Mixing Lionfish?

jobu28

jobu28

Member
Is that a problem? Can you safely mix lionfish of the same size but different species? I have a 75g and with a Miles(wifes fav) lion and I just put in a Radiata(my fav) a few days ago. I dont see any issues and was told it wouldnt be a problem, but figured i would put it to you guys .
 
salt life

salt life

Active Member
Originally Posted by It's Chuck
http:///forum/post/2965782
as far as aggression goes there should be a problem however they will outgrow that tank
+1 but you already bought them so you can't do much unless you bring one back if they let you.. what is a miles lion? a volitan?
 
jobu28

jobu28

Member
Chuck: Did you mean "shouldn't" be a problem with aggresion? Or there will be a problem with aggression. Your wording with the "however" threw me a bit. I thought lions werent really aggresssive fish by nature, just opportunistic predators? Didnt think they would outgrow the tank. I reference Scott Michaels book as far as sizes go. He says the Miles gets to a max of 6" and is good for a 30g and the Radiata gets to 9" and is also good for a 30g. I know these are tank minimums so I figured a 75g being 2 1/2 times that would be good. They both just kind of perch allot and are only active ay feeding time.
Salt: the Miles is actually considered one of the smaller species maxing at about 6". According to Michaels the only smaller species is the Fu Man Chu.
 
salt life

salt life

Active Member
Originally Posted by jobu28
http:///forum/post/2965877
Chuck: Did you mean "shouldn't" be a problem with aggresion? Or there will be a problem with aggression. Your wording with the "however" threw me a bit. I thought lions werent really aggresssive fish by nature, just opportunistic predators? Didnt think they would outgrow the tank. I reference Scott Michaels book as far as sizes go. He says the Miles gets to a max of 6" and is good for a 30g and the Radiata gets to 9" and is also good for a 30g. I know these are tank minimums so I figured a 75g being 2 1/2 times that would be good. They both just kind of perch allot and are only active ay feeding time.
Salt: the Miles is actually considered one of the smaller species maxing at about 6". According to Michaels the only smaller species is the Fu Man Chu.
oh alrighty, yeah I think he meant shouldn't. idk why he would say they both would outgrow the tank though, I've seen full grown volitans which get bigger than radiatas in 75gs and they have plenty of room, they don't really swim around much just drift in the flow. I'd say your ok depending on what else you want to put in the tank, don't want a big bioload.
 
it's chuck

it's chuck

Member
yes I meant shouldn't. as far as outgrowing thetank you are talking about one fish that will get a foot long and a footwide and another that will get 9inches long and 9 inches wide, that will be alot of bioload on a 75. If you plan on only have these two and aquascape the tank right it might work. As far as a Volitan in a 75 goes thats really the minimum for a single volitan
Oh and congrats on the Radiata they are awesome I wanted one for a long time and now that I have had a couple chances to get one I don't have a tank for one. Hopefully your is already eating frozen as they can be tricky to get eating
 
jobu28

jobu28

Member
Thanks Chuck for the clarification. Which one is going to get a foot long? I thought they both would be under that? I dont have a Volitan? Can you elaborate on the aquascaping? Right now its a pretty simple setup and if there is a way to help by aquascaping i am all ears. Frozen? Whats that,lol. I have been trying to switch the Miles for months. Not having it. Just silly me and a clear skewer dangling food in front of him until i quit and give him the live stuff. Havent even tried with the radiata. Doesnt really bother me though. My two LFS both carry live SW "minnows" and ghost shrimp. Gets me looking at new stuff a couple times a week.
 
jobu28

jobu28

Member
Doesnt matter anymore. Last night a large hermit i bought for my daughter seemed to ambush him in the night. Woke up this morning to a dead Miles. Wife is EXTREMELY unhappy. Got rid of the crab.
 
sepulatian

sepulatian

Moderator
Originally Posted by jobu28
http:///forum/post/2966502
Doesnt matter anymore. Last night a large hermit i bought for my daughter seemed to ambush him in the night. Woke up this morning to a dead Miles. Wife is EXTREMELY unhappy. Got rid of the crab.
How had the lion been acting the night before? Did he eat? How long did you have him? It is highly unlikely that the crab killed the lion. The crab would clean up the remains though.
 
