green mandarin or spotted mandarin info?

[BIGgourami]

You could add a fuge to your setup and add copepods. Some fish stores sell copepods in containers, you could buy those every week to feed it. Probably would be really expensive though.

the bottles of live copepods are like $20US for a 4 oz. shot
the frozen/refridgerated pods are probably the best option for prepared foods though

i think it's Ocean Nutrition that makes all that stuff

 

[skene]

You do happen to understand the pods in a bottle right?
It is to help seed your tank. It is not for direct feeding.

From the Reef Nutrition website.

Tigger-Pods are attractive large red copepods, Tigriopus califoricus. They swim upwards with a stimulating, jerky swimming motion which is attractive to both fish and people. Finicky fish love them!
Tigger-Pods are perfect for culturing and restocking reeftanks & refugiums, as well as an excellent feed for fish, including mandarins and pipefish. They breed rapidly producing hundreds of eggs per female.
Tigger-Pods is a live product available in 6 ounce bottles.

 

[Ullopincrate]

I have a 90 gallon reef with a 20 gallon sump, a protein skimmer, t5 lighting, metal halide lighting 180 lbs of LR, live sand, it's been set up for a year or so. I have pods everywhere.

I can't keep a Mandarin Dragonet alive longer than 4 days. I buy em fat. they die a couple days later. No attempt to eat. I have a tang a couple of pajama cardinals a scissortail goby and two oscellaris clowns. ( all of which are a year old) misc hermits, snails, a skunk cleaner shrimp, two brittle stars and some mushroom corals and one bubble coral. also some misc zooanthides.

The little guys just breathe hard and die. I've tried 3 times.

Parameters as of my latest failure:

SG 1.024
Ca 420
temp 77F
PO 0
no2 0
no3 5
ph 8.2
nh3/nh4 0
dkh 9 deg

I use RODI water too. Generally the fish looks fine other than labored breathing and lack of movement, then they die and their little eyes look sunken. I drip acclimated the last one.

Any suggestions at all what might be happening?

'tis frustrating.

 

[Ullopincrate]

Why does it say egg under my name LOL

 

[Ullopincrate]

I think I see a progression here.......

 

[Ullopincrate]

Please see 3 posts up. I'm learning the system. Actual question is 3 up.

sorry

 

[BIGgourami]

sounds like either the tang or the clowns would be bullying them.. have you seen any aggression on their part?

 

[Ullopincrate]

I have seen no aggressive behavior whatsoever. I made it a point to watch. The mandarin pretty much had free reign. I've seen the mandarin sit right in the middle of the tank with no one else paying any attention to it. It's very unusual. I'm starting to think there might be a problem with the distributer the LFS is using. Maybe some sort of anesthesia. I've heard of some places using such things.
Anyway, I put them in the tank, they swim around a minute or two, then settle on a rock or the sand. They start breathing heavy and within a couple of days pass on. There are pods everywhere. They make no attempt at eating. I am not a professional but I have kept aquariums on and off for 20 years. I have seven running now. This is one of the most unusual things I have ever witnessed. Could it be that they are sensitive to a trace element of which I am not testing? oh and btw no copper has ever been used in tank.

Thanks for the reply.

 

[Otto_VonBacon]

Maybe put him in a pod rich quarantine tank and watch him for awhile, try to experiment with prepared foods and such. then if/when he starts eating put him in the bigger tank.

 

[BIGgourami]

Anyway, I put them in the tank, they swim around a minute or two, then settle on a rock or the sand. They start breathing heavy and within a couple of days pass on. quote]


might be a dumb question but, you ARE acclimating them, right?


it could be possible that the store gets them from a dealer/collecter that uses cyanide.. but then pretty much ALL their fish would be like that or at least all the ones from the shipments with madnarins