Hawaiian Lionfish
- Thread starter Nilsfish
- Start date
pacislandaqua
.Registered Member
they are the same as all lions... eat mainly live foods, but will eat prepared as well. What kind did you get?
namxas
Things With Stings R Us!
By "Hawaiian Lionfish" are you referring to D. barberi or P. sphex? These are the two indigenous species from Hawaii.
I suspect that you have the former, as I've never seen a sphex offered for sale (and I've looked hard for one). If you do indeed have a sphex, please LMK where you got it.
So assuming you have a barberi, its care is pretty much that of D. brachypterus (fuzzy dwarf). In fact, this fish behaves very similarly to a fuzzy, but IME is a tad more shy, even once acclimated. By shy, I mean that even though it will be out and about and greet you just like a fuzzy, sometimes quick motions near the tank will cause it to scoot into the rockwork and peek out to see if its safe to come back out. Our specimen is one of my faves out of all the lions we keep. Seeing the fish's bright red eyes (one of its adult characteristics) looking out at you is pretty cool to see.
As far as feeding is concerned, your best bet is to start your charge on live ghost shrimp (the best choice) or guppies. Gut load them by feeding them a high quality marine flake food and feed them out. Once your fish is conditioned and eating well for you, you can begin weaning it onto fresh/frozen fare.
Here's an article on weaning your fish: Tools of the Trade: Equipment & Techniques to Convert your Fish onto Frozen.
Here is a link to some "quick stats" which includes some nice photos if you click on "additional photos": D. barberi Quick Stats
The following is the text from a lionfish article I'm currently working on:
Dendrochirus barberi (Green Lionfish, Hawai’ian Lionfish)
Maximum Size: 5”-6” total length (TL)
Natural Habitat: Occurs in association with reefs, drop-offs, and rocky caves. Eastern Central Pacific: Hawai’ian Islands. Has recently been reported from the Johnston Islands.
Depth: 1 - 50 m
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons.
This species is one of the two lionfish indigenous to the Hawai’ian Islands, and is one of my favorite dwarf lions, even though it is kind of a “sleeper” in the hobby, mostly due to their comparatively drab coloration (mostly grays and browns) as adults. Juvenile specimens often have pretty green banding on their pectorals and long supraorbital tentacles, both of which are lost as the fish reaches adulthood. The caudal, second dorsal and anal fins are adorned with yellow spots, which are one of the “telltale” visual traits of this species. Additionally, this species sports a pair of mandibular appendages, although they are not as pronounced as those seen on the Fu Manchu. Another feature that sets this little lionfish apart from its cogeners is the glowing solid red coloration of its irises once the fish matures. No other lionfish shares this trait, and it is indeed something to see. The scales of the barberi have a “fuzzy” appearance, similar to that of D. brachypterus, and this fish is commonly mistaken as a fuzzy dwarf. The photos of our specimen show how its body and eye coloration change as the fish matures.
In terms of habits, this fish is a bit more cryptic than D. brachypterus, however, not terribly so. Like pretty much all lionfish, they do indeed learn to recognize the “food god” and will be there to greet you.
Care for this lionfish is similar to that of the fuzzy dwarf. Like its fuzzy cousin, D. barberi is sexually dimorphic, and can be sexed in the same manner. As mentioned, this delightful little lion isn’t super common, and isn’t the “showiest”, but well worth keeping if you can find
one.
Sorry for the lengthy post, but you did ask for info.
I suspect that you have the former, as I've never seen a sphex offered for sale (and I've looked hard for one). If you do indeed have a sphex, please LMK where you got it.
So assuming you have a barberi, its care is pretty much that of D. brachypterus (fuzzy dwarf). In fact, this fish behaves very similarly to a fuzzy, but IME is a tad more shy, even once acclimated. By shy, I mean that even though it will be out and about and greet you just like a fuzzy, sometimes quick motions near the tank will cause it to scoot into the rockwork and peek out to see if its safe to come back out. Our specimen is one of my faves out of all the lions we keep. Seeing the fish's bright red eyes (one of its adult characteristics) looking out at you is pretty cool to see.
