Mandarin Dragonettes

Discussion in 'Tropical Fish' started by KDtrey5, Jul 3, 2012.

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  1. KDtrey5

    KDtrey5 Coral Banded Shrimp

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    Are Mandarin Dragonettes really that hard to take care of? I know that they need copepods to eat. What is the cheapest way to breed copepods in your tank. A HOB fuge isn't an option for be because my tank is against the wall, or could I put one on the side?
     
    KDtrey5, Jul 3, 2012
    KDtrey5, Jul 3, 2012
    #1

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  2. 2in10

    2in10 Super Moderator

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    You definitely could put a sump on the side. You need a massive amount of pods to keep one alive. So a sump the same volume as your tank would be advisable with lots of cheato and rock surface area.
     
    2in10, Jul 3, 2012
    2in10, Jul 3, 2012
    #2
  3. sailorguy

    sailorguy Torch Coral

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    Sure you could put the fuge on the side as long as the side panel is long enough and the available light is sufficient,but you might want to read Nanareefers thread on keeping mandarins in a nano first,it's quite an insight.
     
    sailorguy, Jul 3, 2012
    sailorguy, Jul 3, 2012
    #3
  4. chelseagrin

    chelseagrin Fire Goby

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    you cant breed them in a tank with a mandarin in it.
     
    chelseagrin, Jul 3, 2012
    chelseagrin, Jul 3, 2012
    #4
  5. djbonney138

    djbonney138 Peppermint Shrimp

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    I can only offer my own personal experience. My old tank was a 55 gallon soft coral reef with lots of a live rock, live sand, a 20 gallon sump with a fuge chamber with live rock. Around the 2 year mark, I decided the tank had matured enough to attempt a getting a mandarin. I had plenty of pods and picked out a great specimen (not captive bred.) He was super fat and looked great. Within 2-3 months he absolutely decimated the pod population. By the time I noticed his belly thinning, I tried to order tiger pods (I think is what they were called.) but it was too late. I am not trying to start some mandarin debate just offering my experience.
     
    djbonney138, Jul 3, 2012
    djbonney138, Jul 3, 2012
    #5
  6. Chuyr

    Chuyr Astrea Snail

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    they sound like hard work. but they look so amazing so i guess with the right steps it could work to your advantage.
     
    Chuyr, Jul 3, 2012
    Chuyr, Jul 3, 2012
    #6

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  7. N00ZE

    N00ZE Eyelash Blennie

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    They are very beautiful fish when cared for right but the steps to complete it is long and hard.
     
    N00ZE, Jul 7, 2012
    N00ZE, Jul 7, 2012
    #7
  8. Vinnyboombatz

    Vinnyboombatz Giant Squid

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    Yes good advice given. In a large tank 90 gallons+ this is really a great fish and requires little to no maintenance.As long as you have a large population of pods and a refugium to replenish them with no other pod consuming fish they are very hardy. In a small tank they are quite the handfull and raising one on supplemental foods is hard if not impossible and expensive long term.Water quality from feeding this fish is also a major concern and steps to combat that are also necessary.8)
     
    Vinnyboombatz, Jul 7, 2012
    Vinnyboombatz, Jul 7, 2012
    #8