Feeding a Lion Fish

[Victorio]

Thinking of purchasing a Lion fish, i generally know these guys food requirments vary. So can anyone shed some light from personal experiences.
Thanks

[sharpie]

i dont know if this helps you any and i know its not the healthiest thing, but my friend used to feed his goldfish and guppies the lfs said they feed theirs brine and ghost shrimp.

[fuzzydwarfs]

feeding a lion feeder fish will greatly cut down his life...

Ive got 2 fuzzy dwarfs and they eat pretty much whatever seafood Ive got on hand...crabmeat, prawn, scallop, squid, octopus and fish...they get fed every second night and I feed them small portions until their bellies look full...they eat straight from my fingers and will beg for food till they burst, so beware on how much you feed them...when Im feeding the rest of the tank frozen brine etc, they come to the party and scrounge for that as well...
Ive never fed them bait, as some ppl do, I actually feed them the seafood that we eat...every now and then I do feed them a couple of live glass or boxer shrimp, just to keep them on their toes...the trick is to get them off live food as quick as you can, even if it means not feeding them for a few days...forget all the gaff about using a feeding stick...if you cut the food into smallish pieces resembling a shrimp for instance, and drop it in front of the powerhead, it looks live and they will chase it...like I said, mine now eat from my fingers, and you know when its feeding day, as they come and sit ontop of the powerhead waiting...when you feed them, do it of a nighttime, as they are night feeders...

when buying a lion, you have to make sure that there isnt anything small in your tank, if they can fit it into their mouths, consider it dinner...I had a Volitan before the fuzzies, and he ate 4 clowns in just over a week...I did take him back and swap him for my 2 fuzzies, because at $17 a pop for a clown, he was eating better than us... :)

I hope this helps...

Cheers...
JO...

[Shaummy]

I had a Volitan at one time, and I used to feed it silversides. He loved them and they were certainly pungent enough that he could immediately find them in the tank. The first few times I tried them, I used a piece of hard airline with a sharp tip cut into the end. But after that, he knew all too well what was coming to him!

I eventually had to take him back to the LFS after a few years, as he was about 10-12" and I was in fear of him making lunches from his tankmates.

Anyhow..that's my experience.

[Victorio]

Thanks alot for that guys much appreciated. Yeah people tend to get too carried away with feeding them guppies and goldfish.

Cheers for the input and much appreciated.

[yamanjazz]

goldfish and guppies <--Never do that . It has already been stated, but you can never stress it eoungh. It just kills them.

I had a Valitan and it took me AGES to get him(i just asumed it was a he:D) used to eating freeze dried krill, frozen shrimp, muscles, squid...ect. My advice is be patient, trust me a Lionfish will never starve itself to death. They love food too much. Try not to over feed, food undigested will go bad in its stomach and will kill it too.

Oh and keep your hand out of the tank;)

[TKOS]

Goldfish should never be used as feeders for any fish. They are all fat and cartlidge. Not a good food source for fresh or salt water.

And freshwater fish in general should not be used to feed any saltwater fish.

[jojo22]

I had a fish quite a while back that would not take prepared food. I do'nt like to use feeders but I had to cause the fish would not take anything else. So I did the next best thing. I took 3 old tanks (10 gal) filled them with feeders and then stuffed them untill they didn't want to eat with mysis and bloodworms soaked in vitamin suppliments. Not the most Ideal way to feed a fish but if you have to feed live it helps. I fed out of one tank at a time and rotated everyweek when one was empty. so each fish had 2 weeks to get "healthy" before being fed to the tank.

[LonersBlaze]

silversides for volitans. cutting them in half deffinately sends the scent about the tank. i usually use squid. letting the tentacle dangle makes it look alive. krill works too. Ghost shrimp works too if you want to watch him eat something live, but take it easy on these because its a pain in the butt to make them eat dead food again.