Pregnant Mandarin?

[Flame*Angel]

I've had Suki, my little female mandarin, for a very long time. She eats frozen foods and picks around the tank and has always done quite well. Last month I brought home Hendrix, a really, really big male. It was obviously love at first site, they paired up as soon as Hendrix was out of the bag and were inseparable. A couple times I actually witnessed their mating dance. Every night they slept close together on the sand.

A few weeks ago Suki started acting differently - ignoring Hendrix and hiding more than ever. She did continue to sleep with him at night though. One day I noticed she had a very large round belly, not like she'd gained weight really, the rounded shape was too distinct. I wasn't sure she was pregnant but I watched this belly swell for about two weeks and I remember thinking yesterday she looked like she was going to explode. I tried like heck to get a picture but none came out at all, just too secretive. I have witnesses though! :)

Today her belly is gone, well, back to normal. This is making me more sure that she really was carrying eggs. I checked the breeders registry but there's no real information on this. Anyone else ever see anything like this? Do fish really appear pregnant when carrying eggs? Or was Suki just constipated? ;)

PS - lots of pictures of both mandarins on my site, last month's batch show the two of them pairing up, this month's are all of Hendrix but some good closeups.

[oceanarus]

Yes females will look very big in the belly as they get ready to lay eggs and then look like they got skinny all of a sudden when they are laid.

I have heard of someone that had a pair in a really large reef that spawned and somehow some of the babies were able to grow up in there as well. Sorry but I don't know all the details of how this happened.

Watch your male and where he goes, I'll bet he is the one tending the nest. See if he keeps going to the same cave frequently, or doesn't venture far out of one.

I have heard people say that it is possible to raise their babies, but don't know of anyone that has.

Good Luck!

[Flame*Angel]

Thanks oceanarus. My tank is just a 120 gallon and I'm not holding out much hope for babies but I do have a friend who works in a lab at a local university where they have been breeding marine fish for a long time now. He might want to try moving Suki to their lab the next time she's "with eggs" and try hatching and raising them. Do you know at what point the eggs are fertilized? Would the male presence be required after the eggs are laid?

Better yet, anyone know where I can read about this?

PS - if there's a nest it's in the back of the tank where I can't see it. I can barely get a glimpse of either mandarin today. Hendrix, the male, is usually very outgoing and almost always visible but not today. I haven't seen Suki since early this morning.

Here's a recent picture of Hendrix, the male:
<img src="http://reefcentral.com/gallery/data/542/1320hendrix01.jpg">

[oceanarus]

Do you know at what point the eggs are fertilized? Would the male presence be required after the eggs are laid?

I would think that the male would have to be there as they are laid so that he can fertilize them. Pretty sure they will not be fertilized b4 she lays them.

[Gary Majchrzak]

Synchiropus {Mandarinfish} release their eggs into the water column where they are fertilized by the male. In the home aquarium, this is a difficult obstacle to overcome, as the free floating flotsam {or is it jetsam?} goes down the drains quickly- or is consumed.
Watch your mated pair of Mandarinfish closely at dusk for several 'dry runs' and then the final release of gametes.
I tried for many months to photograph my pair of Mandarinfish in the act, but it proved to be too much of a challenge for me to overcome. There are pics {by others on RC} of Mandarinfish in the act of reproduction.
Finally found a nice guy for your gal, eh, Susan?:D

[nbd13]

hey guys sorry to intrude here i have a quick question i have a 70 reef and would love mandrain, i knwo they are dificult and hard ot keep. but how long should i wait before my system is mature? i do haev a fuge to help with pods, isnt that a must for these fish? thanks!

Nick

[hcs3]

TRC member Dwayne has had some experience with trying to raise mandarin fry. you may wish to track him down...

[Flame*Angel]

Gary - yup, do you remember the first time I tried? It was a nice sized male but he was shipped from across the country and was rather sluggish out of the bag. She killed him the first night, I couldn't believe it. I was hesitant to try again but when I saw this fellow at the LFS I was so impressed with his size and relatively high activity level I decided to give it one more try. The female accepted him as soon as he was out of the bag. Whew!

I honestly don't think I'm willing to do what is required to try raising baby mandarins. I'm also not wanting to disturb the happy couple. They started doing their mating dance thing the very next night after the female laid her eggs. I'm not at all convinced they would do this if I were to set up another tank and move them. They might not be the same after moving them back either. I think I'll just enjoy their antics and leave them alone. They seem to be very happy together and I'm just going to leave it at that.