As far as feeding is concerned, your best bet is to start your charge on live ghost shrimp (the best choice) or guppies. Gut load them by feeding them a high quality marine flake food and feed them out. Once your fish is conditioned and eating well for you, you can begin weaning it onto fresh/frozen fare.
Here's an article on weaning your fish: Tools of the Trade: Equipment & Techniques to Convert your Fish onto Frozen.
Here is a link to some "quick stats" which includes some nice photos if you click on "additional photos": D. barberi Quick Stats
The following is the text from a lionfish article I'm currently working on:
Dendrochirus barberi (Green Lionfish, Hawai’ian Lionfish)
Maximum Size: 5”-6” total length (TL)
Natural Habitat: Occurs in association with reefs, drop-offs, and rocky caves. Eastern Central Pacific: Hawai’ian Islands. Has recently been reported from the Johnston Islands.
Depth: 1 - 50 m
Minimum Tank Size: 30 gallons.
This species is one of the two lionfish indigenous to the Hawai’ian Islands, and is one of my favorite dwarf lions, even though it is kind of a “sleeper” in the hobby, mostly due to their comparatively drab coloration (mostly grays and browns) as adults. Juvenile specimens often have pretty green banding on their pectorals and long supraorbital tentacles, both of which are lost as the fish reaches adulthood. The caudal, second dorsal and anal fins are adorned with yellow spots, which are one of the “telltale” visual traits of this species. Additionally, this species sports a pair of mandibular appendages, although they are not as pronounced as those seen on the Fu Manchu. Another feature that sets this little lionfish apart from its cogeners is the glowing solid red coloration of its irises once the fish matures. No other lionfish shares this trait, and it is indeed something to see. The scales of the barberi have a “fuzzy” appearance, similar to that of D. brachypterus, and this fish is commonly mistaken as a fuzzy dwarf. The photos of our specimen show how its body and eye coloration change as the fish matures.
In terms of habits, this fish is a bit more cryptic than D. brachypterus, however, not terribly so. Like pretty much all lionfish, they do indeed learn to recognize the “food god” and will be there to greet you.
Care for this lionfish is similar to that of the fuzzy dwarf. Like its fuzzy cousin, D. barberi is sexually dimorphic, and can be sexed in the same manner. As mentioned, this delightful little lion isn’t super common, and isn’t the “showiest”, but well worth keeping if you can find
one.
Sorry for the lengthy post, but you did ask for info.
Last edited:
pacislandaqua
.Registered Member
I see Sphex's once and a while... Usually they are small though.
namxas
Things With Stings R Us!
I LOVE juvie lions...we've had really good results raising them up. Please let me know if you ever get one.
namxas
Things With Stings R Us!
That's where you're wrong...lionfish are not aggressive at all and tend to mind their own business unless harrassed, and even then, they generally go defensive as opposed to offensive. So they'll eat fish and other live prey items...this is true of MANY fish that aren't labeled "aggressive".
It's best to wean captive lions off of live foods, esp. FW feeders. Also, lions don't require that much food. You could cut the lions feedings to 3x a week and it will be fine. Excessive feedings can lead to fatty lipidosis, and feeding the wrong foods can result in CNS disorders, anorexia, clamped fins, and an early death.
With proper care, lionfish can live for many years, and they're such great fish that they deserve every chance we can give them to thrive in our care.
HTH
seahorsedreams
New member
Then hop to it and snap off some shots for us!
It's very rare to see sphex for sale anywhere outside Hawaii. The reason is, it's illegal here to import lionfish. So, hobbyists here don't have access to volitans and the other lionfish that are common elsewhere in the world. Nearly all of the sphex are kept for the local market and aren't exported.
Sphex is very similar to antennata, but slightly less colorful.
