Mandarin dragonet question

[Maho.B]

Hello. I have had a male spotted Mandarin dragonet (Synchiropus picturatus) in my reef now for a little over a year now. I am interested in adding a female to the tank. The display is 97 gallons with a fair amount of live rock, he is quite "plump" so I feel the pod population is adequate (no other real pod hunters in the tank) plus he eats frozen brine shrimp and small mysis too. Can a female just be added without any consequence? Do they always get along or is there a risk of him bullying? Thanks!

 

[RuralReefer1]

Hello! I can’t speak directly to adding a female in now, but I have two mandarins in my 125. I added them at the same time one male one female. Actually was only intending to add in one but was sent two by mistake haha. They are both doing great and haven’t had any issues with pod population. They kind of chase each other a bit when they find each other. But in my experience they aren’t very aggressive or quick so even if they bicker they get distracted and can escape fairly easily.

 

[Pseudodiego]

-Make sure that what you add is a female, young males don't have the antena thing.

-Make sure the female is smaller than the male.

 

[Maho.B]

Hello! I can’t speak directly to adding a female in now, but I have two mandarins in my 125. I added them at the same time one male one female. Actually was only intending to add in one but was sent two by mistake haha. They are both doing great and haven’t had any issues with pod population. They kind of chase each other a bit when they find each other. But in my experience they aren’t very aggressive or quick so even if they bicker they get distracted and can escape fairly easily.

Thanks for the info, it's helpful.

 

[Maho.B]

-Make sure that what you add is a female, young males don't have the antena thing.

-Make sure the female is smaller than the male.

Good point. If I add one I'll make sure it's large enough to tell!

 

[afboundguy]

I have a Biota male and added a wild caught female months after with no issues in my 35 cube. They get along fine and breed. As long as you make sure you get a female you should be fine!

 

[Maho.B]

Thats awesome! I am curious if it's more common for them to "hang out" together or just roam the tank on their own. Or if it's different from fish to fish.

 

[afboundguy]

Thats awesome! I am curious if it's more common for them to "hang out" together or just roam the tank on their own. Or if it's different from fish to fish.

I do have a smaller tank than recommended so they hang out a fair amount but it often doesn't seem more than just coincidence except when the mood strikes at night and the one of them wants to get jiggy with it!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I tried a pair of tank raised mandarins and the femal disappeared after day 2. The male has grown a ton, and I tried another female tank raised with the same result. I suspect they are just too small for the potential issues in my tank, which includes some mantis shrimp.

 

[afboundguy]

I tried a pair of tank raised mandarins and the femal disappeared after day 2. The male has grown a ton, and I tried another female tank raised with the same result. I suspect they are just too small for the potential issues in my tank, which includes some mantis shrimp.

I had same issues with the female and male captive bred. Male was fine and lost the female after a few days. I ended up getting a wild caught female and everything worked out fine and it was cool as the captive bres male basically showed/taught the wild caught female how to eat frozen and pellet food!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I had same issues with the female and male captive bred. Male was fine and lost the female after a few days. I ended up getting a wild caught female and everything worked out fine and it was cool as the captive bres male basically showed/taught the wild caught female how to eat frozen and pellet food!

Nice! :)