Can someone look at my Lion?

[neaners]

I bought him last week .. and admittedly, I really know nothing about lions - other than they are cool looking and are compatible with my tank. I saw him eat a couple of pieces of silver sides a few days ago, but that is it. I currently have a Niger Trigger, a Huma-Huma, a Yellow Tang and a Blue Damsel. ALL of these guys are complete pigs (so that is what I am used to). I read that Lions like live food, so I went to my lfs and picked up some feeder fish, hoping he would eat them, but my Huma-Huma always swoops in and eats the feeder fish before the Lion even seems interested. One of them even swam right between his face and the glass (Huma had already eaten out both of his eyes already, so he was swimming blind) and the Lion didn't even bat an eye at it.
And his appearance... two things really stick out that I am not sure about... I keep hearing about how sick Lions get dark sections on them. Mine has two very LIGHT sections. One right behind his eyes and at the very end of his tail. Are any of these things cause for worry?
BTW - He does actively swim about at least (what I have seen anyway) once a day...
Thanks in advance!

 

[matt b]

ya i have a lion and i had the same prob with it i just let it be and he didnt eat for almost a week and then eat like crazy and then stop and so on its just what they seem to do atleast in my tank

 

[matt b]

and i dont no if u have tryed krill but mine will eat that like crazzy

 

[thoroughbred]

Well I'll go ahead and do it...What are your tank parameters? Also did the lion look like this when you bought him? Lastly your tank is in no way compatible for a lion. Most of the time triggers will shred lions and I would say your setting yourself up for a disaster, but post your tank parameters and we'll go from there.

 

[srfisher17]

Originally Posted by Thoroughbred
Well I'll go ahead and do it...What are your tank parameters? Also did the lion look like this when you bought him? Lastly your tank is in no way compatible for a lion. Most of the time triggers will shred lions and I would say your setting yourself up for a disaster, but post your tank parameters and we'll go from there.
I couldn't agree more. I know a lot of folks keep lions with triggers successfully. But, IMO, with 2 triggers; his fins and slow movement will result in a shredded lion. I think the idea that triggers & lions get along well one of the most common misconceptions on this site. Lions are not aggressive and will seldom bother anything they can't swallow whole. A lion and a trigger can do well, but really need to be watched. It can't be assumed that , because it is venomous, it is aggressive. Lions are often slow to eat and don't like aggressive, pushy tankmates.

 

[neaners]

Wow... I had no idea that my fish were not compatible. I mean don't get me wrong, I have no one to blame but myself. I didn't do any online research ... I was just going by what my lfs had said. My bad. I don't know my water parameters off hand, but I will post them shortly. My Lion does seam to be eating some silver sides now though. Haven't seen him eat any of the feeders yet. but i think that is just because my Huma goes after them before he gets a chance. I do think he looks the same as when I brought him home though. But like i said, I will post my water stats soon.
Thanks guys ~

 

[florida joe]

one thing you may want to check is make sure he is not blind i had a lion introduced it into my DT started loosing fish to an unknown disease what ever it was it left my lion blind take a feeding stick if you have or a wooden bamboo skewer and hold it right in front of him even tap the front of his face if you can I am sorry to say he may be blind

 

[dischirm]

What do you mean by "feeder fish"? Are you talking about guppies or goldfish? If you are, you need to do more research. Those types of food will kill your lion. They will give it a fatty liver disease. If you want to feed live, get some saltwater (or freshwater) glass shrimp. otherwise stick with frozen/thawed seafood. use a skewer or something to make it look like it is alive to interest the lion until you get it trained.
Also giving live fish to your triggers will make them extyremely aggressive to any other fish in the tank. You are basically teaching them to become killers.

 

[srfisher17]

Originally Posted by Neaners
Wow... I had no idea that my fish were not compatible. I mean don't get me wrong, I have no one to blame but myself. I didn't do any online research ... I was just going by what my lfs had said. My bad. I don't know my water parameters off hand, but I will post them shortly. My Lion does seam to be eating some silver sides now though. Haven't seen him eat any of the feeders yet. but i think that is just because my Huma goes after them before he gets a chance. I do think he looks the same as when I brought him home though. But like i said, I will post my water stats soon.
Thanks guys ~
Don't beat yourself up; remember this is a forum; an exchange of opinion and experience--not rules carved in stone. You're group may turn out to be OK.
As to feeders, I agree that a diet of FW fish is horrible; but if a few FW feeders is what it takes to get a lion eating, no big deal. Just get him switched ASAP. Once he's eating, getting him on other foods is usually easy. A few FW fish isn't going to destroy a fish's liver any more than a few "adult beverages" will destroy mine.
There may be something to live fish making triggers "killers"; but that's their nature. Bob Fenner talks about this in his book; the jury still seems out on this, but I sure agree and see to reason to tempt the triggers that way. Many triggers are known to just snap and go postal for unknown reasons anyhow. I'll admit to giving my lions some small feeders ONCE IN A WHILE; just because seeing them hunt is a real experience.But, I sure don't do it ofter, there is a big difference between a goldfish diet (certain fatty liver disease) and the OCCASIONAL feeder. I sure wish I could get all the damsels that people regret buying and are now going nuts trying to get them out of their tanks!

