Blue Mandarin

kmwrestle · Jul 4, 2021

I fell in love with a blue mandarin. I currently have a Waterbox 35.2 AIO. I realize this is small to really develop a pod culture. I am ok with purchasing pods for feeding. Based on research i have figured on Algaebarn 5280. Would dosing these monthly into the tank be sufficient or do i need to do it more/less? Thanks

MartinM · Jul 4, 2021

You’ll need enough pods for it to be able to feed nearly continuously, and so that it maintains a healthy body mass.

kmwrestle · Jul 4, 2021

How much is that typically?

MartinM · Jul 4, 2021

Depends on the size of the fish, probably at least dozens of pods per day though. ORA mandarins will eat frozen foods from what I understand, however!

Jekyl · Jul 4, 2021

kmwrestle said:
I fell in love with a blue mandarin. I currently have a Waterbox 35.2 AIO. I realize this is small to really develop a pod culture. I am ok with purchasing pods for feeding. Based on research i have figured on Algaebarn 5280. Would dosing these monthly into the tank be sufficient or do i need to do it more/less? Thanks

Creating your own pod culture/supply may be a better route.

G Santana · Jul 4, 2021

My mandarin won't eat anything but pods, I have a pod culture and a brine shrimp culture going all the time.
Good luck with yours but wait to purchase him when your tank can sustain pods. When you see them all over the glass that's when I decided to buy a mandarin, but I don't see pods on the glass anymore lol

Tuffyyyyy · Jul 4, 2021

Absolutely don’t buy one for that tank unless you can get one of these https://www.algaebarn.com/shop/captive-bred/fish/green-mandarin/

But you’re kind of hitting the same dilemma all reefers do. It’s objectively the most beautiful fish in our hobby, but also nearly impossible to keep…especially in tiny tanks like yours. I’ve rarely seen people have long-term success with the fish, even people with large tanks.

Caleb M · Jul 4, 2021

It's an amazing fish! and dosing pods, plus aqua-culturing them is a great idea it would definitely help with the feeding. I have had 2. Sadly the first one I had developed a tumor that eventually killed him in a day. The second one I got I've had for 6 months and dosing pods from the reef store once a month has been doing fine. Plus just throwing in one of those copepod hotels realllly helps a lot. They are a tricky fish but once they get settled its smooth sailing!

fachatga · Jul 4, 2021

Your other fish will also eat the pods too. So watch for that. You’ll probably need more than you think. It’s not like this will feed the mandarin and that’s it.

Paleozoic_reefer · Jul 4, 2021

Agreed with all the posts above. Mandarins are in constant search for food and if they are not accustomed to frozen food they will go through the pods you dose very quickly! I always recommend to people who want a mandarin to; load their tanks with as much live rock as possible, keep water on the slightly dirty side, and if possible run a refugium or have macro algae in the tank. All of this is to help create a sustainable pod population for the mandarin. I see more people trying to make a mandarin fit in their tank rather than making their tanks fit for a mandarin....

Tchung23 · Jul 4, 2021

Buy a captive bred one. Feed them pellets and let them graze on your pods the rest of the time. I’ve had mine for about 4 months and the are growing and eating tdo pellets!! Got them when they were tiny less than an inch. Now about 2 inches.

Hermie · Jul 4, 2021

Here's my tip for a Mandarin in a smallish tank; get as much algae growing as you can because pods love to live in algae. Any kind really. Nuisance, hair, turf, chaeto, macro, everything. The more algae growing the more pods you will have.

Also, tip 2 is to have a lot of live rock. As much rock as you can the better, more surfaces for pods to grow.

Now neither of these tips is necessarily going to fit with the common conception of a reef tank. Most people with corals don't want algae, understandably. However that's the price IMO of keeping a mandarin in a smallish tank (30 gallons).

Hermie · Jul 4, 2021

Tchung23 said:
Buy a captive bred one. Feed them pellets and let them graze on your pods the rest of the time. I’ve had mine for about 4 months and the are growing and eating tdo pellets!! Got them when they were tiny less than an inch. Now about 2 inches.

4 Months to go from 1" to 2" ?? That's fast isn't it.