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Anonymous

Guest
Hello everybody what is the rule on lion fish in reef tank? Yes or No is it them chasing the food they eat all over that people say you can't keep them or is it they will eat the other fish Ha Ha.good bye for now .
 
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Anonymous

Guest
The rule is simple, if they can fit it in there mouth, they will. You would be suprised at how large the mouth of even a small lionfish is so be careful. They can also sting you, and with a reef tank there is even more risk as you are constantly in the tank moving that newly prized specimen for maximum viewing pleasure. Seen it done, but I like little fish
smile.gif


ZQY
 
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Anonymous

Guest
Hmmmm. I don't think anyone has really answered this properly. Let me take a shot

1) Lions are all completely reef-safe. That's the traditional reef-safe in that they wont nibble on your corals, move around your rock, or pick on your clean-up crew.

2) Lions will not necessarily get along with your other tank inhabitants, although they are a bit more peaceful than people give them credit for. If a lion can't swallow something he pretty much ignores it. And despite the fact that they can eat fish almost the size of their body, they don't usually go after fish secure in their environments. If you add a lionfish LAST and all your other fish are comfortable already they are PROBABLY safe. Even the small ones. Stupid damsels that tempt the lion would still be taken of course.

The biggest problem with lions is really that they are fast growers, and most get really big. Unless you get a fu-man-chu or a dwarf it's going to get too big for a reef in a year or so, unless you have a 300 gallon reef tank. In a fish only tank you'll have more room, so the size isn't such a big deal. But reef tanks just dont have all that much room in them since the current method is to cram them with live rock.

After that the next problem is that lions are carnivores, and therefore eat and defecate more than most "reef" fish. That's more mess and pollution to deal with, and it messes with your precious reef environment. Another big strike against having a lion. However, I think a lot of people tend to feed lions too much anyways, and this contributes to the issue.

In the end it comes down to what kind of lion you want, and what kind of system you're using to filter your water. I think a Berlin system is inadequate to deal with a lionfish overall. Some sort of hybrid system with filter and rock purifying might be possible, but you have to watch out for what inhabitants will be sharing that space with the lion. And unless you have a monster tank you will only want a dwarf or fu-man-chu lion anyhow.

Hope that helps you out.
 
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Anonymous

Guest
HI:
First off i would skip over all the larger lions like volitans, antennatas, and radiatas, an think solely on the dwarf species, the larger lions get big, and will eat almost all of your reef fish. As mentioned above lions will eat ANYthing they can fit into their mouths, so say good bye to shrimp, some crabs, and small fish. W/ that said also recall that lions are meat eaters, and will certainly contribute their fare share of pollution to your tank. Also lions tend to be reclusive (and nocturnal), and may hide in the rockwork quite a bit (or at least til hungry). Now I have seen a successful reef tanks w/ dwarf fuzzy lions in it, and in fact if you only want corals, and hermit crabs, and one or two larger fish the lions should do fine. So its your call...but personally I would skip the lions...the first time your cleaning your tank, and you grab the lion by mistake (cuz its hiding in the rocks-you'll wish you left the lionout
my opinion
frank
 
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Anonymous

Guest
thanks for all the good answers,but the screwup is I all ready got one a volitan it is in a custom 50 can remove it, also 3 chromis big ones he sits by the live rock waiting for something to swimm out little does he know he is not in the ocean anymore.this is my second tank.Will get a 125 or 180 gallon next year.will put him in there with big fish,probley tangs and such.well have a happy new year and thanks again fellow reefers,P.S. girl friend bought fish as part of xmas present.My first tank was a 75 which is full.
 

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