Wanting to start a Dwarf Lion Fish Tank

nick0685

nick0685

New Member
I was wanting to get some input on dwarf lion fish. I have been doing reef tanks for about 5 years and have been wanting to have a lion fish tank. I have recently purchased a 30 gallon setup, but haven't done anything with it yet. I am wanting to put a dwarf lion fish in this tank and was wanting some input on feeding techniques such as what to feed, best method for weening them from live food to frozen, what live foods to feed, then what other types of items to include in there diet. What type of environment should I setup. I
Have been reading alot of the old post and have gotten some great information from them and I have read the book Lion fishes and other scorpion fishes by Frank Marini. In my experience personal information from people who have been doing this for a while usally tends to be pretty good stuff. Any help, advice, personal stories, anything is greatly appreciated. Just trying to make sure I have all that I need to make sure I do this right.
 
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saxman

Guest
You've done yourself a great service by getting and reading Frank's book. Besides having a lot of great info in it, it's filled with great photos. In fact, several of our personal fish are featured, including the cover shot of our P. volitans (check the acknowledgements for Renee Coles-Hix, who is not only my wife, but is Cranberry here on RC).
In fact, Renee is currently "pretty-ing up" our own article on lionfish so it can "go live", but I digress...
First, I recommend either a fuzzy (Dendrochirus brachypterus) or a green/Hawaiian (D. barberi). The fuzzy would be my first choice, hands down, altho I really like D. barberi (they just aren't as pretty as adults).
Here's a blurb from the article on housing your lionfish:
Housing Your Lionfish:
Due to their sedentary nature, Lionfish can be kept in tanks from 30 gallons on up, depending on species. While it is always best to research the aquascaping requirements of a given species, a tank with a good amount of surface area as well as height is a good choice. Fu Manchus will appreciate “long” or “wide” tanks as they do little, if any, swimming. Although most lions will live in bare-bottom setups, we have had good success with #1 or #3 grade aragonite as a substrate material, and quite franky, we prefer the look of substrate. Live rock caves and overhangs are appreciated by most lions, as well as stands of macroalgae, which also aid in water quality via nutrient export. A bit of rubble here and there on the substrate will complete the setting.
Biofiltration should be robust, no matter what type of equipment you use, as lions tend to produce a pretty fair amount of waste. Also, many of the foods they eat are a bit oily, so I recommend a good skimmer and surface turbulance. Sump-based systems will boost water volume, and are my favorite option. Again, lots of live rock and macroalgae are your friends.
Generally speaking, lionfish are not very fussy about their lighting requirements. For the most part, they are crepuscular (dawn/dusk) predators, so their lighting can be simple normal output (NO) fluorescents, however, they are just as happy under brighter lighting, provided they have a dimmer spot to shelter in if they so desire. So, the rule of thumb is to light their tank with lighting suitable for their tankmates. Whatever type of lighting you use, a dawn/dusk photoperiod using actinic and daylight lamps would be a perfect lighting scheme.
Lionfish make excellent reef candidates, as they have no interest in coral, and will not harm them. Frank Marini, noted lionfish aficionado and guru, has coined the phrase that lions are “reef limiting” in that they will indeed eat ornamental shrimp, crabs, and any fish that will fit into their often cavernous mouths. One thing I do want to mention is that on rare occasions, some lionfish decide they “like” a certain coral (typically a “softy”) and will use that coral as a “perch”/resting spot. If this happens, and it seems that the coral is stressing, try moving it, although I have had a P. volitans find the same coral in its new spot and continue perching on it.
As for feeding/weaning techniques, we have an entire article dedicated to the subject:
http://www.lionfishlair.com/feedingtechniques/toolsofthetrade.shtml
Sorry for the long post, but you DID ask...HTH
 
nick0685

nick0685

New Member
Thank you for your post and there is no such thing as a long post in my book. I was either looking at the Fuzzy Dwarf or the Fu Man Chu, but have heard that the Fu Man Chu can be a very delicate lion fish. I plan on laying this tank specifically for lion fish because it will be the only tank inhabitant. So please feel free to post more I appreciate all the advice and input that I can get. I am still reading on http://www.lionfishlair.com there is a lot of great information there and planning on reading it more than once. Thank You Again.
 
