Mandarin Fish
pterosynchiropus splendidus
The mandarin fish is, without doubt,the most colourful of commonly found fish for marine aquarium enthusiasts.however this little tropical jewel requires conditions adapted to its way of life as its appetite is not the easiest to satisfy.
The mandarin fish can be found throughout the western pacific,between the surface and a depth of 20 metres.It belongs to the callionimidae family commonly family commonly called dragonets,Which are charactistisedby elongated bodies,without scales,and also by the presence of two dorsal fins.
In the aquarium:-
An aquarium of invertabrates is absoloutly necessary to acomadate these speices.The water must have a density between 1.022 and 1.026,a PH of 8.2 to 8.5 and a stable tempreture in the region of 24C. The diet should consist of live or frozen prey such as brine shrimps or myphsis shrimps or small scale krill.A few bloodworms are welcome from time to time.
Living with other fish does not cause a problem.Indeed,mandarins are totally ignored by other fish in the aquarium,apart from large predators,of course.The only thing to be avoided at all is placing two males together,because the death of one of the two adversaries.One male and several females form the ideal population.
Feeding
The food for this fish consists of creatures belonging to the micro-fauna of the reef : crustaceans,copepods,worms etc.It passes its day swimming over the substrate, searching for food.
In the aquarium,the decor should essentially be made up of living rocks, which contain all the small creatures necessary for the mandarin.A minimum perion of six months should be observed before introducing the mandarin to a tank, so that the micro-fauna can multiply in sufficient quantaties to satisfy thier appetite.
Breeding
At dusk, you can sometimes see the mandarins' amourus displays.The male and female spread thier dorsal fins and show off thier most beautiful colours.If they are in good condition, the egg laying takes place in the evening.The mating couple,attached by thier pectoral fins, rise to the surface, turning about each other and release thier eggs and milt in the open water.The fry can be raised, with some difficuly, in a breeding net or a special tank by feeding the larve of copepods.