Official Mandarin and Dragonet Show off thread

[phasezero]

I've noticed that when I can consistently feed the mandarins at least once everyday that the female becomes gravid. Even before feeding, she will look extremely fat on the sides. I'll try and grab some pictures.

[Based]

Ugh, I'm really kicking myself for not buying this green mandarin at my work today that I had feeding on frozen brine. I just didn't want to add a new fish because my ruby red scooter became super reclusive when I added my pink streaked wrasse a few months ago and now my ruby red is starting to come out again. I sure do miss my target mandarin bullseye though.

[tetraodon]

hey so i recently got a male blue mandarin, and ive been trying to train him to feed on frozen, ive done lots (read 10+ hours) of training and such, and now ive got my mandarin eating enriched live brine mixed with frozen brine and he seams to eat both when offered, currently he is in a net breeder and was curious to know when he is able to join the tank? i plan on using a mandarin diner feeder for future meals, also is it normal for males to extend their dorsal fin and run around the tank just after lights out? thanks in advance for help

[Tamberav]

hey so i recently got a male blue mandarin, and ive been trying to train him to feed on frozen, ive done lots (read 10+ hours) of training and such, and now ive got my mandarin eating enriched live brine mixed with frozen brine and he seams to eat both when offered, currently he is in a net breeder and was curious to know when he is able to join the tank? i plan on using a mandarin diner feeder for future meals, also is it normal for males to extend their dorsal fin and run around the tank just after lights out? thanks in advance for help

 

Need to get him on mysis. Brine will not suffice.

 

My males do all sorts of weird things so probably normal.

[pgrVII]

This thread is cool, I have a starry dragonet though. So can't post that guy lol.

[Tamberav]

This thread is cool, I have a starry dragonet though. So can't post that guy lol.

 

He counts, post away Title should probably be "dragonet" show off thread.

[pgrVII]

I'll see if my tablet will allow,it's been acting scrappy about picture posting. However,my guy will eat the following:everything lol. Loves flake,frozen krill,mysis,brine,formula 1pellets.

Yea won't lemme up load,there's pics in my link though. Bought him for $8 bucks cause they thought it was something else.

[metrokat]

Update on my mandies. Sam has been on the brink of death for the last week. I say this based on his skin and bones appearance, not on anything else. He actively eats, actively goes around the tank pecking but he is slowly and surely wasting away. I nearly cried, so I took a deep breath and chased him with a net. 20 minutes later I had him, mostly because skinny as he is, he did not have too much energy and would sit still for long enough for me to get him.

 

I put him in a small tank with foliage and rocks for cover, kept the light off and let him relax after the ordeal of being caught. It has been 3 days and he is happy in his cramped quarters, I am able to feed him and watch him eat more than a bit. We are a heck of a long way away from recovery but at least it is a start.

 

Eventually I want to put him in my fuge which has plenty of pods but also has no competition for food for him. It is still a small space because it is crowded with a big leather coral, lots of rocks, macros. Really a mandarin heaven except for the small dimensions.

[pgrVII]

Update on my mandies. Sam has been on the brink of death for the last week. I say this based on his skin and bones appearance, not on anything else. He actively eats, actively goes around the tank pecking but he is slowly and surely wasting away. I nearly cried, so I took a deep breath and chased him with a net. 20 minutes later I had him, mostly because skinny as he is, he did not have too much energy and would sit still for long enough for me to get him.

 

I put him in a small tank with foliage and rocks for cover, kept the light off and let him relax after the ordeal of being caught. It has been 3 days and he is happy in his cramped quarters, I am able to feed him and watch him eat more than a bit. We are a heck of a long way away from recovery but at least it is a start.

 

Eventually I want to put him in my fuge which has plenty of pods but also has no competition for food for him. It is still a small space because it is crowded with a big leather coral, lots of rocks, macros. Really a mandarin heaven except for the small dimensions.

Good luck miss Kat hope Sam gets fat and healthy in there.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

Sounds promising!

[here fishy fishy]

My spotted mandarin...

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

Pretty.

[tetraodon]

Need to get him on mysis. Brine will not suffice.

 

My males do all sorts of weird things so probably normal.

im going to start mixing the mysis with the frozen/live mix, he seams to want to eat when there is live and will eat most of the frozen, so i guess its a start

[Tamberav]

Update on my mandies. Sam has been on the brink of death for the last week. I say this based on his skin and bones appearance, not on anything else. He actively eats, actively goes around the tank pecking but he is slowly and surely wasting away. I nearly cried, so I took a deep breath and chased him with a net. 20 minutes later I had him, mostly because skinny as he is, he did not have too much energy and would sit still for long enough for me to get him.

 

I put him in a small tank with foliage and rocks for cover, kept the light off and let him relax after the ordeal of being caught. It has been 3 days and he is happy in his cramped quarters, I am able to feed him and watch him eat more than a bit. We are a heck of a long way away from recovery but at least it is a start.

 

Eventually I want to put him in my fuge which has plenty of pods but also has no competition for food for him. It is still a small space because it is crowded with a big leather coral, lots of rocks, macros. Really a mandarin heaven except for the small dimensions.

 

Sorry to hear I hope he pulls through.

[BulkRate]

Good luck, metrokat. Well wishes and hopes for a speedy recovery.

 

While you have him in a hospital setup are there any anti-parasite treatments planned? Most on the market that state they can be used with scale-less fish with a reduced dosage.

[metrokat]

I have Dr Gs medicated food on hand. It has prazi.

 

He ate 3-4 live black worms today. He watches them twitching and is slow to react, almost like he is scared of them. Then when the worms twitching is nearly done, he might peck at it. Very silly fish. Also gave him his favorite potato chips. AKA gut loaded frozen brine shrimp.

