Lionfish

bassethound09 · Jun 30, 2013

I purchased a lionfish 6 days ago. He has been less active the last two days and will not eat. He has been laying around the bottom of the tank by the live rock. He also has been using his fins to hold himself slightly sideways between the rock and the sand. I have tried to feed him frozen krill and live feeder fish. He has been eating both well up until now. I have checked the water levels and they're all fine. Any ideas on what else I need to do? Or is this normal behavior for lionfish?

SeahorseKeeper · Jun 30, 2013

How big is he? Lion fish do not need daily feedings. Also, it is normal for the fish to hang in the rocks during the day. They are more active at night. What type of feeder fish are you using? I would stay away from krill. It is like feeding potato chips with little nutritional value. Can you post a pic.

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scott9119 · Jun 30, 2013

Don't feed to many goldfish either. They are real fatty

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Mr. E Wrasse · Jun 30, 2013

This is a picture I took of one in australia. He was literally upside down. And its normal for them to not eat. They will eat when they want to and otherwise will just sit there kind of like a frog fish
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bassethound09 · Jun 30, 2013

Thank you all for the info. I'm not sure what type of feeder fish I have. I know they are not gold fish or guppies. The guy from the fish store I bought it at gave me some feeder fish for free. He said to feed it those once or twice a week and to give it the krill in the morning and at night every day. I have only been feeding him once a day though. He also said that lionfish are always hungry and will eat no matter what. From the research I have been doing, I should not be feeding him that much. What do recommend I feed him and how often? He is about 4 inches long.

SeahorseKeeper · Jun 30, 2013

BTW, welcome to R2R!!!

Lionfish have relatively slow metabolisms and can eat themselves to death. I would feed the lionfish 3 times a week meaty foods. You can do mysis, squid, clam, shrimp, clams, mussels, crab and other non-oily seafood.