Dwarf lionfish tankmates

[fermentedhiker]

I'm setting up a 90 gallon cube. Planned stockist is;
Fu Manchu
Fuzzy
Radiata.

Originally I was planning on also housing, ebli angel, copperband, Barrier clown, and a tomini tang.

I've since dropped the team for space, if I need more grazing I'll just use inverts.

I've also dropped the Angel to keep it less crowded looking.

Debating but will likely drop the clown as well. There just isn't as much space in the scape for territories as I'd hoped.

So that leaves me the lion's and the butterfly. Copperbands have a rep for being hard to keep so I was considering either an Atlantic long nose or Tahitian. Both are smaller than the copperbands which might fit the scale of the tank better. They are twice the money and not as colorful.

Any thoughts? Debating about placing an order tonight to take advantage of the sale on LA . If I qt it now it should be just about ready to go in the display when it's done qt. which is a little over a month old at this pointold at this point

 

[lion king]

That sounds like a nice tank, 3 lions and the butterfly. I went with an antennata in my 90, they look similar to the radiata but stay smaller. Not by design but I have a mimic tang residing with my lions. Depending on how much activity you like to see, the tomini tang could also be an interesting addition. My lions are very active but sometimes they all just perch around.

 

[fermentedhiker]

That sounds like a nice tank, 3 lions and the butterfly. I went with an antennata in my 90, they look similar to the radiata but stay smaller. Not by design but I have a mimic tang residing with my lions. Depending on how much activity you like to see, the tomini tang could also be an interesting addition. My lions are very active but sometimes they all just perch around.

Yeah I was just worried that there wouldn't be enough swimming room for a tang to be happy. I have a full height coast to coast overflow that eats up some of the tank volume. So While it has 90 gallons of water it probably has more like 70 gallons of swimming area. LA has copperbands, Atlantic longnose, fuzzy lion, and radiata in stock, so the question is do I want to pull the trigger and get one started in QT and if so which one. I was thinking it would make sense to get the Butterfly settled first but I don't know that it really matters with these particular species.

 

[fermentedhiker]

I was also looking at a smaller reef lobster like a Daum or Debelius. Wondering one of those would bother the lions which might perch/rest for long stretches.

 

[eatbreakfast]

I was also looking at a smaller reef lobster like a Daum or Debelius. Wondering one of those would bother the lions which might perch/rest for long stretches.

Those lobsters may get a dwarf lion depending on size. Consider a slipper lobster instead.

Order doesn't matter as all the planned fish are pretty chill.

 

[fermentedhiker]

Did some research on slipper lobsters. Fish safe but not so much with inverts. Also they get kind big nearly twice the size of the reef lobsters

 

[eatbreakfast]

Did some research on slipper lobsters. Fish safe but not so much with inverts. Also they get kind big nearly twice the size of the reef lobsters

I haven't had an issue with them eating inverts, and even though they get larger than the other lobsters, your fish will be safe.

 

[lion king]

Thought I would share, here's a pic of my lions in a 90g.

 

[fermentedhiker]

Nice!

 

[fermentedhiker]

So I ended up getting a Great Barrier Reef Clown. A large one came in at the LFS from a tank break down for a good price. She's a peach for a clown. Not aggressive with the longnose butterfly at all.

The debate rages on in my head about added a grazer or not as well as which species of lion to go with. I've been mulling over doing a dwarf zebra instead of a Fu Manchu just because they are easier.

 

[lion king]

I put a yellow mimic tang in with my lions, he was meant to go in with juvi triggers but my blueline almost killed him. I like the smaller tangs, I'm thinking of a lavender tang for my new 90g lion tank. I have a radiata in qt right now, he's so tiny I'm afraid to put him in the tank yet. Zebras are easier than fus, but if only one I'd chose a fuzzy. They are almost always the most personable.

 

[fermentedhiker]

I put a yellow mimic tang in with my lions, he was meant to go in with juvi triggers but my blueline almost killed him. I like the smaller tangs, I'm thinking of a lavender tang for my new 90g lion tank. I have a radiata in qt right now, he's so tiny I'm afraid to put him in the tank yet. Zebras are easier than fus, but if only one I'd chose a fuzzy. They are almost always the most personable.

The plan is for a Fuzzy and a Radiata for sure. The other fish are just optional. Trying to weigh potential problems vs the desire for more things to look at The dwarf zebra would be a third lion instead of a Fu.

The toss up between a Tahitian Butterflyfish and an Eibli dwarf angel. They are both pickers. I suspect the Eibli is more aggressive and has more potential of being a nipping problem with the lions. Also I've been debating about adding a maxima clam eventually and I know dwarf angels are hit or miss with clams.

Lastly the Tomini tang. The question of enough swimming space and picking I suppose. I don't really need it for algae control, but like having different groups represented.

The real answer is a bigger tank

 

[lion king]

The tomini tang would be good in a 90. The only consideration for a clam is lighting. Although the lions will get use to the lighting, they don't prefer overly bright light. Just make sure there are lots of caves and overhangs. The brighter light will influence them to stay in their caves more during the daylight hours, so not as active and out and about.

 

[fermentedhiker]

The tomini tang would be good in a 90. The only consideration for a clam is lighting. Although the lions will get use to the lighting, they don't prefer overly bright light. Just make sure there are lots of caves and overhangs. The brighter light will influence them to stay in their caves more during the daylight hours, so not as active and out and about.

Plenty of light for the clam(maxspect razor 520r x2) which I may have to play around with the schedule as the chalice frag I added started dying at the top edge. Lots of caves and overhangs but yeah I might need to redo the schedule if I want the lions active during the day. But it does have a long ramp so it gets pretty subdued in the evening. The worry for the clam wasn't from the lions but from the Tahitian butterfly or Eibli dwarf angel if I attempted one of them.