Mandarin Goby

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10410918#post10410918 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by MrSaltLife
Dosing the tigger pods and starting a live phytoplankton dosing regiment will help alot. Your corals will love it too

How Would you do this

There are several places to buy live tiggerpods or other types of copepods. Many of the LFS in my area carry them or you can get them from several places online. I know reefnutrition.com carries tigger pods. DT and reefnutrition also sell live phytoplankton, I have used both and they work great. If ordering from reefnutrition make certain it is the "live" phyto, they also carry a non-live version, which is great for corals, but not so great for pods. I dose a capful of DT live phyto every day. Within a day you will notice a pod population explosion. live phyto dosing equals happy corals, happy pods, fat mandarin. :D

I am sure you will find this everywhere on this forum if you look but I thought it a good idea to bring up. I would still recommend as a bare MINIMUM (if your mandarin isn't readily eating prepared foods) 50lbs of live rock in display, with lots of nooks and cranies for the pods to hide, and a refugium with another 3-5lbs. of live rock (minimum) and a good amount of Cheatomorpha macro algae. Pods and live mysids love living in cheato. Your tank should also be matured at least 6 months.
 
Also, I noticed that once it's lights out my mandarin is done for the day and goes to a corner and sleeps. So... if you have an emaciated goby extended the lighted hours for a few mintues to give it extra time to sleep.

Maidens hair is another awesome macro algae pod factory. It produces a nasty taste that fish can't stand that allow pods populations to explode in.
 
Isn't that like green hair algae? Kind of you don't want it I thought? You can just set up "pod piles" which seem to be easier and less macro algae in the tank. Just use small pieces of rock rubble and stack them together close enough so that the mandarin and other fish can't get in.
 
Here you go Salty a non fat male blue target mandarin
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sorry the pics are blurry I just emptied a sponge that was full of pods to get him out for the picture.


Nitro- maiden hair is not exactly like hair algae. Hair algae will smother your corals, maidens hair is not fast growing- but any macro algae will do.
 
I just dosed 3 bottles of live tigger pods today (6oz), hopefully that will help my tank too! :) I also set up 2 "pod piles" on each end of the tank, hopefully that works.
 
Now that your's has had a day or two to acclimate, why not post a pic MrSaltlife? Which one did you get and where did your get it from?
 
I have an old crapy computer that wont take my camera I have to go to walmart and put them on a cd? Not sure the specific name for mine they just called it a maderin at my lfs but it looks like yours
 
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