Enkay January 7, 2014 Share January 7, 2014 Has anyone here tried breeding these pretty fish? Any experiences to share? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 7, 2014 Author Share January 7, 2014 No one ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharkey18 January 7, 2014 Share January 7, 2014 Looks like your on your own! My guess is its pretty darn hard… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YHSublime January 7, 2014 Share January 7, 2014 I think the closest you're going to get is PaulB, who states frequently that his are in breeding condition and spawning. I believe he has videos and pictures of them courting. I think that's about as far as it goes in his tank, as we heard, I bet it's probably pretty complicated, but I'm just guessing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 7, 2014 Author Share January 7, 2014 Hmm, well its worth a try. worst case I wont succeed . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott_LM January 7, 2014 Share January 7, 2014 Check on Reefcentral, breeders registry and MOFIB (if still active). There have been many that were trying (Matt Pederson sp?) was trying I think at one point. If I remember correctly the larva are very small and difficult to collect. If you are going to try breeding marine fish i would suggest to find a pair of clowns and hone your skills there. They are the easiet larval baring fish that I know of. Then you can move on to the more complicated species. Good luck!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 7, 2014 Author Share January 7, 2014 Thank you Scott! Will check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grav January 8, 2014 Share January 8, 2014 I beleive that only Matt W & ORA have been successful... very difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PotomacBoater January 8, 2014 Share January 8, 2014 Didn't Jan's mandarins spawn? I don't think she did anything other than good husbandry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SunWyrm January 8, 2014 Share January 8, 2014 (edited) They can spawn frequently, mine do did. It's raising the fry that's the difficult part. I guess I should edit with, they used to. When my previous male died I got a new, smaller male. My female started chasing him on the first day, trying to get some I can only guess. They follow each other now, but no courting yet. And to add, even without being able to collect the fry, having successfully spawning pairs in your tank is awesome. My falco hawkfish pair spawns frequently as well. Edited January 8, 2014 by SunWyrm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 8, 2014 Author Share January 8, 2014 Thanks for all the input guys. From everything I have read so far, the fry eat specific rotifers/zooplankton. Trying to find out what type these are. By the looks of it, it is the feeding of the fry that is "difficult" but if you try and take good care, it is possible. I am approaching it as an experiment and a challenge. If I succeed and raise fry, everyone here gets tank raised mandarins for free . So wish me luck . After breeding all kinds of freshwater fish, some easy, some very difficult, I want to try these for sure. Going to try and set up a tank and all in the next month or so, I have a pair in my display tank. They are not showing spawning behavior yet. hopefully they will. Else, might get another pair for breeding purposes. Has anyone done rotifer cultures ? How easy/hard is it to sustain one? Rotifers seem to be the primary food for the fry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul b January 17, 2014 Share January 17, 2014 They spawn about every five weeks. They are also a very easy fish, but you need a mature tank that is not very sterile. IMO a 4 or 5 year old tank is not very mature. There are plenty of pods in my tank as I have quite a few fish that only eat pods, but I supplement the mandarins diet in a feeder with new born brine shrimp. They also eat blackworms and whiteworms but it may take a while for them to recognize them as food. Here is a pregnant female. Here they are spawning. Dining at their feeder And a video of them eating from the feeder along with some friends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JR-Tanked150 January 17, 2014 Share January 17, 2014 Good luck with this challenge. Very interested in it. Keep posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 19, 2014 Author Share January 19, 2014 Paul, et. al., I do have a pair (m/f) of mandarins and the male eats blackworms. I have seen it so I know he eats them. I am trying to create a feeder like paul has done to feeb bbs but I can't find the right mesh. I hope I do soon. I do dump a bunch of bbs in the tank and I do have a lot of pods. The female does not come out to feed on blackworms bt is foraging in the rocks. I am hoping one of these days I will see their mating dance and then one day I might catch them spawning. Thanks for all the input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul b January 19, 2014 Share January 19, 2014 Nylon stockings may work. Not that I wear them or anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Valeria January 19, 2014 Share January 19, 2014 Thanks for all the input guys. From everything I have read so far, the fry eat specific rotifers/zooplankton. Trying to find out what type these are. By the looks of it, it is the feeding of the fry that is "difficult" but if you try and take good care, it is possible. I am approaching it as an experiment and a challenge. If I succeed and raise fry, everyone here gets tank raised mandarins for free . So wish me luck . After breeding all kinds of freshwater fish, some easy, some very difficult, I want to try these for sure. Going to try and set up a tank and all in the next month or so, I have a pair in my display tank. They are not showing spawning behavior yet. hopefully they will. Else, might get another pair for breeding purposes. Has anyone done rotifer cultures ? How easy/hard is it to sustain one? Rotifers seem to be the primary food for the fry. Rotifer cultures are easy to keep but for me if was very annoying to have to keep the culture alive while my fish were not breeding. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 21, 2014 Author Share January 21, 2014 Nylon stockings may work. Not that I wear them or anything. Thats a good idea. Wife wont be very happy to see one missing though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul b January 21, 2014 Share January 21, 2014 I put duct tape over the holes I cut out in my wifes nylons so she don't notice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lnevo January 21, 2014 Share January 21, 2014 Do the laundry...then after you cut a piece out, tell her it got chewed by the dryer...if she gives you H-E-double hockey sticks tell her your never doing laundry again...if she doesn't give you H-E-double hockey sticks, then she might never let you do laundry again...either way you get stocking for your mandarins, and might end up never doing laundry again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2nhle January 21, 2014 Share January 21, 2014 Very interesting. tagging along. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay January 22, 2014 Author Share January 22, 2014 I like the duct tape idea better. The coverup will be flawless Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OcalaReefGirl January 27, 2014 Share January 27, 2014 I am so very interested in your efforts! Let us know what progress you make. I am going to try to start with a few easier fish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay February 19, 2014 Author Share February 19, 2014 So some general update. Today evening, I caught the pair doing the "mating dance". It is real cool to watch. No idea if they eventually released any eggs but by the looks of it, they are getting in the mood for sure. I did capture a grainy cell phone video. Will post tomorrow as I am too relaxed to get up and get the charger cable from the other room. Unfortunately, I will have to let this time pass as I leave for India next Thursday and will be gone for a couple weeks. Once I get back though, I think I can try and get this project started. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmerek2 February 19, 2014 Share February 19, 2014 Those mandarins look friskier than Paris Hilton on prom night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enkay February 20, 2014 Author Share February 20, 2014 Sorry for the blue grainy video. Will try a better one next time. Its exciting when this happens in your DT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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