[Simone]

Hi mandy people, I'm hoping you guys can help me out.

 

I have had my spotted mandarin Olive for over 6 months now and I think she is doing great. She eats ova, cyclopeeze, and mysis and appears happy and healthy. She has grown since I got her but is still small, about 1.5 inches long.

 

I started considering getting a mate for her and found a male at my trusted LFS who is in pretty good shape weight wise and who is eating frozen and pellets!

 

I am very tempted to buy him but I'm not 100% sure that Olive is in fact female and I don't want to start a brawl by foolishly attempting to pair two males.

 

I know that sex is mostly determined by the long spine on the dorsal fin or lack there of but to me Olive's dorsal fin is kind of ambiguous. It isn't rounded on the front like some females I've seen but doesn't have a defined spike to it. I have heard that the spine can get damaged causing people to think that a male is female but that it should grow back with time so I would think that if that was the case it would have grown back by now. But perhaps Olive is just young and the spine hasn't developed yet?

 

So here she is with her dorsal fin raised, what do you guys think? Thanks!

[metrokat]

She's very cute! Given her size it could very well be a juvenile male. You should make arrangements with the fish store to take back the intended mail order groom. Hehehe. In case they can't stand each other. Make sure the male is substantially bigger than a female or she won't feel very romantic.

[Based]

So it seems every green/blue mandarin that came in the shipment last week was eating frozen, I made sure that they would order more for this week as I surely do want a male.

[Tamberav]

Hi mandy people, I'm hoping you guys can help me out.

 

I have had my spotted mandarin Olive for over 6 months now and I think she is doing great. She eats ova, cyclopeeze, and mysis and appears happy and healthy. She has grown since I got her but is still small, about 1.5 inches long.

 

I started considering getting a mate for her and found a male at my trusted LFS who is in pretty good shape weight wise and who is eating frozen and pellets!

 

I am very tempted to buy him but I'm not 100% sure that Olive is in fact female and I don't want to start a brawl by foolishly attempting to pair two males.

 

I know that sex is mostly determined by the long spine on the dorsal fin or lack there of but to me Olive's dorsal fin is kind of ambiguous. It isn't rounded on the front like some females I've seen but doesn't have a defined spike to it. I have heard that the spine can get damaged causing people to think that a male is female but that it should grow back with time so I would think that if that was the case it would have grown back by now. But perhaps Olive is just young and the spine hasn't developed yet?

 

So here she is with her dorsal fin raised, what do you guys think? Thanks!

 

Looks like a juvi male to me. Can't say with 100% certainty though. Not all males and females get along. Sometimes they won't pair and keep fighting like brats.

 

Here is a female. Man she is gorgeously fat! (not mine, it is a pic of Matt's from MBI site) http://www.mbisite.org/Forums/tm.aspx?m=35636

 

 

She's very cute! Given her size it could very well be a juvenile male. You should make arrangements with the fish store to take back the intended mail order groom. Hehehe. In case they can't stand each other. Make sure the male is substantially bigger than a female or she won't feel very romantic.

 

From what I have read on breeding mandarins... the spotteds can be the same size unlike the blue/greens. I haven't tested this theory yet though.

[SouthFlorida_Tron]

A CAMERA, QUICK HIDE!!!

https://flic.kr/p/ktcpV4'>https://flic.kr/p/ktcpV4'>Pink Milli 2-25-14 by https://www.flickr.com/people//'>J.L Photography, on Flickr

[Simone]

Thanks Kat and Tambarev! I really appreciate your advice and it's a good thing I asked!

 

Maybe Olive is too young for a mate anyway lol. It's just Olive is so awesome that now I want another dragonet and I thought it would be so cool to see a pair interact with each other.

 

Should I look for a female or get a ruby red and wait until Olive gets bigger to find a mate?

 

Edit: Oh somehow I didn't see that picture you posted until now Tambarev, now I'm confused. The shape of Olive's fin looks more like the female pictured to me. But maybe Olive is just too small to tell?

[Tamberav]

Thanks Kat and Tambarev! I really appreciate your advice and it's a good thing I asked!

 

Maybe Olive is too young for a mate anyway lol. It's just Olive is so awesome that now I want another dragonet and I thought it would be so cool to see a pair interact with each other.

 

Should I look for a female or get a ruby red and wait until Olive gets bigger to find a mate?

 

For my pair, I waited. I had my blue/green male a year and a half waiting for him to get bigger before adding a small female. I am now waiting on my spotted male to mature. I think it has been 9 months or so with him.

 

My ruby's ignore each other (too young) but the mandarin's seem to be a lot more moody than scooters.

[Simone]

Yeah, I guess I'm jumping the gun with the pairing and probably best to wait and get the ruby instead.

 

I have heard that mandarins and scooters will get along, has that been your experience? The ruby reds are also adorable and its good to know that they are less moody with each other.

 

Eventually I would like to have pairs of several dragonets as you do Tambarev . I just find them incredibly charming.

[Tamberav]

Yeah, I guess I'm jumping the gun with the pairing and probably best to wait and get the ruby instead.

 

I have heard that mandarins and scooters will get along, has that been your experience? The ruby reds are also adorable and its good to know that they are less moody with each other.

 

Eventually I would like to have pairs of several dragonets as you do Tambarev . I just find them incredibly charming.

 

The mandy's and scooters pretty much ignore each other.

 

What size tank do you have? I wouldn't try 6 of these guys in a SPS tank or anything. I'm following Matt Peterson's article in Coral Magazine where he had 3 pairs breeding in a 29g macroalgae tank. Provides places for pods and combats phosphates from the heavy feeding.

 

Careful with ruby's. They come in very small and can easily go down overflows and jump through 1/4 inch netting. They need some "baby proofing" to be sure they won't carpet surf.