Mandarin Dragonet and Clown Fish
- Thread starter eamike261
- Start date
I have a red dragonet (scooter blenny) and the rest of the tank acts like he's not even there.
I have 2 ocellaris and 1 clarkii as well, in a 75 gallon FOWLR.
Do you have a QT where the mandarin can live for a month or more and acclimate to you, and the food you're going to offer?
What size tank, and what is in it now?
I have 2 ocellaris and 1 clarkii as well, in a 75 gallon FOWLR.
Do you have a QT where the mandarin can live for a month or more and acclimate to you, and the food you're going to offer?
What size tank, and what is in it now?
eamike261
New member
My friend and i are setting up a 10 gallon tank (we know about the difficulty of feeding them in such a small tank though) but we're hoping to find one at a LFS that is pretrained to eat some type of frozen food. So I dont know what type of food we'd feed it yet, but we do not have QT, is that something we would need for it?
Shore Tang
New member
your probably not going to have success with that fish in a tank that size. i have kept these fish together with no issues. It was in a 75 gal packed with rock. these fish constantly graze on small organisms that only an established aquarium can supply. your probably setting your fish up for failure which includes starvation. i believe mandarins minimum required aquarium is 30 gallons with a lot of rock work to graze on. rock work is a big key to the success with this specie.
A 10 gallon tank would be an okay QT for many fish. I wouldn't recommend it as tank for many fish to live in though. Too little space, and too unstable.
And I definitely wouldn't put multiple fish in it.
LiveAquaria.com is a decent site for seeing what size tanks are needed for different fish, and the care level involved.
Mandarins are rated as difficult, no surprise there. They also suggest at least a 30 gallon tank. Mandarins need room to hunt, their natural behavior. They also need lots of hiding places.
A mandarin in a 10 gallon, like many fish, will be stressed most of the time, whether or not it is obvious to the owner.
I would save up for a larger system if possible. You and your fish will be happier for it.
And I definitely wouldn't put multiple fish in it.
LiveAquaria.com is a decent site for seeing what size tanks are needed for different fish, and the care level involved.
Mandarins are rated as difficult, no surprise there. They also suggest at least a 30 gallon tank. Mandarins need room to hunt, their natural behavior. They also need lots of hiding places.
A mandarin in a 10 gallon, like many fish, will be stressed most of the time, whether or not it is obvious to the owner.
I would save up for a larger system if possible. You and your fish will be happier for it.
Shore Tang
New member
30 gallons if accepting food fed by human addition to the aquarium. 75 gallon if not accepting food by feedings. need rock work either way or you'll be like most aquarist and starve this fish. please don't be offended by my response. i ran an aquarium store for four years and watched this happen on a weekly basis.
eamike261
New member
haha no im not offended, i appreciate the information
but why 30 gallons for human fed food? I thought the size didn't matter (above 10 gallons) as long as it didnt need the high amount of copepods to eat
also, if this helps there is 15 lbs of live rock, and 20 lbs of live sand
but why 30 gallons for human fed food? I thought the size didn't matter (above 10 gallons) as long as it didnt need the high amount of copepods to eat
also, if this helps there is 15 lbs of live rock, and 20 lbs of live sand
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jasonrp104
New member
They can clean out the pods unbelievably fast. Mine eats frozen and he still wiped them out in a few months. I'm positive that they'd all be gone if the scooter could get behind my crispa
BTW: I've got 2 maroons and a scooter in a 45. I've never had a problem with the them fighting
BTW: I've got 2 maroons and a scooter in a 45. I've never had a problem with the them fighting
sslak
New member
I don't feel that a 10g tank is big enough for a clownfish OR a mandarin dragonette, and certainly not both.
I have mine in a 58g, with a 20g sump/fuge, it eats frozen AND I culture copepods to continuously stock my tank. My mandarin explores the full length of the tank all day long pecking at rocks eating pods, even though I feed it frozen.
10g is just not big enough to keep fish long term....except maybe goldfish or freshwater beta.
Sure, you COULD live your life in a coat closet...but would you want to?
That said, mandarin dragonettes are compatible with almost all fish that don't view it as food...most fish completely ignore it. My clowns certainly do.
I have mine in a 58g, with a 20g sump/fuge, it eats frozen AND I culture copepods to continuously stock my tank. My mandarin explores the full length of the tank all day long pecking at rocks eating pods, even though I feed it frozen.
10g is just not big enough to keep fish long term....except maybe goldfish or freshwater beta.
Sure, you COULD live your life in a coat closet...but would you want to?
That said, mandarin dragonettes are compatible with almost all fish that don't view it as food...most fish completely ignore it. My clowns certainly do.
bassplaya12
New member
I'm the friend that's setting up this tank with the OP, I know where you're coming from with the 10g being too small for much, but the guys in the nano reef forum have a lot of success with clowns in their 10g. Why do you say it's too small for a clown? And I've read people having success with mandarins in a 10g, while it's not the best of ideas, it has worked.
What do you consider success? A full grown mandarin is almost like a deck of cards, that would be incredibly uncomfortable in a 10g aquarium. Then again not many people can even keep the fish that long to get to that size. Mandarins are sensitive so any little change in such a small amount of water can kill it.
Reason why people think clowns can go in such small tanks is because they are a type of damsel and can live through a nuclear holocaust and usually host in one part of the tank...if they aren't hosting they can swim all over the place. Also need to take in to consideration what type of clown you are getting based on their size.
It's like poorly raising a kid and only letting them eat junk food, sure it works and it can last for a while but eventually it will bite both of you in the ***.
bassplaya12
New member
I've seen people keeping clowns in a 10g for at least a year, some more. I understand there are different types of clowns that grow to different sizes. I also understand the dragonet is very hard to take care of. How is it like feeding a kid junk food? We would feed both of them properly, we would just try to ween the madarin onto pellets or frozen. People have done that and made it work. ORA is tank raising those right now
sslak
New member
I think one small clown would be ok for a year or two, but they get pretty big. I always try to plan for a full size adult fish. Have you seen a full grown clownfish?
My 5 year old female is over 3" and they can grow over 5 inches. They can live 15 years and get surprisingly big!
Based on a 5 inch fish, your 10g will be just over 2 body lengths wide and deep, and 6 body lengths long...think about it.
My 5 year old female is over 3" and they can grow over 5 inches. They can live 15 years and get surprisingly big!
Based on a 5 inch fish, your 10g will be just over 2 body lengths wide and deep, and 6 body lengths long...think about it.
bassplaya12
New member
I have seen some pretty big clownfish, but probably not full grown. This tank may only be up for a year or two any ways as we would have more space to upgrade to like a 29g or something after. Has anyone actually kept a clownfish in captivity for 15 years?
I meant the kid will get overweight at an early age and end up with health problems and die. I'm not comparing what you feed your fish, I'm comparing how you can get away with bad things that seem ok, but eventually they catch up to you.
bassplaya12
New member
That is crazy!
Gotcha, the bad thing here being keeping fish in too small of a tank. Lot's of people do it still. What fish do you honestly think we could get away with? Really keeping a reef fish in anything less than 500g is bad, but people do it.
Depends on the fish, as long as they have ACTIVE swimming room and can establish territories. Personally I think most fish around 3-4 inch are good for aquariums otherwise your looking at the 500g+ range. This is a really heated debate though with many people...it's like debating religion and politics to some people.
Personally I would just get a firefish pair for a 10g and then get a cleaner shrimp and concentrate on small coral frags and you will have a lot of nice contrasting colors.
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