Mandarin Fish
Description
Mandarin fish are beautifully colored fish living in reefs and lagoons . They grow up to 6 cm long and can be blue to yellow, orange, purple and green with wavy orange lines. They are highly reclusive during the day when they are seen among coral branches. They feed on small crustaceans, eggs of fish and other invertebrates. Their lifespan is about 10-15 years. They secrete muscus from their skin, which helps repel predators and keep them clean from parasites. Their bright coloration is not to attract a mate, instead they use it to mislead predators into believing that they may be toxic. Mandarin fish are very skittish and shy because of that they avoid other fish. They are often spotted living harmoniously with staghorn coral, pajama cardinal fish and with the endemic cardinalfish. Mandarin fish are categorized under small sized fish with a very little weight. Its length is about 6 cm but sometimes up to 7 cm. Their body also consists of light reflecting cells. They have 8 dorsal soft ray, 4 dorsal spines but they do not have any anal spines. Unlike most marine fish species mandarin fish do not have any scales. They have a slimy skin. Mandarin fish have eyes set outwards. This gives them the special ability to hunt for their food underwater and to eat amidst dim light environments. Mandarin fish live in pairs and schools up to 5. The mandarin fish gets its name from its extreme and bizarre coloration.
Classification
Scientific name - Synchiropus Splendidus
Order - Perch-like fishes
Family - Dragonet
Kingdom - Animalia
Class - Ray-finned fishes
Phylum - Chordate
Genus - Synchriopus
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Distribution
They live in inshore reefs and shallow protected lagoons, and are found mostly under dead corals near the rubble beds of ocean. They are usually found at depths of 1 to 18m. They are native to Indo-Pacific Oceans and Coral triangle of biodiversity including Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia and the Philippines including the Great Barrier Reef.
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The reproduction and breeding of these fish can occur weekly, through out the year. The mating performance of the mandarin fish is very very exclusive. Prior to sunset, around 3 to 5 females gather together where the males visit for courtship in a particular region of the coral reef. These males even tour around various regions in a single evening and spread their sperms among multiple females. The female will join a successful male, The pair will join together belly to belly and rise above the reef almost a meter. At the peak of their ascent, they will release about 200 eggs at a time and sperm. External fertilization occurs when a male and a female are in close contact and swimming upward. After that the couple disappears. Mandarin fish lives up to 10 to 15 years.
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Sadly, Mandarin fish are heavily in demand due to their beauty. They are threatened by the private aquarium trade and do very poorly in captivity due to their dietary requirements – as well as the impact of overfishing and pollution, humans pose a great threat to these fragile ecosystems. Why are we doing such horrible things to these poor helpless animal? Please care about animals to stop them from extinction.
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