Lionfish

Lionfish are slow, calm, strangely deliberate animals that spend most of the day hanging in the water with their fins spread. They are among the easiest large marine fish to keep and among the few that need a genuine safety conversation first. Gallery Aquatica stocks two species at our shop in Tingalpa, east of the Brisbane CBD.

Lionfish are in-store purchase and pickup only. We do not send live fish by courier or freight. Ring 0420 484 584 to check what is in.

Venom: read this first

Both species carry venomous spines along the dorsal fin, and this is more serious than the spines on a foxface. A lionfish sting is intensely painful, causes significant swelling, and can require medical attention. Reactions vary considerably between people, and a small number of people react severely.

The fish is not aggressive and will not chase you. Stings happen during maintenance - reaching past a lionfish resting in the rockwork, or catching one in a net and handling it at close quarters.

Sensible precautions: know where the fish is before your hands go in the water. Do not net a lionfish - the spines tangle in mesh and you end up holding a spiny fish; use a rigid container instead. Move slowly, because a startled lionfish raises and orients its dorsal toward the disturbance. And do not keep one in a tank you cannot work in comfortably.

If you are stung: the widely published first aid is immersion in hot water, as hot as can be tolerated without scalding, which helps break down the protein-based venom. Seek medical attention - and do so immediately if there is difficulty breathing, significant swelling beyond the sting site, chest pain, or any sign of a severe reaction. If you know you react badly to stings, this is not the right fish for you.

Worth saying plainly: none of this makes them unsuitable pets. It makes them pets that require you to pay attention.

What lionfish need

Space to hang, and somewhere to shelter. Lionfish are not active swimmers - they drift and hover. What they want is open water to hold position in and an overhang or cave to rest under during the day.

Meaty food, and patience getting them onto it. Lionfish eat fish and crustaceans in the wild and many arrive expecting live prey. Getting one onto frozen food - prawn, squid, silversides, mussel - is the main early task, usually managed by offering food on a feeding stick with enough movement to look alive. Most take it within a week or two.

Feed two or three times a week, not daily. Lionfish are ambush predators built for infrequent large meals, and overfeeding is the most common husbandry mistake with them.

Do not feed freshwater feeder fish. A diet of goldfish or rosy reds causes nutritional problems including fatty liver disease and shortens the fish's life considerably. It is still commonly recommended and it is still wrong.

Good filtration. Like morays, they are messy eaters producing a lot of waste for their size.

What they will eat

Anything that fits in the mouth, and a lionfish's mouth is much larger than it looks - they can take prey close to half their own length. Every small fish in the tank will eventually disappear, along with ornamental shrimp.

They take no interest whatsoever in coral, so a lionfish is compatible with a reef tank in the strict sense. It is simply not compatible with small tankmates.

The lionfish we stock

The photographs below show each species for identification. They are not photographs of the individual fish currently in our tanks — stock changes week to week, so ring 0420 484 584 to check what is in.

Volitans Lionfish (Pterois volitans)

The classic - red-brown and cream banding, with enormously long fan-like pectoral fins and a crown of dorsal spines. One of the most recognisable fish in the sea. Reaches 38 cm and wants around 900 litres.

Hardy, long-lived and genuinely interactive: a settled volitans will come to the front of the tank when it sees you. The size is the thing to plan for, and it is substantial - a 38 cm fish with that fin span needs real volume, and juveniles are sold at a small fraction of it.

Compatible with coral. Will eat any fish or shrimp small enough to swallow. Venomous spines.

Zebra Lionfish (Dendrochirus zebra, dwarf zebra lionfish)

Much the better choice for most people. Similar shape and the same spread fins, but boldly banded and reaching only 18 cm, which brings the tank requirement down to around 350 litres.

Everything that makes a volitans appealing, at half the length and a quarter of the water volume. Just as hardy and just as interactive. If you want a lionfish and do not have a very large tank, this is the one.

Compatible with coral. Will eat small fish and shrimp. Venomous spines.

Which should you buy?

The zebra lionfish, for almost everyone. At 18 cm in 350 litres it is achievable in a normal large home tank, and it gives you the same animal in miniature.

The volitans if you have 900 litres and want the full-size classic. It is a magnificent fish and it needs the room.

Tankmates

Lionfish need tankmates too large to swallow and calm enough not to nip at those trailing fins. Good options are large angelfish, rabbitfish, larger tangs and morays - a lionfish and a moray in a large predator tank is a classic combination, since neither is prey to the other.

Avoid triggerfish, which will nip a lionfish's fins persistently.

Everything small is food: clownfish, chromis, gobies, blennies, anthias, cardinals and ornamental shrimp.

Common questions

Do you ship lionfish?

No. All marine fish are in-store purchase and pickup only. We do not send live fish by courier or freight.

Are these lionfish in stock right now?

These are the species we stock as our regular range, not a live inventory. Ring 0420 484 584 or email shop@galleryaquatica.com.au to check.

How dangerous is a lionfish sting?

Intensely painful, with significant swelling, and it can require medical attention. Reactions vary and some people react severely. Hot water immersion is the widely published first aid, and you should seek medical attention - immediately if there is difficulty breathing, swelling beyond the sting site, chest pain or any other sign of a serious reaction.

Are lionfish safe to keep at home?

Yes, with sensible care. They are not aggressive and will not come after you. Stings happen during maintenance, so know where the fish is before reaching in, never net one - use a rigid container - and move slowly.

What size tank does a lionfish need?

A dwarf zebra lionfish reaches 18 cm and wants around 350 litres. A volitans reaches 38 cm with a very large fin span and needs around 900 litres.

Are lionfish reef safe?

They ignore coral entirely, so yes in that sense. They are not safe with small fish or ornamental shrimp, which they will eat.

What do you feed a lionfish?

Frozen meaty food - prawn, squid, silversides, mussel - offered on a feeding stick, two or three times a week rather than daily. Do not feed freshwater feeder fish such as goldfish: it causes nutritional disease and shortens their lives. Newly imported lionfish sometimes take a week or two to accept frozen food.

Which lionfish is best for a home aquarium?

The dwarf zebra lionfish. At 18 cm in around 350 litres it fits a normal large home tank, where a volitans needs roughly 900 litres.

More marine fish

See all the marine fish we stock, or the Brisbane store page for coral and equipment.