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saxman

Guest
Fu's are great fish...ours is housed in a custom AIO acrylic 25 gal, and it does fine. Yes, they can be one of the more difficult lions to wean, but once accomplished, they're pretty interesting fish. I've never seen a more interesting stalking behavior (it's very cool). However, altho Renee sez the fish still 'stalks' for her, it doesn't do the whole "head-shaking" thing when I feed it (many of our fish treat us differently). I'd say if you want a biocellatus, you may want something peaceful in the water column too, unless you don't mind the fu not being an "up front" fish. Our fu has roomed with several small/juvie scorps, and has been fine with them.
The reasons I say "fuzzy" are many:
They're up front, in your face fish...they will greet you and start begging whenever they see you enter the room.
They come in different "flavors"...red, brown, yellow color morphs or any combination thereof. Some even learn various tricks (like spitting water at you) to get your attention.
They're hardy, forgiving and pretty easy to wean.
They're not expensive...usually...altho a true yellow might cost you more than a few bux.
A bit of inspiration:
Our red juvie fuzzy:

True yellow morph:

Brown juvie:

"hey babe...where's dinner?" This is a different red specimen...

And of course...the fu:

 
nick0685

nick0685

New Member
Wow!!! those are some beautiful pictures of your lions and they are definitely inspirational. I will probably go with the fuzzy since they are a better starter lion fish and that will also give me another reason to get another tank later on down the road. You can never have to many tanks in my opinion. I'm always looking for an excuse to get another one.
 
travelerjp98

travelerjp98

Active Member
I'm following along!!!!!
just to let you know nick, saxman and cranberry are our two experts on scorps here on swf.com.. they are the best advice you can get, ANYWHERE!!! (on scorps)
 
nick0685

nick0685

New Member
The more the marrier I alway say. I have been reading Saxman and Cranberry's threads and post for a long time and the do have great advice, beautiful pictures, and some really beautiful fish. Thanks for tagging along.
 
fmarini

fmarini

Member
Im tagging along too...
Hows goes the tank? and thanks for reading the book- i hope it was helpful
Honestly- the dwarf fuzzy recommendation is perfect. These are fantastic starter lions for a small tank, hardy, tankmate tolerant, and easy to wean. Plus as greg mentioned they got personality and colors to boot.
How can you not be inspired by Renee's photos- what No D barberi photo's

just for comparison-thats all
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
I am tagging along as well I have a 40 breeder set up just can't find a good fuzzy in any of the LFS up here in Canada.
 
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saxman

Guest
A tiny juvie like that could easily bunk with your SH for awhile (assuming you have adult large species SH)...
 
al&burke

al&burke

Active Member
You know what that scorp is thinking and he has it all over his face "someday I am going to eat you" LOL
 
teresaq

teresaq

Active Member
Greg, lol thats too cute, but I have juvi erectus, most are 5 inches, but there are a couple that are still small. I need to find homes for these things, haha.
Then again maybe the horses will teach the lion to eat frozen.
T
Quote:
Originally Posted by saxman http:///t/387360/wanting-to-start-a-dwarf-lion-fish-tank#post_3413727
A tiny juvie like that could easily bunk with your SH for awhile (assuming you have adult large species SH)...
 
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saxman

Guest
That barb was bunking with a juvie Scorpaena brasiliensis AND a Scorpaenodes caribbaeus at the time that photo was taken.
The SH just might give the lion "the idea"...I think the brasiliensis kinda got the "eat from the water column" idea from the barb, even tho it was trained to a stick.
 
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saxman

Guest
A "SH friend" of mine (a person, not a SH) said the caption should be "Just wait till I get bigger...you're lunch!"
 
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