 

[30-xtra high]

to answer the color issue, to me it just looks like mixed breed, you basically got a "mutt", don't get me wrong, i find him to be an extremely nice looking lion, but i'd guess he's a cross breed, and yes, no more goldfish.

 

[thoroughbred]

Originally Posted by 30-xtra high
to answer the color issue, to me it just looks like mixed breed, you basically got a "mutt", don't get me wrong, i find him to be an extremely nice looking lion, but i'd guess he's a cross breed, and yes, no more goldfish.
I don't think thats it.
I am leaning towards a bacterial infection. I notice al ot of blotchy red bloody looking skin all over his body, around his gills and what not. I'm not sure thats it but I'll throw it out there

 

[sepulatian]

Originally Posted by Thoroughbred
I don't think thats it.
I am leaning towards a bacterial infection. I notice al ot of blotchy red bloody looking skin all over his body, around his gills and what not. I'm not sure thats it but I'll throw it out there
I have had my fuzzy for a month. For the first two weeks when I turned on the lights I thought he was not doing too well. He was very pale by his dorsal. There were several times that I thought that there was something wrong. He was lethrgic and pale. He started to color up by week three. I have fed him a few FW fish but buy ghost shrimp when I can. A few fw feeders are not going to kill him, as mentioned. A full diet of them is bad, but a few is nothing to be worried about. He is accepting krill now. He is not going into my display until I am certain that he is eating well. How sure are you that this is bacterial? If it is then you will need to treat him in a QT. BTW, I went to an LFS to buy some silvesides tonight. They are WAY too big. They were two inches long. I don't know how big your lion is, but mine would not be able to eat fish that big. Those were the "small" ones. Did you get an ID on this Lion yet? Certainly not a fuzzy. I am thinking Pterois mombasae a deepwater lion, AKA Mombasa or Mile's.

 

[v-lioness]

That looks like a Pterois Mombasae to me

They do not ship to well, and require pristine water so.......
How long did the LFS have it before you took home?
Look at the eyes, this will tell you quite a bit about your lion, are the eyes cloudy or clear?
*If you see the discoloration (fading, blotchiness) when the lights first come on and the color seems to even out during the day, your lion is fine.
* If the discoloration is there all the time or you see it is getting worse, than yes, it could be bacterial.
I would either remove the lion or trigger (Huma-Huma), this is one trigger that is known for picking at lions, the Mombasae lionfish will not do well with any harassment, if your trigger does not kill it, the stress will.
Kaye

 

[fmarini]

I'll agree w/ Kaye on this.
Your fish is a P Mombasae (Devil lionfish, Mombassa lion). Its a deepwater lion, quite shy and somewhat more fragile. From your photos his coloration appears normal/good. I would suggest an internet search to provide more info.
I suspect your experiencing trigger shock. These lions need to be acclimated in a tank w/ quiet non harassing tankmates, and fast swimmers like a trigger are in the end troublesome. As you noted w/ the food.
I would do 2 things, 1) isolate the lion, somehow, and feed him live ghost shrimp, goldfish or rosey reds for a few days to get him acclimiated. Maybe even isolated for a few weeks. IMO ghost shrimp are actually pretty good for these fish.
Next, I would decide what you like to see more: the trigger or the lionfish, then keep one and return the other. Unless you adapt the lionfish to eating away from harassing tankmates, they just don't compete well, esp more fragile lions. Now if you want a lion for your tank, consider a medium sized P Volitans lions that is already eating prepared foods, then you'll see lionfish competing w/ triggers.
Lastly, Kaye brings up an important point, these triggers are known fin nippers and I would suspect in time you'll see broken lionfish fins
frank

 

[srfisher17]

Maybe a Hawaiian lion? (pterois sphex). haven't seen one in quite a while; but a very hardy fish, as i remember????

 

[beth]

I am not a lion expert, but this fish is suffering from under nourishment; you can tell this by the worn eroded fins.
I suggest avoid FEEDER fish at all cost. There is no nutritional value for marine animals to eat fresh water foods, and the dangers to offering this as food is well documented.
Offer instead quality frozen foods, or even pick up some sea food at the seafood counter at the grocery store. Soak the food in zoecon and try to target feed the lion. Offer food at least twice a day until he is eating well and regularly. Make sure the food size is not too big. And don't harrass the fish by trying to feed it. Just offer the food. You may want to try the fish food recipe I have posted in the FAQ Thread located in the Disease Forum.

 

[fmarini]

The photos are a typical P Mombasae, a hawaiian sphex has different pec fins, but a good guess.
Second, to me, the fins look usual for a P Mombasae, they are supposed to be ragged on the ends and the pec rays appear as long white rods.Even the eyes look good on this fish. However, it doesn't explain why hes having problem, but in these pictures this is a typical appearing P Mombasae
You don't often see them in an LFS, but when you do they are ALWAYS mislabelled as P Antennatas
frank

 

[beth]

Good to know then.