Radiata Lionfish

[oceanview85]

my friend what to give me a Radiata Lionfish but i don't know if i should take it i have a new 46 gal aquarium with only to black and white clown fish. i want to know if it is a good idea to take it, it is small not very big about 5-6 in long my clowns are about 3in.and am also worried about its size in my aquarium will there be enough room for it. i know they don't move a lot but still what should i do.

[PeeJ]

I would pass.


my friend what to give me a Radiata Lionfish but i don't know if i should take it i have a new 46 gal aquarium with only to black and white clown fish. i want to know if it is a good idea to take it, it is small not very big about 5-6 in long my clowns are about 3in.and am also worried about its size in my aquarium will there be enough room for it. i know they don't move a lot but still what should i do.

[blueboy]

i think it will probably eat the clown

[tony]

i want one but after too many horror stories about stings i think ill pass

[hobogato]

i agree, it will probably go after the clown. i would be happy to give it a new home, pm sent.

[copperband]

you should pass on it a lion that size will eat your clowns

[envy]

i agree bad idea lions/groupers can or will eat anything they can fit into there mouth. nice fish n all but must be careful not to get stung by fins. nice fish though. real tempting to keep and try but dunno. something might go missing.
good luck

[MissT]

radiatas are pretty much my #1 favorite fish, but I don't have one because of my other favorites. You have to decide which one you'd like more: the lion or your clowns. If you want the lion, take the clowns to your LFS, otherwise, give it to Ace!

[PeeJ]

Had a zebra lion for about a year. Never stung. However, my zebra moray had terrible eye sight and was stung on a regular basis.


i want one but after too many horror stories about stings i think ill pass

[MissT]

99% of the time when people get stung by lionfish in an aquarium, it is NOT the fish's fault, but someone either being careless or acting stupid

[OceanInMotion]

having owned 4 lions, i agree with misst. its usually the owners fault. i have a piece of acrylic i use to section off any lion-inhabited tanks i mess with.

[Ross]

I guess I'm that lucky 1% because I had one attack my finger once.

[hobogato]

three times for me - all were my fault, but it didnt make it hurt any less :lauging:

btw, each time it gets a little worse

[erikharrison]

Once for me! :eek::ph34r:

[greenmako]

Clowns and radiata...bad idea. Radiata's are one of the more 'fish safe' lions in that they prefer and eat mostly crustaceans in the wild but clowns are easy pickings. They sleep pretty much in the open and are easily eaten.

If you want to mix a radiata with other fish your best bet is to 'test' it first with a damsel. I did this with mine, I had the damsel for years after that. I also mixed mine with wrasses b/c they burrow in sand at night which means they were safe.

On the note of stinging. I never got hit. I had a dwarf zebra that would literally charge me but he was too slow...haha. The radiata however, was placid as could be. I would brush her aside with my fingers and never got stung. If you do keep one keep in mind its only the spines on top and bottom that are poisonous.

Radiata's are still one of my favorite fish. Lions in general are gorgeous but man, a healthy radiata can take your breath away. I vote for hobogato...he's got an awesome tank for it!

-christina

[copperband]

definetly hobogato has a great tank and a responsible fish owner. if you want a lion try a fuzzy dwarf.

[blueboy]

or a fu manchu

[MissT]

fu manchus aren't easy to keep though

[BA]

if the radiata still needs a home i would be happy to go get him anytime, having a 400gallon fish only tank, and having owned many lions in the past, i can give him a good home. right now i have a large volitan, but have always wanted to own a radiata, because all the ones i have ever seen in a LFS i just couldn't trust them. owning a lionfish is really cool if you know how to take care of them, and you have the space for them,because even though they are slow moving they require lots of space.. but if the radiata still needs a home, let me know! Bobby 210-316-4376

[merlin0883]

had a 4 inch volitan. Ate my XL skunk shrimp and my 2.5 inch black ocellaris clown within 5 min of each other. All was fine at first. The lion was about 2 inches when I introduced it, and the other stuff was already in the tank. I had to move the tank, and the other fish/shrimp became disoriented and lost their homes in the rock. When I place the lion back in, he ate both of them, and quick. Having said that, a 5 inch lion could eat a 3 inch clown....or 2.....within a day if it got the opportunity. I wanted a tank full of life, so I scratched the volitan. Tough choice, but it had to be.

[oceanview85]

thanks guys for all the advise