Dwarf lionfish tank mates for a 55 gallon tank

[lionfishlover53]

Hello I am new to R2R. I recently cycled a 55 gallon predator tank, and 2 days ago I added a dwarf zebra lionfish to start. Here are some fish I want to add:

Leaf scorpionfish- I really like these guys so I hope I can put one in.
Orange spotted filefish- I wanted a triggerfish but my tank is too small so I thought I could get one of these.
snowflake eel- I’m not fully sure if I really want this one, but I think they are cool.
antennata lionfish- I really like lionfish and I would like another if it’s possible.

Can any of these live in my tank?

 

[Jekyl]

Anything that is close to fitting in the mouth of a predator can't be kept with them.

 

[WVNed]

Yes you could, I have a zebra, fuzzy and antennata in a 75 with 2 snowflake eels.
You have to have very good filtration.

I dont know anything about the file fish or scorpionfish

 

[lionfishlover53]

Yes you could, I have a zebra, fuzzy and antennata in a 75 with 2 snowflake eels.
You have to have very good filtration.

I dont know anything about the file fish or scorpionfish

Ok thanks! I’ll probably get more lions and an eel. Maybe the leaf fish if I find one that is bigger than the lion.

 

[lionfishlover53]

could I put a valentini puffer in my tank? or would it nip on my lion?

 

[lion king]

The leaf scorp is a good addition, but I believe the tank is a bit too small for the antennata and snowflake. The antennata has a wingspsn likely wider than the length of his body, as well as being one of the most active lions I've kept. A filefish is also a good choice, just be aware of the feeding difficulties in the orange, so much worse than any challenges from the dwarf/medium lions. Look into the redtail filefish, gorgeous fish that gets little attention. The toby puffer or saddleback valentini I find better tankmates for lions, the blue spot is a notorious nipper.

 

[lionfishlover53]

The leaf scorp is a good addition, but I believe the tank is a bit too small for the antennata and snowflake. The antennata has a wingspsn likely wider than the length of his body, as well as being one of the most active lions I've kept. A filefish is also a good choice, just be aware of the feeding difficulties in the orange, so much worse than any challenges from the dwarf/medium lions. Look into the redtail filefish, gorgeous fish that gets little attention. The toby puffer or saddleback valentini I find better tankmates for lions, the blue spot is a notorious nipper.

I looked up the red tail filefish and I like it better than the orangespotted filefish. I guess I won’t get the eel or the antennata Lionfish.

 

[lionfishlover53]

Here is my stocking list:
leaf scorpionfish, red tail filefish and another lionfish if I can put one in. What kind can I put in with my zebra and the other fish I want?

 

[lionfishlover53]

Sadly, today I found my lionfish dead in his tank. I bought him from petco.com. He looked kind of stressed when I opened him. The delivery man was kind of rough with the package. I think that might have been very stressful for the lion. I also noticed in a photo he had a white spot on his side the day I got him. I didn’t notice it before. Maybe he had ich and it spread the few days after I got him. Any ideas of how he died?

 

[Jekyl]

Sadly, today I found my lionfish dead in his tank. I bought him from petco.com. He looked kind of stressed when I opened him. The delivery man was kind of rough with the package. I think that might have been very stressful for the lion. I also noticed in a photo he had a white spot on his side the day I got him. I didn’t notice it before. Maybe he had ich and it spread the few days after I got him. Any ideas of how he died?

"Petco"

 

[lionfishlover53]

"Petco"

Yeah… Im probably never going to buy saltwater fish from petco ever again. The zebra was only $18.99 on petco.com. I should have bought a lion from a better website.

 

[vetteguy53081]

There's a saying with fresh and marine fish- Any fish that can fit in a fish's mouth sooner later will.
As long as tank mate is of similar size or larger than its' mouth- should be safe

 

[lion king]

Sadly, today I found my lionfish dead in his tank. I bought him from petco.com. He looked kind of stressed when I opened him. The delivery man was kind of rough with the package. I think that might have been very stressful for the lion. I also noticed in a photo he had a white spot on his side the day I got him. I didn’t notice it before. Maybe he had ich and it spread the few days after I got him. Any ideas of how he died?

Lionfish are tough all around, especially dwarf species, and even more so the medium body species. The best way to get a lion is have your lfs order one for you, pick them up in the bag, and have an observation tank to establish eating and treating for internal parasites if necessary. Matching sg during acclimation is also very important. They have a very high mortality rate, if you click my name and "find all threads", you'll find tons of info to help you keep lions. Here's a couple that may have some interesting info.

Lion King's observations of keeping lions long term

As my research into how long lions are being kept alive in captivity disturbed and disappointed me, I decided to post a few of my observations that has allowed me to keep them for several years or more. Source; know your source, it is not a good idea to get any lion from a source that runs...

www.reef2reef.com

Lions, copper, prazi pro and displacement

Lion King's disclaimer: I am a hobbyist just like you, I am not an internet expert with fake letters behind my name or have an app to make my rants look like I run a magazine. I share my info and experiences of things that appear to work more times than not, and warn of things that don't work...

www.reef2reef.com

 

[Appoloreefer]

Yeah… Im probably never going to buy saltwater fish from petco ever again. The zebra was only $18.99 on petco.com. I should have bought a lion from a better website.

I have purchased some fish from Petco.com and had very good luck with them, yes there have been a few that did not survive but for the most I have had very good success.

 

[lionfishlover53]

I have purchased some fish from Petco.com and had very good luck with them, yes there have been a few that did not survive but for the most I have had very good success.

Yeah all of my FW fish from petco are really healthy, and they have been living for a while. I guess it must have been a sick lion I got or something because I have fish in my saltwater tank right now that are really healthy. I will probably not buy anymore lions from petco.com though. But man, petco sells most their fish for cheap prices.

 

[Ro Bow]

Hello I am new to R2R. I recently cycled a 55 gallon predator tank, and 2 days ago I added a dwarf zebra lionfish to start. Here are some fish I want to add:

Leaf scorpionfish- I really like these guys so I hope I can put one in.
Orange spotted filefish- I wanted a triggerfish but my tank is too small so I thought I could get one of these.
snowflake eel- I’m not fully sure if I really want this one, but I think they are cool.
antennata lionfish- I really like lionfish and I would like another if it’s possible.

Can any of these live in my tank?

snowlfake eel with it, but thats all