Please help, picked up a red scooter blenny!

[Hoopz87]

And was completely unaware that they pretty much need a pod population to survive, so I have a 30 gallon cube with about 30 pounds of live rock. 40 pounds of live sand. It's been up for about 5 months and have been using nutri-sea water for all water changes n such, my levels are always mint and all corals are doing great, but I'm worried about keeping this new little guy because of the pod situation. I don't have a fuge or a sump, just a HOB aquaclear 70 And an eheim 250 canister , can I continuously add pods bought from my lfs to ensure he survives? Just purchased today and trying to figure out my options.

 

[mbingha]

Prime example of why you research BEFORE you buy.

 

[TipSeaReefer]

I'm interested in keeping that same fish.. following along.

 

[Hoopz87]

Prime example of why you research BEFORE you buy.

are you on this forum to be a dick or to help people ? I made an impulse but because I thought if was a blenny, understandable. Have you ever made an impulse buy in your life? And hey, I'm on the forum in the first hour after purchasing it because I clearly have concern, otherwise you would have been reading a post that said "scooter died", no? Smh

 

[nodak]

It is also called a Ruby Red Dragonet. I have had one for about 4 months. It eats Cyclops an enriched brine shrimp. It does seem to struggle with the larger brine shrimp. I have even noticed it pick at flake food. But it seems to hunt for pods all day long. Nice an fat.

 

[Dapg8gt]

What he said is the truth if you want to take it the way you took it or not but honestly your tank is too small to keep that Fish in general. I'm not trying to be a Richard but I'd return it for another fish or piece of coral. The dragonette Can and will eat hundreds if not thousands of miniscule pods a day.

They are all wild caught I believe from the Philippines so it's very unlikely to be trained on pellets or frozen food and even eating brine it will be pretty much be a slow starvation in your tank. Unless your buying thousands of pods all the time it's as good as gone.

All just my opinion and most places that sell them or others that own them =).. I have one in a 105g and won't be getting any other type of pod eating fish

 

[mbingha]

are you on this forum to be a dick or to help people ? I made an impulse but because I thought if was a blenny, understandable. Have you ever made an impulse buy in your life? And hey, I'm on the forum in the first hour after purchasing it because I clearly have concern, otherwise you would have been reading a post that said "scooter died", no? Smh

Not being a D, just being honest. I have a 75 with tons of pods and a decent sized fuge, but I wouldn't buy one because I plan on having wrasses that would compete for food. It's unlikely you would be able to keep that fish more than 6 months. I'd be impressed if it didn't starve before a year.

 

[mbingha]

Besides, in today's world chances are good you have a smart phone in which you can look up any fish you like at the lfs.

 

[Xavibear]

It took me about a year to stop making impulse buys. I also have my wife look up the pretty fish that she likes in books that most lfs keep for customer use. Its made her stop making impulse buys also. We all live & learn.

I second taking it back & getting something else.

 

[Ambition]

Technically that isn't a red scooter blenny, it is a ruby red dragonet which is a completely different species that is not described at this time. Dragonet species will plow through upwards of 2000 pods per day, so that would mean buying a container of pods from your LFS every day. If you can afford that, great, but chances are that it isn't very logical from a financial perspective. I would highly recommend returning the fish to the LFS, or better yet, selling it to a local with a much larger tank. Use the money towards a different fish or a coral frag instead after learning to do some quick research before buying another fish. Common names are deceiving because scooter blennies aren't in the blenny family at all, and why I favor scientific names.

 

[Fish_King_25]

Long term, it's going to be very tough. Buying pods to support his diet won't be an option, regardless of how much money you have to support the hobby..2000+ pods a day is an unrealistic number..mandarins consume a pod once every 10-15 seconds..math puts that number up over 5,000 pods per day.

Without a fuge to provide an ample environment for a pod population to grow and reproduce, it's going to be extremely difficult long term.

M2C is try and get your money back or store credit and use that towards an upgrade. If you love the fish, put it on your list to add when you upgrade

 

[alton]

For now add pods and get him trained to eat frozen/pellets. The trick is to make sure he has no competition for food.

 

[Paul B]

It is a dragonette but I even call them scooter bleenies. They do eat a lot of pods just like it's more colorful cousin a mandarin. I have breeding mandarins, tiny pipefish and scooter dragonettes but my tank is very old and has enough food. I do however suppliment the tank with this feeder that I have been using for quite a few years.
I fill it with newborn brine shrimp and they stay in there for a few hours while the fish feast.




Here is a video of them eating from it with some friends.

 

[SS_Sean]

That's a ruby red if I'm not mistaken... I have a scooter dragonet, and we feed him frozen nutramar prawn roe, and he loves it. We currently have a good pod population in the 170g tank we just moved him to, but eventually will have to go back to target feeding him the roe again. He's fat and happy.

 

[CedzAquAddictio]

They are beautiful fish, and I've honestly made impulse buys myself when I first entered this hobby. Shame on me for that, and shame on the LFS (to an extent) for selling me the fish. You are learning the same lesson many of us have. Just make sure it's a stepping stone for all future purchases, and you'll be fine...

That being said, with all honesty, you have an up-hill battle with that fish in such a new tank. Even with your tank being aged and a thriving pod population, that fish will likely eat more pods than that tank can produce daily.

I have a 225g tank with about 250 pounds of LR, and I have added about 9,000-10,000 pods to my fuge about 6 months ago. I see pod molts floating around my tank daily, which means that I have an established pod population. Still the same, I'll wait another 6 months, or so before I add my mandarin to the tank. I want the pods to have a self-sustaining and reproducing establishment in both my tank and my fuge before I add my mandarin. They literally eat all day, and frozen foods are only supplemental.

I said all of that for a reason. Pods live within every nook and cranny of LR that they can. 40 pounds of LR simply doesn't provide enough hiding places for a pod population to hide, live, eat, reproduce, and hide again until they reach maturity to produce the next generation of pods before being eaten by a mandarin, or scooter in your case. That fish will literally pick your rock clean within hours...

The best advice I can offer is to trade that fish back in...

Best of luck!!!

 

[alton]

Here is my Red Scooter Blenny, I am hoping to get a Ruby Red this week? Eats a little of everything, goes crazy with Cyclopeze

 

[MondoBongo]

i will concur with the others.

a tank that small, and that young, with no sump or fuge, is not a good habitat for a dragonet.

really a 75 with at least a sump and supplemental feeding is the best base line.

 

[Paul B]

I disperse pellets in my tank at night just to feed the pods as I have a lot of creatures that depend on them.

 

[acesq]

Paul: What an awesome video! What size holes do you have in that container? I assume you weigh it down with something, is that right?

 

[Paul B]

That is just a fine net, but nylon stockings may work. There is some lead in there encapsulated in Goop Glue and there is an acrylic tube going to the surface with a funnel on it to load the baby shrimp