Got 3 damselfish to start the tank out..Lionfish after?

[makofury]

Hey everyone, I went to my good LFS today and picked up 3 small damselfish to cycle my tank. They are kinda boring cuz their just 3 small Dominos...I think they're gonna be a pain to get out but it doesn't really matter because I sort of want a lionfish, which would probably make quick work of them. Also, are lionfish messy eaters? I know that they basically swallow everything whole, but I have live sand, so would it be ok to get a lionfish and maybe so other peaceful fish? Like a tang or angel that is bigger than it? Thanks.
MakoFury

 

[lionfish]

LionFish says......
I'll go as far as to say this. You can have a lionfish but it has to be a Dwarf Lionfish. Not one of those Volitans or Radiattas, or Antennatas. Also if you get a Dwarf it's still going to get 7 or 8 inches long. That takes up a lot of room. They are extremely messy eaters and they eat a lot of messy foods. You want a lionfish, you can get one. But you're going to be limited to just a few fish. And you know, lions can foul up water pretty quickly and tangs and angels need near perfect water conditions and in that small of a tank it could spell disaster because the angel would get sick with bad water and get a disease and then pass it on to the other fish. So Lions don't really mix with angels and tangs. Anyways, Tangs, in my opinion need more than a 65 gallon tank to really thrive and it wouldn't do well with the lion. I tell a lot of people that it is better to put a lion in a large tank dedictaed to aggressive fish. Not a small tank when a person wants a tang or angel. I would basically choose either to get the lion or to get the angel.

 

[ocellaris_keeper]

I'm a tank raised clown fan - they don't do much but look orange and happy and help promote tank raised animals.
Unless your lionfish feeds at night he'll never catch the dominos - damsels are at the bottom of the food chain because of their size - which means they are real good swimmers - and they're real smart too.
Besides - you did it right three dominoes will be too busy fighting for their own pecking order to really bother anyone until they get real big - and this is when they get slow
Brewski