[karlas]

nbd13
they need an established tank usually about a year at least because the pods need to be well populated. having a fuge is a huge help with these fish im not sure to say its necessary i dont have a fuge and my mandarin is doing quite well but i got lucky with him since he eats frozen foods where a lot of them dont.

[nbd13]

karlas-what type of frozen food do they eat? thanks!


Nick

[oceanarus]

Mine eats brine shrimp and cyclopse-eze

[Flame*Angel]

Mine eats brine shrimp, small mysis shrimp and bloodworms.

[karlas]

Mine eats brine shrimp, blood worms, and a mix that i get thats frozen contains mysis shrimp and chopped up krill he like the krill out of it

[LisaP]

Susan,

Here's a pic of my female S. picturatus (sorry it's a bit small, I had to shrink it a lot to make the file size small enough). Her belly becomes unbelievably rounded when she's ready to spawn, like she's about to pop really. I always know which night is 'the' night for lurv. ;) The male and female do their dance (rise to the top of the tank, normally about 8 times) and then release eggs and sperm together at the apex of their dance. It's the most magical thing to watch.

Regards

Lisa

P.S. Hendrix sure is a beauty, I'm looking forward to seeing the latest shots of him. They don't seem to be showing for me on your web-site yet.

[pete_ra]

MY 65 gal is about a year old, and I am looking into getting a mandarin. To have a solid pod population, do you need to acctually see things scurrying on the live rock or on the glass, or can you not see them? thanks

[pete_ra]

By the way, great pics, and it looks like they are very healthy. I think we are all jealous of your little duo! ;)

[pete_ra]

By the way, great pics, and it looks like they are very healthy. I think we are all jealous of your little duo! ;)

[JonL]

I've kept a marnderin aloine for almost a year. No mater how much zooplanton you have it's gonna eat it all in no time.
Mine really hasen't grown that much at all. But like corals without pictures who can tell.

Mine don't like mysis ha ha LOL

Oh and my cat's breath smells like cat food

[Flame*Angel]

In my tank I have way more live mysis shrimp than pods. The amphipods are there and can be seen but the tank definitely isn't crawling with them. The mysis are tiny, fast little guys and are just everywhere. Any crack you look into has them. They scoot out from under the "skirts" of the anemones to grab food and scott back in. I think the fact that the female at least is eating frozen foods makes a huge difference.

I tried getting her a mate once before actually. He was a big male as well but not as big as this guy. He was shipped across the country and came in a big sluggish. Suki killed him the first night. It was very sad. Apparently he just wasn't acceptable. I wasn't sure I wanted to try again but it was really love at first site, no problems at all. Whew!

LisaP - that's just like Suki's belly was! I couldn't believe it, just like she was ready to explode! Regarding my site, you should be able to see the latest shots in the latest bunch I uploaded. Click "Current Tank Photos" from the bottom of the front page.

[blackjacks_mom]

Originally posted by Flame*Angel
PS - lots of pictures of both mandarins on my site, last month's batch show the two of them pairing up, this month's are all of Hendrix but some good closeups. I checked out your website. Your tank is beautiful. I especially like your copperband. Wow! The last shot of him is one in a million.

And I like how you have named all of your fish.

Thanks for sharing your tank.

[Gus]

Susan,

I've seen your site and gave it a good read through after you won "Tank of the Month" - well done by the way :thumbsup:
I visit fairly often, mainly because of your mandarins - Hendrix especially, he's such a fat fellah!!!

I've had similar experiences with my mandarins as well, one night the female is ready to pop and the next she looks like she's joined Fat Blasters, or something.

Here's a thread if you do get the urge to raise they fry (oh, and if you do, I'd be happy to relieve you of any excess ones you don't have room for, Hahahahahaharrrr!);

http://archive.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=230258

[Flame*Angel]

Thanks for the kind words. I bookmarked that thread, just in case.

I stopped down to my LFS earlier today and I couldn't believe it. They have Hendrix's twin brother there! They didn't have him when I bought Hendrix but they got him from the same supplier. He's as big and beautiful as Hendrix, I don't think I could tell them appart. No way I'd attempt two males though. Nice buy for someone, I sure hope he goes to a good home!