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I think dwarf lionfish are pretty ugly (well...I do.) Anybody have any experience with a Russell's lionfish? Do you think they would work in a 50 gallon tank if they were the only fish in the tank?

If a Russell's lionfish wouldn't work, what other larger fish would work for the tank? It doesn't have to be exteremly huge (Obviously. It's only 50 gallons), but I don't want to get something you have to get a magnifying glass to see.

I keep changing my mind about what kind of fish I want. I would rather have something different. I'd rather have one or two larger fish than several tiny fish that everybody has.

Hold up. Are you talking about the Dwarf Fuzzy, or are you talking about all three Dwarf Lionfish species in general? The Zebra Lionfish is considered a dwarf species and doesn't have that fuzzy stuff. Another possibility is the Antenatta Lionfish, which gets somewhat bigger but doesn't get as large as a Volitans.

The Russel's would outgrow your tank.

I'll have to agree with you on having fish that not everyone else has. Lionfish ] Clownfish.

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

The Volitan will get too large for your tank. I wouldn't keep one in anything less than 100 gallons, they get huge.

Ok, how about a Dwarf/Zebra Lionfish (Dendrochirus zebra)? Are they hard to take of for somebody that's never had a marine tank?

The Zebra should be perfectly fine in this size tank. Have you considered the 'Spotfin' or the 'Radiata' too? If you have no experience in keeping lions, I'd say that the Radiata (or clearfin) would be the latter of the three to consider. The other two are fairly easy to keep if they are the only fish in the tank.

The width dimensions are good for the Radiata, but I'm not entirely sure of the length dimensions...

Zebras are not hard to take care of. Most Lionfish are relatively easy to care of, with the exception of the Fu Manchu (hard to get to eat). Robert Fenner even writes that Lions are just about next in line in hardiness to Damsels.

[span class="edited"][Edited by 2004-07-05 14:15][/span]

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The aquarist is one who must learn the ways of the biologist, the chemist, and the veterinarian.

Thank you! :88)

Now all I have to do is save money so I can put a down payment on liverock. I mean buy it.

I own a Fuzzy dwarf lion, had him for about a week now. He pearches himself up in the corner of the tank or on my starfish until feeding time. It's hard getting him to spare some food for my other guys in the tank. He was extremely easy to acclimate into my tank. He started eating within a couple of hours of putting him into his new home. He swims around every now and then but mostly at night either right before the lights go out or right after they go out he swims around like crazy.


I think the dwarf species of lion is the best way to go if you want a lion you can enjoy and not worry bout him eating half your live stock or outgrowing the tank.