kaseykagan
Member
Amphipods?
Will a Mandarin eat...
- Thread starter kaseykagan
- Start date
meowzer
Moderator
Originally Posted by kaseykagan
http:///forum/post/3224414
Amphipods?
YES...and NO LOL
It is my understanding that they will eat them when they are still small..,I have LOADS of amphipods and a Mandarin too. I think a lot of mine are too big
http:///forum/post/3224414
Amphipods?
YES...and NO LOL
It is my understanding that they will eat them when they are still small..,I have LOADS of amphipods and a Mandarin too. I think a lot of mine are too big
kaseykagan
Member
We just added a Mandarin to our tank. The LFS said he would eat Brine Shrimp, but he don't seem too interested in them when I put them in the tank. We do have Copepods but how many do you need to sustain a Mandarin? In the nite when i shine a light in at the rocks I constantly see copepods and Amphipods on the rocks. As long as they are visable in the tank do that mean there should be enough!
twood
Member
I am no expert on Mandarins, but do have one myself. I have read that you need at least 100 lbs. of live rock in a tank that is at least a year old in order to have enough copepods to sustain a Mandarin. I have also read that even if you meet this, that Mandarins will still often starve to death. It was recommended to train Mandarins to eat frozen mysis shrimp.
My tank was only about 5 months old when I got my Mandarin. I didn't have enough copepods to sustain it so I decided to train it to eat frozen mysis shrimp. I put her in a net breeder pen to isolate her from the rest of the fish in the tank. I purchased live brine shrimp from an LFS and used a syringe with about 6 inches of air line tubing attached to the end to put the live brine into the pen. I would inject 2 or 3 shrimp into the pen in front the Mandarin where she could see them moving around. She quickly learned it was food and began to eat them. After 2 or 3 days of this, I began to mix in frozen brine shrimp with the live shrimp. After another day or two she began to eat the frozen brine. I then lowered the number of live brine I was feeding. I continued on with this until she would regularly eat the frozen brine. I then began to mix frozen mysis shrimp with the brine. I continued with this until she would regularly eat frozen mysis. At this point I released her into my tank. I still have to feed her from the syringe to make sure she finds her food and the other fish don't steal it. But she is being feed and is doing well. I have had her for over 3 months now.
My tank was only about 5 months old when I got my Mandarin. I didn't have enough copepods to sustain it so I decided to train it to eat frozen mysis shrimp. I put her in a net breeder pen to isolate her from the rest of the fish in the tank. I purchased live brine shrimp from an LFS and used a syringe with about 6 inches of air line tubing attached to the end to put the live brine into the pen. I would inject 2 or 3 shrimp into the pen in front the Mandarin where she could see them moving around. She quickly learned it was food and began to eat them. After 2 or 3 days of this, I began to mix in frozen brine shrimp with the live shrimp. After another day or two she began to eat the frozen brine. I then lowered the number of live brine I was feeding. I continued on with this until she would regularly eat the frozen brine. I then began to mix frozen mysis shrimp with the brine. I continued with this until she would regularly eat frozen mysis. At this point I released her into my tank. I still have to feed her from the syringe to make sure she finds her food and the other fish don't steal it. But she is being feed and is doing well. I have had her for over 3 months now.
kaseykagan
Member
We have a 155gal set up now for about 6 years. It has 250lbs of live rock.
Thanks twood for the info. If need be I will take your advice. it would be pretty hard to catch her though!
Thanks twood for the info. If need be I will take your advice. it would be pretty hard to catch her though!
beachblue
New Member
I have a mandarin that I've had for just over a year, he does eat the amphipods in my tank, as well as copepods. (My tank has tons of both)My mandarin may be the happy exception though, as he also readily eats any and all of the variety of foods I feed. Weirdly, he especially loves bloodworms, typically a FW food, but my fish readily eat them, so I give them once a week or so. I do use a syringe to "target" feed the mandarin, making sure there is food delivered to wherever he is as the other fish are faster feeders.