Lionfish?

Hong Kongan · 05-07-2006, 12:45 AM

Hi all,

I saw a lionfish the other day, looked great, was even eating dried shrimp. I really want this fish but am unsure of whether it will thrive in my tank. I have a 100 gallon fish tank with about 100 pounds of live rock and a shallow sand bed. The tank is highly illuminated with metal halides. The only other tank inhabitants are a blue devil damselfish, a sebae anemone (home to my late clownfish

) and a white cheek Tang. Will they be safe with him? I also plan to turn the tank into a reef tank, will this be possible? What else should I keep in mind with this fish.

Thanks

Tim224DT · 05-07-2006, 12:49 AM

Lion fish will eat anything that they can get their mouth around. They are a very cool looking fish i think i had one for a while. If he is eating food that isnt live i would take him. I know they are hard to get to eat frozen foods and such most of them only want live food.

So keep in mind if he can fit his mouth around it then chances are he will eat it.

Tim

Fly Guy · 05-07-2006, 12:54 AM

Im not sure exactly about the fish you mention you already have with the lion, but ive had a lion in with fish it surely COULD have eaten and it didnt. Lions are definitley reef safe. I would be wary with any fish you like a lot that is smaller than the lion however. They can swallow small fish real quick if they want to. The fact that he didnt eat my 6 line and small tang may very well have been because i kept him well fed with other live fish.

Hong Kongan · 05-07-2006, 12:59 AM

thanks..im just worried about my blue devil being eaten...how big can their mouths open? Also I have quite an agrresive tnag in there..but he is slightly smaller than the lionfish..will problems occur?

Fly Guy · 05-07-2006, 01:08 AM

ummmmmm......big enough to chow on anything smaller than than they are...maybe even the same size as they are.

CHOMP!!! Its pretty cool to watch them eat actually. They strike quick and swallow whole.

But...like i said......I myself have never had them eat any of the fish i didnt feed them on purpose......but i WOULDNT promise they would behave the same for you.

Hong Kongan · 05-07-2006, 02:04 AM

It is quite a large lionfish..but doesnt it swall whole not bite so if the animals are too big for its mouth should'nt they be okay? Sorry I just really want this animal.

AHBrit · 05-07-2006, 02:49 AM

i had 2 lionfish in a tank once
we used to feed it damsels. One of the damsels we bought for food blinded one Lion and stressed the other out till death. The lions were 7", the damel was 1"

Hong Kongan · 05-07-2006, 05:09 AM

So are you saying they can hold their own against lionfish or that the lionfish is better off without them?

Geoff · 05-07-2006, 06:22 AM

what kind of lionfish are we talking about? Volitans will get up to 16" long and wide. how wide is your tank? the fish will need room to turn around.

they are ambush hunters and will inhale most prey items that will fit in its mouth. the mouth opens quite far, so more fish will fit into it than you think.

G~

Hong Kongan · 05-08-2006, 03:49 AM

It a volitans lionfish i think. My tank is only 48 inches long. BTW will he eat my critters, eg. crabs snails etc?

the_colonel · 05-08-2006, 04:29 AM

Adam,

I have had several lions and know what to look for. let me know if you want me to go check this one out with you.

Loverotties · 05-08-2006, 06:14 AM

If you keep him full he won't go after the others.I had a Voliton with clown and a blue velvet were my small fish and I had a Yellow Tang.You mite want to get more LR cause your on the very low side for filtering.

Cylenchar · 05-08-2006, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hong Kongan

It a volitans lionfish i think. My tank is only 48 inches long. BTW will he eat my critters, eg. crabs snails etc?

I'd steer away from the volitan in a tank that size.... they get pretty big and are messy eaters... I'd recomend a Dwarf for that size tank, they only get about 7 inches long so space wouldn't be an issue.

The Lion will mostly leave your crabs and snails alone... Shrimp will probably be goners though.... An additional benefit of a dwarf lionfish is that it will be less of a threat to the other fish...

What kind of filtration do you plan on getting? Lionfish are messy eaters and produce lots of waste. On the 125 gallon predator tank I'm setting up(Narrowlined Puffer, Fuzzy Dwarf Lionfish, Snowflake Eel) I have an Aqua-C EV-240 skimmer with a Mag 18.

Cylenchar · 05-08-2006, 12:47 PM

The Metal Halides might be a problem, Lionfish are nocturnal, and can be blinded easily by lights with a too high intensity, so in general with a Lion I would recomend no metal halides (I've heard people keep lions in tanks with metal halides with no problems, but I personally wouldn't risk it, even with sufficient caves for him to hide in).

Twitterbait · 05-08-2006, 12:58 PM

I agree... Lions have big eyes and can be blinded by MH lighting. best in a FOWLR system.