Although ORA claims that their mandarins eat frozen, pellet, etc…I haven’t seen mine eat any of these foods yet. So far, I’ve tried feeding cyclopeeze, frozen PE mysis (chopped up), blackworms, & Spectrum small pellets. I’ve noticed that my fish hangs out in the lowest flow area of my frag tank, where the most pods seem to be. Since I haven’t witnessed it eating anything I’ve given it; and it’s been 3 weeks; and it’s not dead yet; I can only guess that it’s eating my pods. On ReefCentral, there’s a thread were people have lost their fish due to starvation. It’s sad, but I think ORA may have over promised and under delivered on this one. My official stance is that when buying an ORA Mandarin, you’re getting a Captive Raised Fish period and it will be just as difficult to raise as a wild caught one.
fish Archive
ORA Canary Blenny
I recently picked up a ORA Canary Yellow Blenny. I wanted a yellow fish and a yellow tang was out of the question (my Sohal would eat it alive!). This fish is very lively and likes to swim all over the place. I haven’t seen it eat anything yet, but hopefully it will soon.
ORA Description below:
Canary Blenny – Meiacanthus ovalaunensis
The Canary Blenny’s striking yellow color makes it an excellent addition to a reef aquarium. This exotic fish is found in the currents of lagoons and reefs off Fiji and Tonga where it feeds on zooplankton.
The Canary Blenny is a natural choice for a reef tank because it mixes well with other fish, the only exception being similarly shaped blennies, and it will not disturb corals. This fish should be kept in a tank of at least 20 gallons with ample places to hide. It may act aggressively toward other fish if provoked but is generally peaceful in a large aquarium. The Canary Blenny reaches a maximum size of 4″-5″ (10 – 12 cm).
Picture below is my blenny getting acclimated in the overflow box.
ORA Spotted Mandarin Goby- Captive raised!
Just picked up a newly introduced ORA Spotted Mandarin Goby from one of my favorite LFS, The Frazer Zoo. ORA has a very limited supply and is only providing 2 fish per store. I’ve seem prices vary greatly on this fish, but expect to pay around $50-60 per fish. Anything higher is too much. (I got a nice little deal on mine!)The fish I brought was very small, around an inch & a half. Unlike wild caught mandarins, these aren’t very active. They don’t appear to search for food constantly. I’ve put this fish in my frag tank, which has a lot of pods, and it doesn’t really seem to be grazing like I’d expect. From what I’ve read on Reefbuilders, these fish have been raised on Hikari Blood Worms, Nutramar Ova (prawn eggs), fish roe, baby brine shrimp, and New Life SPECTRUM Small Fish Formula pellets. I think I’m going to place this fish in an isolation basket to manually feed it and figure out what food it likes. Here’s some pictures of it getting acclimated.
Zeovit.com’s Third Dream Tank of the Quarter 2010
Check out the Third Dream Tank of the Quarter 2010 on Zeovit.com website. Although there are still skeptics out there, who think Zeovit is worthless, how can anyone argue these results?
http://www.zeovit.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20690
More fishes added: Hector’s goby, 5yr old Clarkii Clownfish, Blue Chromis
I’ve recently added a few fish into the fold. The first is a Hector’s goby(Amblygobius hectori)that grazes on algae all day long. It likes to hang out in the back of the tank, where there’s less flow and doesn’t get bothered by anyone. Another new addition to the tank is a 5yr old Clarkii clownfish, given to me by a local fish keeper that took down his tank. This fish is the size of my Hippo tang and has made a home for himself in my RBTAs. He’s alittle aggressive toward fish swimming near his home, but other than that, has been a model citizen. Also given to me was a blue chromis that’s also old, about the same size as the chromis I already have.
Total fish is the tank: 14(Sohal Tang, Hippo Tang, Borbonius Anthia, 2 Lyretail Anthias, 2 Percula Clowns, Clarkii Clown, 2 Chromis, Lawnmower Blenny, Striped Fang Blenny, and Hector’s Goby).
