I am thinking of setting up a 5 or 10 gal. nano to house seahorses and mandarins (I put them together since the feeding requirements are similar). Is this possible? I was thinking of a setup with lots of Caulerpa and some Tonga branch LR, stocked with 2 seahorses, mandarin fish, and some snails, crabs, maybe a cleaner shrimp. Is a five gallon to small and a 10 gal. more appropriate? Also, are those kit aquariums appropriate for a marine environment? All help appreciated and thanks in advance.
seahorse/mandarin nano?
- Thread starter fishfanatic2
- Start date
Seahorses do best in species specific tanks. For more info check this forum out:
http://www.seahorse.org/forums/
Mandarins would not survive in a tank that small. Most recommend at least a 55 gallon tank (with at least 55lbs of live rock). Mandarins feed on pods and a small tank will not provide enough to sustain them.
http://www.seahorse.org/forums/
Mandarins would not survive in a tank that small. Most recommend at least a 55 gallon tank (with at least 55lbs of live rock). Mandarins feed on pods and a small tank will not provide enough to sustain them.
I think that would be great tank... one that I would envy. Just have to make sure you get a mandarin that is already weaned on frozen stuff. I could forsee a problem with the mandarin out-competing the sea horses for food though during feeding time. I don't think crabs would be good idea with the sea horses...
Definetely go with a 10g if you attempt this... a 10g tall if such a tank exists. Best of luck to you if you go ahead with this.
-AM-
Definetely go with a 10g if you attempt this... a 10g tall if such a tank exists. Best of luck to you if you go ahead with this.
-AM-
Mandarin-no way. I think even a 55 is pushing it. They don't normally eat frozen foods, and even those that do end up not getting enough to eat. They need to graze copepods and amphipods all day off the LR, so a huge amount of LR that's well matured, say 100-120 lbs after about 6 months, is needed to fullfill their appetite.
Seahorses-maybe. I've read recommendations of a tank three times the full grown height. I would check out seahorse.org for more info. As with any fish, I would try it in a larger more stable tank before feeling comfortable putting it in a nano.
Seahorses-maybe. I've read recommendations of a tank three times the full grown height. I would check out seahorse.org for more info. As with any fish, I would try it in a larger more stable tank before feeling comfortable putting it in a nano.
I think if the mandarin was weaned onto frozen foods and was fed 3-4 times a day it would do just fine. With a tank that size, though, you'd be doing water changes every 4-5 days unless it was super heavily skimmed and you've got lots of macro algae growing. But I don't have any experience keeping mandarins FWIW (I would definetely get one for my nano if I could put any more fish in there!). If you wanted to get pygmy seahorses, people commonly keep more than a few in a 10g.
-AM-
-AM-
Yeah they'll work but be prepared to do some DIY surgery to the setups... first you'd probably want to gut out the lights and put in some power compacts if you want to keep anything photosynthetic (and have it thrive). You won't need the wet dry filtration setup either if you plan to have LR in your tank, which I highly recommend. This wet/dry area they have in the hood is a great place for a mini refugium so I've heard. Throw in some sea lettuce and some pods and viola... you've got a tiny pod farm.
Did your LFS explain why it was bad to have on a marine tank? They weren't trying to sell you a more expensive sump or something like that were they?
Keep us posted on your plans.
-AM-
Did your LFS explain why it was bad to have on a marine tank? They weren't trying to sell you a more expensive sump or something like that were they?
Keep us posted on your plans.
-AM-
. I'll definitely have a few lbs. of LR in the tank.OK, so this is the plan if I decide to set up the tank.
-an Eclipse system 6 (all I have room for).
-a 50 watt Ebo-Jager heater
-Aragonite reef sand, like 15 lbs.
-Tonga/Fiji rock, approx. 10-15 lbs.
-some caulerpa
-some pods
-possibly a 32 watt PC retro, if I decide to keep photosynthetic creatures (which I probably will)
My question is-Will I be able to keep any sponges , especially finger-type ones, without the upgrade PC kit? From my understanding, sponges are low-light critters, but I just want to confirm.
-an Eclipse system 6 (all I have room for).
-a 50 watt Ebo-Jager heater
-Aragonite reef sand, like 15 lbs.
-Tonga/Fiji rock, approx. 10-15 lbs.
-some caulerpa
-some pods
-possibly a 32 watt PC retro, if I decide to keep photosynthetic creatures (which I probably will)
My question is-Will I be able to keep any sponges , especially finger-type ones, without the upgrade PC kit? From my understanding, sponges are low-light critters, but I just want to confirm.
It sounds like a good setup. 50 watt heater may be a bit big, I just grab the smallest one available. Sponges are going to be incredibly difficult to keep alive in your nano. For one thing, they need a tremendous amount of flow and your eclipse won't even come close to cutting it. Another requirement is for a huge amount of planktonic food on a very regular basis, which will cause water quality problems in such a small water volume. I'm not saying it's impossible, but many experienced reefkeepers have failed to keep sponges alive in huge reef tanks. You should really try any difficult animal in a large tank before you attempt to do it in a nano. I'd suggest getting something hardier like corallimorphians or zoanthids.
UnderGrad":1ko6l1me said:
And thusly, it puts you in a rather poor position in relation to your purported argument. It is generally well-accepted that, because of their dietary requirements, the best place for a Mandarin is in a large, well-established reef system. My own experience bears this out, as does that of the curator of the LBAOP. Therefore, Matt is entirely correct in his assessment of their needs.
For instance, these fish must feed almost constantly, how is feeding on a human schedule going to meet this animals' needs? How can we, feeding frozen foods in a woefully small system, provide adequate nutrition for a long and healthy life of the fish? Hard-pressed doesn't begin to address these issues. I don't think enough l/r could be fit into a 10g to properly feed a mandarin, unless you had a huge 'fuge along with (and, I'd probably want to nix the skimming in that case).
So, in my own opinion, a Mandarin would be a very iffy choice for a nano resident. I've mixed mollies with seahorses, but I can't necessarily recommend that, either. I think something very small, such as neon gobies, would be a better choice.
Also there are 'pygmy' seahorses you can get that are very small - many will only take newly hatched brine though.
A good tankmate for seahorses in my opinion would be something like a small watchman goby - they stay on the bottom, are easy to feed usually and will occasionally turn the substrate thus providing some housekeeping benefits - plus they are low key and fun to watch.
www.oceanrider.com is the site for captive bred seahorses - I didn't see you mention it but try to get captive bred - most wild horses don't do well at all - as a bonus many of the captive ones are acclimated to eating prepared instead of live foods.
A good tankmate for seahorses in my opinion would be something like a small watchman goby - they stay on the bottom, are easy to feed usually and will occasionally turn the substrate thus providing some housekeeping benefits - plus they are low key and fun to watch.
www.oceanrider.com is the site for captive bred seahorses - I didn't see you mention it but try to get captive bred - most wild horses don't do well at all - as a bonus many of the captive ones are acclimated to eating prepared instead of live foods.
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