Fish of the Day

Date: September 19, 2023, 8:00 AM

Happy Tuesday everyone! Today's fish of the day is Mandarin Dragonet!

The Mandarin Dragonet, also known as the Manderinfish, Periwinkle Mandarin, and Synchiropus splendidus, is known for their bright coloring. Especially, they are known as one of the only two vertebrate species in the entire world to have blue coloring because of cellular pigment- the other being the psychedelic mandarin, a closely related species.

These fish live in warm sections of the Pacific ocean, found from Southern Japan down to the shores of Australia, although they are fairly common in the saltwater aquarium trade. Their large pelvic fins are used for "walking" along the seafloor, whereas the nearly transparent pectoral fins are used for swimming, albeit weakly. These fish are reef dwelling, and can only reach sizes as small as 6 cm.

Their diet consists of small worms, fish eggs, and invertebrates, all caught within their reef and lagoon homes. In captivity, the manderinfish is known for being difficult to keep, as they are very particular about food, and will often starve themselves rather than eat what they are provided with. They can only be fed live invertebrates. Although, in tanks they are incredibly resistant to disease, such as marine itch. This is due to a slime layer coating their body, rather than scales.

Everyone have a wonderful Tuesday!