More than one Blenny/Goby/Dragonet in an 80Gal.?

oceanblue

Member
Hi All,
I really enjoy my little red scooter blenny, but have always wanted a mandarin fish. I have done the normal purusal of my Dakin, Baensch, and michael books and can't quite draw a decent conclusion other than caution. Does anyone have now, or had in the past, two bottom dwellers from different family's get along in around an 80gal? I'm perplexed, all suggestions and testimonials welcome! :)
 

misty

Member
I have a 75-gallon, and have started making my wish list for fish inhabitants. I asked Dr. Robert Fenner (wrote "The Conscientious Marine Aquariast," among others, and has 30 years of experience in the business) this very question.
I would like to have a Sleeper Goby and a mandarin in my tank. I specifically asked if they would have to compete for food. He said that it shouldn't be a problem in a well-established reef tank. So I'm waiting at least 3 months to get the goby and another 3-5 (depending on how many pods I see) to get the mandarin.
I think the big question is "will they have enough to eat" vs. "will they get along". As long as you have a WELL-ESTABLISHED reef (not FO) tank with lots of pods, they should be fine.
That all being said, I don't have personal experience, but have been researching the happy/successful co-existence of the two. Please wait for personal experience posts from a shark before running out to get the mandarin... ;)
[ August 02, 2001: Message edited by: Misty ]
 

oceanblue

Member
Hey Misty!
thanks for the info! hehe I'd never thought of trying to ask someone actually respected in the hobby!(duh) So, I'm glad you did! thanks Again! awaiting further comments... ;)
 

pufferlover

Active Member
Mandarins with Blennies and Gobies are considered compatable. the problem is they will compete for a lot of the same food sources so Misty has spelled it as well as it can be spelled out. The Mandarins are VERY hard keepers I have tried and tried and had only one that lived for any length of time (he a male lived for 5 years but in his own tank with just one Longnose Hawk for a tankmate). They are very slow, shy feeders and have a hard time competing with faster eating fish. You ever see one watch them they go to a piece of food look at it with one eye then turn their head look at it with the other eye then eat it. It is very cute but way to slow for them to get much except with a lot of live rock to work with.
 

oceanblue

Member
Puffer,
thanks for the response, I see what you mean, I notice my scooter doesn't climb the rocks very much...he tends to just wander back and forth along the substrate, which I assume means the gravel is the heaviest population of pods. I was thinking all the mandarin's I'd observed seemed to be big rock climbers, and so might not cross paths so much with my scooter...but none the less..if they won't eat anything else, then it's going to put a stress on that food source. Part of my confusion comes from the fact that I have two other friends that have been keeping marine tanks longer than I, and have exactly conflicting experiences with mandarins. One guy was able to feed him anything, even hand feed him. The other guy had the same kind of luck you did, couldn't get him to eat anything else...and he didn't last for more than 6-8 months. So...I dunno...guess it's simply not a great idea. I was initially more worried about fighting..but that's the least of the worries I guess. Thanks again for the input! more opinions appreciated! Dave :confused:
 

oceanblue

Member
Thanks Sal, that's encouraging! I should probly say this tank has been up for a couple of years now and should have an abundant supply of pods. it's well established with a minimal bio load at the moment. I need to add a clean up crew package I rekon. Which brings me to another question that's kinda bothered me for years. Does everyone think that the kind of numbers listed in our hosts clean up crew packages are good? More to the point...wouldn't 20 snails and 40 hermits, a few shrimp, and few crabs put a fair amount of bio load in the tank? I've run on like 4-5 hermits, 3-4 shrimp, and a crab in this tank in the past..and thought that I was probly pushing my bio limits, but i've heard from many LFS the same kind of recommendations..use a large quantity of these guys...and they don't make a significant impact on the bio load. Anyone have feelings on this? thanks Dave :rolleyes:
 

oceanblue

Member
I probly should've made a new topic out of that last question..I guess I will if I don't get much response. by the way, I'm new to this board, and just wanted to say how long I've looked for a good board, and wow is it cool to find one this active! I'm glad to have found it, and am open for any questions or help and hope that I can contribute some from my 15 years in the hobby. thanks, Dave :eek:
 

zackt

Member
The 40 crabs they are referring to are VERY small little buggers. I thought the same thing, until I saw them.
Zack
 

dhe420

Member
Oceanblue, i have a green spotted mandarin and a red lip blenny, and they get along great and dont really compete for the same food source at all. Good luck.....Dave :D
 

oceanblue

Member
excellent! glad to hear they are getting along! I think I'll try it and just monitor closely! thanks guys! ...and thanks for the crab answer! :D
 
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