Who took my mandarin?

[Mr_Cool]

It happened again! I got a nice little mandarin a few weeks ago. He would hide out in and under the rocks in the left rear corner of the tank. (I don't think he's ever made it past the halfway point in the tank.) I look for him everyday and usually, after a little while, I can find him. The past two days, though, he's nowhere to be seen. I just finished moving every piece of rock in the tank (it's spread out and not stacked very high at all) while watching for him to swim away, but no luck. I wouldn't think he would go over the overflow. I checked the sump and fuge anyway, but no luck there either.

There are no signs of him anywhere. They're not big jumpers are they? I couldn't see behind the tank very well, but it doesn't look like he's back there on the floor. The only other fish I have in there are some tangs and a chromis. There's a coral banded shrimp, but I don't think he could get to the mandarin. There's also a serpant star, but I'm sure he didn't get to the mandarin, either.

What gives? Could he still be in the tank? Has this happened to anyone else? I'm going to go look for him again!

[snakeman1979]

I was at a friend's house and noticed that one of his two mandarins was swimming around in the overflow box.

[SA-DSM]

I had a mandarin missing for a little over a month. At first I thought my anenome ate him. But after that month I saw something swimming around in my sump and there he was. Good luck.

[Jynxgirl]

I found my mandarin up on my glass brace. He was fried when I found him. I am guessing someone was chasing him. :( So, yes, they do jump. I hope your guy just wonders out one day.

Jill

[alton]

Lost one for about three months one time, before he reappeared fat and happy. If he or she is finding food in the rocks they are not likely going to come out in the open. Most of the time the one in my office tank comes out only when I feed, otherwise I don't see him much.

[caferacermike]

On the other hand they tend to come starved from the LFS and if yours was at that point it may have passed in your tank. The coral band shrimp would make quick work of it. And they are known as jumpers.