Lionfish feeding

[scrombussquared]

I have a native FOWLR tank- everything in it is local- sand, rocks, water, fish ( flame cards, beaugregory DAMNsels, queen angel and a Volitan lion. I was wondering if I can feed freshwater mosquitofish to the lion without harming the lion. I suppose I could easily acclimate the mosquitofish to saltwater, but with the lion's appetite, I'd have to set up some kind of system to go from pure freshwater (where the source of mosquitofish live) to brackish, to saltwater. The mosquitofish live for an hour or so when I add them to my tank, but what concerns me is what effects this has on my lion

Additional inhabitants: mated pair of BCS, a small green mantis, several pistol shrimp, stars, cukes, large tulip snail, and a good load of 'pods.

 

[Jsamper]

Even if you did acclimate the mosquitofish to saltwater what nutritional value would it have?

 

[namxas]

I love "local" tanks...

Mosquito fish are similar to guppies, which isn't TOO awful for the short term, however, you're going to want to wean your lion onto non-living foods (SW fish flesh, shrimp, scallops, squid, clams, lobster, etc.).

The HUGE problem I see with your tank is the queen angel. Large angels tend to harass lionfish to death, and queens are especially aggressive. Angels and triggerfish actually try to nip off the lion's dorsal spines, then proceed to beat the lionfish up.

If you're really serious about keeping the lionfish, you should give these articles a read:

Lions, and Turkeys, and Devils, Oh My! Lionfish in the Home Aquarium

Tools of the Trade: Equipment and Techniques for Converting Your Fish to Frozen

Lionfish Info Sheet by Frank Marini

 

[scrombussquared]

Thanks for the info, Greg. I didn't consider rhe angel to be a threat to the lion. The angel was tiny- about 1" when I collected it- it was a tossup whether it was a queen or a gray- I got lucky. Since my display tank is only 75 gallons, I planned on giving the angel to my friend for his 210gal. mixed reef. As for the lion, here in South Florida they are considered invasive and divers are encouraged to kill them on sight. They're such beautiful and interesting I just couldn't kill this little guy. He's about 2-1/2" and in perfect condition.
Jsamper- being that the mosquitofish are live, I'd assume they have the same nutritional value as any live fish.

 

[Jsamper]

Thanks for the info, Greg. I didn't consider rhe angel to be a threat to the lion. The angel was tiny- about 1" when I collected it- it was a tossup whether it was a queen or a gray- I got lucky. Since my display tank is only 75 gallons, I planned on giving the angel to my friend for his 210gal. mixed reef. As for the lion, here in South Florida they are considered invasive and divers are encouraged to kill them on sight. They're such beautiful and interesting I just couldn't kill this little guy. He's about 2-1/2" and in perfect condition.
Jsamper- being that the mosquitofish are live, I'd assume they have the same nutritional value as any live fish.

I suggest you check out the tread pinned to the front page explaining why its not a good idea to feed freshwater fish to marine predators.

 

[Jsamper]

You would be a lot better of feeding him some marine shrimp if its possible.