 2-3 times a day with freshly hatched brine shrimp than to culture pods in sufficient quantities to keep them happy.