Let's have a discussion on scorpionfish, I currently have 6 lionfish and have kept lionfish for decades. Keeping scorpionfish is relatively new to me so I thought I would share some observations.
I have kept a leaf scorpionfish years ago, I kept him for about 1.5 years before he just decided to stop eating and die, with no apparent reason. I was feeding him live ghosties and mollies. I have had friends keep a few of these, none with any real long term success. The ones converted them to dead food always seem to speed up the demise. Their personality really never grabbed me, pretty sedentary and a hop now and again, kind of like watching paint dry.
Which brings me to the rhino(rhinopias frontosa), aka weedy scorpionfish; strikingly beautiful and very expensive. Now that I have had these for a few months, he reminds me the leaf scorpionfish, very boring. While beautiful to look at, just doesn'tprovide me with enough stimulation to stay interested. Initially he was very active, would hop to my hand as I opened it to reveal a live molly, it had seemed as if I trained him as a dog to a treat. He then took to silversides surprisingly much easier than I expected. Then just stopped taking the silversides and has gotten increasingly harder to feed. I now just drop a molly in for him to catch at his leisure, he doesn't seem so happy to feed from my hand anymore.
Now let's talk about the 2 little scorps that I am thoroughly enjoying. The yellow spotted(Sebastapistes cyanostigma) and the Caribbean or reef scorpionfish(Scorpaenodes caribbaeus), both of these guys are listed to stay smaller than 4". These guys are always watching, very funny, they seem to be scooting around always in a different spot. The yellow spot is wicked quick, scary quick so be very careful. He's in a tank with a beast of blackfoot lion, and he will literally snatch the food right out of his mouth. The reef scorp tends to be more of a stalker and when he goes after a ghostie, he looks like one of those Olympic fast walkers, it's so funny. Both of these guys seem very agreeable to taking krill, the yellow spot will snag it from the water column as well as a stick, while the reef doesn't seem to propel himself into the water column and will take it from the stick.
I have never had a scorp handle meds well, I've only medicated 2(a leaf and a rhino) with different meds for internal parasites(pp, metro, gc). Both times I had to pull the meds, then try something else, both times these guys succumbed to either the parasites or the meds. I mentioned these 2 because I administered the meds, others that I know have had no success with meds either. Using only the leaf scorp as an example, which is the most common if not the only scorp I've seen around here.
I have kept a leaf scorpionfish years ago, I kept him for about 1.5 years before he just decided to stop eating and die, with no apparent reason. I was feeding him live ghosties and mollies. I have had friends keep a few of these, none with any real long term success. The ones converted them to dead food always seem to speed up the demise. Their personality really never grabbed me, pretty sedentary and a hop now and again, kind of like watching paint dry.
Which brings me to the rhino(rhinopias frontosa), aka weedy scorpionfish; strikingly beautiful and very expensive. Now that I have had these for a few months, he reminds me the leaf scorpionfish, very boring. While beautiful to look at, just doesn'tprovide me with enough stimulation to stay interested. Initially he was very active, would hop to my hand as I opened it to reveal a live molly, it had seemed as if I trained him as a dog to a treat. He then took to silversides surprisingly much easier than I expected. Then just stopped taking the silversides and has gotten increasingly harder to feed. I now just drop a molly in for him to catch at his leisure, he doesn't seem so happy to feed from my hand anymore.
Now let's talk about the 2 little scorps that I am thoroughly enjoying. The yellow spotted(Sebastapistes cyanostigma) and the Caribbean or reef scorpionfish(Scorpaenodes caribbaeus), both of these guys are listed to stay smaller than 4". These guys are always watching, very funny, they seem to be scooting around always in a different spot. The yellow spot is wicked quick, scary quick so be very careful. He's in a tank with a beast of blackfoot lion, and he will literally snatch the food right out of his mouth. The reef scorp tends to be more of a stalker and when he goes after a ghostie, he looks like one of those Olympic fast walkers, it's so funny. Both of these guys seem very agreeable to taking krill, the yellow spot will snag it from the water column as well as a stick, while the reef doesn't seem to propel himself into the water column and will take it from the stick.
I have never had a scorp handle meds well, I've only medicated 2(a leaf and a rhino) with different meds for internal parasites(pp, metro, gc). Both times I had to pull the meds, then try something else, both times these guys succumbed to either the parasites or the meds. I mentioned these 2 because I administered the meds, others that I know have had no success with meds either. Using only the leaf scorp as an example, which is the most common if not the only scorp I've seen around here.
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