Mandarin requirements

[mattnbecs]

I was reading a magazine article on Mandarins last week, and as well as all the usual advises normally given if you want to keep mandaring (mature tank, plenty of LR, refugium) there another piece of advice I had not heard of before.

It stated that it is a good idea to place 2 skunk cleaner shrimps or two peppermint shrimps in the refugiums. The shrimps will start spawning within a few weeks, therefore providing shrimp larva to the main tank and to the mandarin

Has any of you tried this before? Have you noticed the spawning? do any of the larvae actually grow to adult size?

Thanks
Matteo

 

[rogergolf66]

I have to cleaners in the display not the fug. I haven't noticed anything.

roger

 

[waxy]

HAHAHAHA Thats the coolest andcutest avatar ever Roger.

How did you ever manage to get a picture of a maroon inside an anemone like that?

That maroon must be so fat he got stuck.

Mattnbecs - Shrimps get eggs all the time. Mine for that matter, they look greenish in color and are located underneath their tail. There are days where I see the eggs there others I dont.

My guess is that the fish in my tank or other inverts eat them prior to hatching.

If you are raising those cleaners in the fuge you might be successful. I havent heard many people pull this off with any success.

If you want to feed the mandarin, you might want to get the sushi eggs. The smaller ones, bright orange in color. Make sure it is unseasoned. They might eat seaweed too. Goodluck though, I was never really good at keep psychedelic fish.

 

[mltmtascp]

I have two peppermint shrimp in every tank. They hatch eggs (at night) about once a month. Everybody eats until none are left. I've had a few live for several weeks but never got more thant 1/4 inch long before someone eventually ate them. I don't have aptasia and the fish get free food once a month. Caution: Peppermint shrimp eat frogspawn... Other than that, no problems.

 

[mattnbecs]

sounds like the article I read makes sense.

If I placed 2 peppermint shrimp in the refugium, would they need specific feeding? I have a 200micron filter after the overflow, before the refugium