I recently purchased a fuzzy dwarf from liveaquaria that only lasted a few days. That fish was obviously not healthy from the time of arrival, and it was pretty small. Luckily I was able to replace it with the lionfish that I originally wanted, a Mombasa that arrived yesterday. Presently, the Mombasa is in QT, but will eventually move into a 54-corner DT FOWDR (Fish-Only With Dead Rock) where it will have several tankmates.
Before anyone starts preaching about tank size, you should understand that I run two large canister filters on this well-established tank in series (Oase Biomaster 600 x 2), and a 18w UV. There's over 10-liters of Seachem Matrix in that tank along with 7-stages of foam/poly and two stages of carbon.
My question is about tankmates and lionfish in general. This is my first lionfish experience.
Tankmates are...
Snowflake Eel
Diamond Watchman Goby
Valentini Puffer
Spotted Puffer (not sure exactly which puffer this one is, small, about the size of the Valentini)
Yellow Tang (temporary occupant from another DT)
Large Red Hermit Crab (we're talking BIG, uses a palm-size conche shell for housing)
The snowflake is well-acclimated to hand feed without biting anyone else, or me. I built a large and tall coral structure (about 30-lbs) for the back corner. The snowflake hangs out in a sunken submarine decor and only the valentini tends to venture in and around the coral. The crab frequently attempts to escape by climbing the coral tower and pushing up on the cover. Maybe someday he will succeed. Then the snowflake and Goby will dive out together in a lovers' leap, carpet surfing for eternity. They LOVE each other. I digress...
I'm worried about the Mombasa fitting into this predatory fish tank. Photo attached.
I assume that right away I need to switch down to the much less intense blue light?
Other constructive suggestions and advice?
Before anyone starts preaching about tank size, you should understand that I run two large canister filters on this well-established tank in series (Oase Biomaster 600 x 2), and a 18w UV. There's over 10-liters of Seachem Matrix in that tank along with 7-stages of foam/poly and two stages of carbon.
My question is about tankmates and lionfish in general. This is my first lionfish experience.
Tankmates are...
Snowflake Eel
Diamond Watchman Goby
Valentini Puffer
Spotted Puffer (not sure exactly which puffer this one is, small, about the size of the Valentini)
Yellow Tang (temporary occupant from another DT)
Large Red Hermit Crab (we're talking BIG, uses a palm-size conche shell for housing)
The snowflake is well-acclimated to hand feed without biting anyone else, or me. I built a large and tall coral structure (about 30-lbs) for the back corner. The snowflake hangs out in a sunken submarine decor and only the valentini tends to venture in and around the coral. The crab frequently attempts to escape by climbing the coral tower and pushing up on the cover. Maybe someday he will succeed. Then the snowflake and Goby will dive out together in a lovers' leap, carpet surfing for eternity. They LOVE each other. I digress...
I'm worried about the Mombasa fitting into this predatory fish tank. Photo attached.
I assume that right away I need to switch down to the much less intense blue light?
Other constructive suggestions and advice?