Photo by Marc Levenson

In January '04, our club meeting at one LFS scored me this lovely fish. It is an Orange Mandarin. I'd never seen or heard of one this color, but I did have a Green Target Mandarin that might like a mate. This female was chased by the male for months, and I thought they'd never get along, but now they cruise the 55g each day searching for food. Because of the fish I keep, I also hatch live brine shrimp every 48 hours to assure the Mandarin has live food. She continues to look fat and happy, but her coloration has faded to a greenish color, though not as vivid green as the male Target Mandarin. My guess is that orange was a juvenile pigmentation. Reef-safe.
Close this window