manderins are best kept in WELL ESTABLISHED tanks. Unless you get on that will eat flake or frozen food -(which is almost never) they only feed on "pods". And even in an established tank they can starve.. after eating all the pods. But they have to be one of the coolest fish going! I had one for a long time that did eat flake lived about 6 yrs but he was the one in a million that would. All the others I have had since did not last nearly that long. So I stopped buying them. Someday maybe I'll try again.