enough pods for a mandy?

[lkoechle]

So my 85 has just become a massive pod orgy. They are all over the glass. When do i know there is enough pods for a mandy? I also plan on attempting to train the mandy to frozen and pellets, but in case that doesn't work out, how do i know the population is dense enough to satisfy the mandy?

[CJJon]

Depends. Do you have a sump or fuge that the mandarin can't get to where the pods can reproduce? If not, it will eat all your pods eventually then starve. Maybe you will be OK in an 85 (gallons I assume) if you have enough porous rock, etc.

 

Even if you can get it to eat pellets, they still may not thrive and may in fact starve. They are very specialized feeders with a short digestive tract. Pellets don't spend enough time in the digestive tract. They eat constantly by design.

 

IMO, unless you have an active place where the pods can breed away from the mandarin, you will have trouble. I had a 55g that was absolutely infested with pods. Eventually my mandarin ate them all and starved.

 

But then I am sure there are people here who keep them in a 6oz. light bulb pico tank on their desk at work. YMMV.

[lkoechle]

I have a sump. Total volume is about 110 gallons of the whole system. No fuge in there but there is live rock in the drain section. I use reefcleaners rock so there are holes and nooks galore

[magikarp]

So my 85 has just become a massive pod orgy. They are all over the glass. When do i know there is enough pods for a mandy? I also plan on attempting to train the mandy to frozen and pellets, but in case that doesn't work out, how do i know the population is dense enough to satisfy the mandy?

 

I have a 110G. I had this density of pods on every inch of glass. And more on the back panel

 

 

I got a Pajama Cardinal and he ate them around the clock for 2-3 days straight and now I can't find any hahahahah.

 

Don't underestimate a fish' appetite if the food is there.

 

 

I don't think it is so much about the amount of pods, more about designing the rockscape so they have places to breed without being wiped out. Obviously a refugium is important also

[patback]

In a tank that size you'll be good. I still reccomend getting them on pellet or frozen however. It could never hurt.

[lkoechle]

Well i got a solar wrasse today as a valentine's day gift from the husband. So mandy will have to wait until i see what kind of pod damage the solar does. But thanks for the responses!