it's chuck

it's chuck

Member
Originally Posted by jobu28
http:///forum/post/2966502
Doesnt matter anymore. Last night a large hermit i bought for my daughter seemed to ambush him in the night. Woke up this morning to a dead Miles. Wife is EXTREMELY unhappy. Got rid of the crab.
How long had you had the miles? Are you sure the are Saltwater minnows and not freshwater you have been feeding? Freshwater feeders are bad for SW fish and could have killed the lion if thats want you are feeding. What are your current tank parameters? I highly doubt a hermit killed your lion you just caught him doing his job which is scavening.
I would get your radiata on to frozen foods even if you are getting SW feeders. You will probably have to starve him for a few days first but don't worry lions can go a couple weeks with out eating.
 
jobu28

jobu28

Member
I have had the Miles for about 5-6 months. He was about 4". Was doing great. Not a single problem ever. The crab was in a shell about 2 1/2". The miles was feeding twice a week on ghost shrimp. He fed on minnows once. They were definitely SW, even lived in the tank for a few days as he picked them off. The ghost shrimp are SW also. Posted this in the reef forum and they all thought it was the crab. Got rid of crab today. i did get some reef safe crabs today to replace him as my daughter was upset as the crab was for her. Will they be ok? Will work on getting him on frozen. Chuck, any suggestions on that aquascaping to help? I might want to get another lion.
75g
temp 78
am 0
nit 0
nitrate 60
sal 1.018
 
it's chuck

it's chuck

Member
I really doubt you that crab did it. I have a 3 inch red harry leg in my tank and he hasn't bothered anybody not even my little 1.5" damsel. He couldn't just kill a lion with one pinch and wouldn't be able to hold it down either. he would get a pinch in and the lion would take off. As far as aquascaping goes you want atleast one decient size area of the tank completely open and a few nice perch areas for them sit in the rock. I would look at a dwarf lion if you are gonna get another. I think fuzzy dwarfs are a great fish; hardy, easy to get on frozen, and have tons of personality normally
 
fmarini

fmarini

Member
Jobu--
can i ask about your Miles lionfish.
Pterois Miles is approx the same size and appearance as a Pterois Volitans (infact it differs only in the # of dorsal spines and cheek tubercles).
I'm not sure Scott michael is suggesting 30 gals for a fish that will reach 13-15".
Are you sure your not IDing a P. mombasae (which is a mid sized lionfish)
BTW, the crab didnt do it, they're scavengers, I suspect your lion died and you found the hermit eating a free snack
 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
They had miles' in with the volitans at the local wholesalers. They definately get the size of a volitan but they just looked ... thicker.... sturdier. But they sure do get large. Your 75 is too small. My almost 4 year old volitan has pretty much outgrown his. I thought he had stopped growing... and then in year 3 he grew some more.
But you are right... Michael has listed the miles as a common name under the mombasae... when in fact it's the scientific name of a much larger fish.
You never took a pictue of it did you? They ar epretty easy to tell apart.
 
jobu28

jobu28

Member
Here are the pics i had of him. I think you are right and that he died. The Radiata died a few days later. I rechecked my water and the nitrite was .50. Would that have done it? Not sure what would cause that? The only thing i can think of is that i did add a piece of live rock, as i didnt have any, and there was some sort of die off which caused a spike? Ammonia was still zero and all other parmaters were the same but there was a .50 Nitrite reading. Not real high but a reading none the less. Would the Radiata have been fine in there?


 
cranberry

cranberry

Active Member
Oh wow... he is beautiful. I would love to have one like that. He certainly does look like a mombasae. I hadn't noticed it was FMarini that had posted before me... if his ID is different than mine, go with him. If it's a lion or a scorp he is the man with the info.
 
jobu28

jobu28

Member
Thanks Cranberry. He WAS beautiful. My wifes favorite fish. Was very upset. Hopefully i will find another one like him.
 
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