Do any of the LFS order any ORA fish?

[Reefbox]

I'm looking to purchase (or get on the waiting list) for a pair of the TR mandarins that ORA is now offering. The TR mandarins are already weened onto pellets.

Thanks

 

[AHDOnline]

Aquaworld is the first that comes to mind that orders ORA items. Good luck though as the mandarins are all on backorder for most every store I know that has an order in.

The other option is to go through http://www.sustainablereefs.com/?q=node/190

 

[hybridazn]

From what i read on the ora thread on these fish it is still hit and miss with getting these guys to eat prepared foods. Although they are kind of pricey for these fish i guess you have to support any cative bred fish rather than wc ones

 

[ScarabRa]

From what i read on the ora thread on these fish it is still hit and miss with getting these guys to eat prepared foods. Although they are kind of pricey for these fish i guess you have to support any cative bred fish rather than wc ones

If you feed them what they have been eating, they eat just fine. ..

"Ova is by far their favorite, followed by bloodworms then daphnia. If you gave them the opportunity they would eat artemia until they exploded. They also eat small pellet foods. Each fish is individual and its likely that they will prefer to eat some of the foods listed more than others, we can't say that every single one eats each type of food, we have many thousands of these guys and they are in big group tanks. Remember, these fish have been eating ONLY the foods that we listed since March. The biggest and most robust 10% were pulled out for sale in July." - Dustin Dorton of ORA

 

[hybridazn]

If you feed them what they have been eating, they eat just fine. ..

"Ova is by far their favorite, followed by bloodworms then daphnia. If you gave them the opportunity they would eat artemia until they exploded. They also eat small pellet foods. Each fish is individual and its likely that they will prefer to eat some of the foods listed more than others, we can't say that every single one eats each type of food, we have many thousands of these guys and they are in big group tanks. Remember, these fish have been eating ONLY the foods that we listed since March. The biggest and most robust 10% were pulled out for sale in July." - Dustin Dorton of ORA

Just stating what i read in the thread posted in the reef fish forum about the ORA mandarins. Seems quite a few are having difficulty getting some to eat even what ORA stated they were feeding at their facilities

 

[jverbosk]

Since these little guys have only been tank raised for a couple generations (I believe the fellow ORA sourced their breeders from has been tank raising for at least 1 gen), it wouldn't be too surprising if some reverted to their natural food preference upon being introduced into a tank with a supply of pods (abundant or not).

Of course, there's always the stress from the previous handling, shipping, acclimation, other tank mates, etc that could very well explain reluctance to eat, regardless of what was offered. I know I've lost a fish or two over the years that absolutely refused to eat after acclimation, despite all of the usual tricks and offerings. I have read several accounts (on RC and other places) about training wild caught mandarins on prepared foods, but ultimately it comes down to the fish and I think some just don't handle change well. I believe it's a personality issue more than anything - and yes, I do believe that fish (actually, all animals) have differing personalities. A fish that's spent it's life being chased by tankmates is going to have a very different demeanor than one from a more peaceful setting, all other things being equal.