Paring Mandarin

Brew12 · Nov 13, 2018

I have a nice fat 2.5" long male Green Mandarin in my system. My pod population is holding up just fine so I wanted to add a mate for him. I ordered a female that was supposed to be 1.5" to 2.5" and it is barely an inch long. It is tiny compared to my male.

I have an acclimation box, but what are the odds that the male kills the female as soon as I let her loose? Will he accept a female this small?

davocean · Nov 13, 2018

Brew12 said:
I have a nice fat 2.5" long male Green Mandarin in my system. My pod population is holding up just fine so I wanted to add a mate for him. I ordered a female that was supposed to be 1.5" to 2.5" and it is barely an inch long. It is tiny compared to my male.

I have an acclimation box, but what are the odds that the male kills the female as soon as I let her loose? Will he accept a female this small?

I've paired them like that before, not an issue normally.
The acclimation box would still be a good idea though.

TexasTodd · Nov 13, 2018

I have a similar size difference and he doesn't bother her at all.

Brew12 · Nov 13, 2018

davocean said:
I've paired them like that before, not an issue normally.
The acclimation box would still be a good idea though.

TexasTodd said:
I have a similar size difference and he doesn't bother her at all.

Thanks guys, I feel better. And I will definitely use the acclimation box.

DSC reef · Nov 13, 2018

Same experience here. Very large Male that had been established around 5 years in the tank then added a female half his size with no aggression issues. He did check her out ofcourse with his fin up but after a few days they would do a nightly dance that continued every night for the next year or more. It was amazing to watch.

Js.Aqua.Project · Nov 13, 2018

I have a pair, I had the female first and added a larger male. Used an acclimation basket for two days then released him. Now they spawn nightly in my tank, one day I plan on collecting some and trying g to raise them, but until then it is just free coral food.

Brew12 · Nov 13, 2018

DSC reef said:
Same experience here. Very large Male that had been established around 5 years in the tank then added a female half his size with no aggression issues. He did check her out ofcourse with his fin up but after a few days they would do a nightly dance that continued every night for the next year or more. It was amazing to watch.

That dance is exactly why I want a pair. I thought about getting 2 at the same time thinking they would pair better but wanted to make sure my pod population was reproducing fast enough first. Hopefully I made the right decision in waiting!

DSC reef · Nov 13, 2018

We waited for that reason as well. Had to make sure we could keep one healthy and fat first with pods to spare. I think you'll be fine, hope you get to see the dance soon.