My green mandarins spawned the other night.  We captured quite a few larvae, but have not idea what their first foods should be.  I was told that Matt Pedersen is the master of breeding and would have some helpful info.

So, if Matt, or anyone else has any helpful information on getting these guys all grown up, please let me know.  Thanks.

Time to buckle down and read up! I actually compiled a pretty massive reference on mandarin breeding back @ MOFIB, and you will definitely want to review it, and all the associated references - http://www.marinebreeder.org/phpbb/...&t=128 - at this point there have been at least a half dozen people who've reared mandarins successfully in captivity, and if I guestimate at the rate things go, there are probably another half dozen I just haven't heard about.

Here's what I can tell you about my own experiences with Mandarin breeding. I'm still working with Mandarins today, although with our recent move, rearing fish is on hold until Feb 2010. I still have 2 pairs of greens ready to go! In the past, my longest surviving larvae made it to either 10 or 14 days (I had two batches mixed together). If it was the 14 days (which I think it was), it may have actually settled to the bottom and simply been lost...and thus poured down the drain when I shouldn't have! In other words, I may have shot myself in the foot.

There are a few other people who've had real successful rearings. The general consensus is that you can raise a few here and there with Rotifers (preferably small strain) & Greenwater technique, but the addition of copepod nauplii will greatly increase the odds. Still, you might only get 1, 2, 10 or 15 out of a spawn at best.

Use of a kriesel or black round tub as a rearing environment will also greatly improve success, but you have to know how to actually use these vessels properly to get the benefits from them. Mandarins might currently be considered one of the most difficult marine fish that CAN be spawned and reared by hobbyists, but if this is the first marine fish you attempt to rear, wow, there is an INCREDIBLE learning curve. Experiences with easier species (even clownfish can be frustrating) would help any prospective breeder in developing the "instincts" that become necessary to tackle a fish like the Mandarin.

Feel free to ask ANY followup questions you might have, but by all means, go read first! There's a TON of information and forum posts out there on the subject these days.