Mandarin / Dragonet

[Z06-Hec]

How do you confirm your mandarin / dragonet is actually eating?
I have one store bought in my tank for about 2 weeks and a half. I added about 6 bags of pods prior to dropping him in.
Since adding him, I've added another 8oz bag.
I see him pecking on rock, and sand all day... but I cant actually see pods... so not sure if hes actually eating anything, Very active, i just cant confirm if hes eating anything...

 

[justmee]

It's really hard to tell, but yours look okay and not skinny, and it's good that it's active. Try dropping a couple of pellets in front of him and see if he eats them. I'm fortunate that mine eats pellets. Goodluck!

 

[pdxmonkeyboy]

yeah, he looks healthy. pellets or mysis. unless you have a very big system he will tear through your pods.

good looking fish!!

 

[Jesterrace]

Looks like a fat fish to me. Wish my Mandy got that fat. I miss it.

 

[Nolan Shinn]

He looks heathy, just keep a close eye on his weight.Based on my, admittedly limited, sample size I would suggest:
Don’t forget to feed you pod population as well, by adding a little phytoplankton. Increase in predators means the prey need a rational increase in resources...

Mine both eat frozen mysis, sometimes out of the water column, most of the time off the sand bed. I got mine eating frozen by adding pod feast or some frozen mysis to any live pods or enriched brineshrimp I would put in the tank with the mandarins. Before long, they started eating more and more of the frozen bits.

Now all I have to do is turn off the return on my tank, and they scurry out onto the sand bed looking for mysis that’s floated down haha.

 

[SuncrestReef]

Many pods are too small to see easily without magnification. Remember, these fish are looking at the rock from about 1/2" away, while you're looking at the same rock from probably a foot or more. They can see things at that distance that you'll never see. Take a scoop of that sand and look at it under a microscope...you'll see some amazing things that you didn't know were there. But the fish knows!

 

[EW_Fish]

If your tank is large enough the addition of pods isn't necessary the population should carry itself

 

[Tamberav]

It seems to me putting a dragonet into a 40g with a voracious pod eater like a sixline was a poor choice even if the fish wasn't being possibly attacked.

 

[Z06-Hec]

Who put a sixline in with a mandarin?
So how much and how often should i throw pods in? I am dosing phyto once a week...