i'm not really up on stats, i don't actually take a formal stats course until next fall. simply put, it's too easy for the results of these polls to be skewed.
however, i was not familiar with many success stories involving mandarins in smaller tanks. i may have to reevaluate my opinion on this.
edit:
upon reading reef_rafs update, i must comment. as noted, i am not familiar with this poll. however if the majority of the respondents said "i had a mandarin in a ~40 gallon tank and it died", and one or two individuals said "i have one in a ~50 gallon and it's healthy", this does not prove that 40 gallons is the cutoff. as an example, a survey in canada must include the responses of 6000 individuals (as i recall) to be counted as valid. a survey of 50 individuals is hardly representative.
as for returning fish, let me explain why i support this action - understanding that the conditions at the LFS are worse than in the aquarists tank, and that the fish will be purchased by yet another misinformed hobbyist, i feel by returning the fish, you are making a statement to the LFS. this also means you become yet another informed hobbyist. the more informed hobbyists, the less fish will die, the less will need to be imported, the less will be removed from the reef. this may be a little extreme, but in the interest of maintaining adequate reproductive stock to provide for future generations, i feel it is essential. of course, i also feel the government should institute a permit system for individuals wishing to keep animals - i think i could almost be classed as an extremist - but it is the responsibility of human beings to take care of the creatures we share the planet with, not to abuse them. being educated is the first step.
all of a sudden, a discussion over a mandarins survival in a smallish tank becomes a debate over the ethics of pet-keeping.
