Dwarf Zebra Lion Fish Should I Get One?

[marlinmero]

so here's the deal. i have a 75gallon aquarium and im thinking about gettin a dwarf zebra lionfish instead of a full sized lion fish. The reason i want the dwarf is i believe it wont be as likely to eat other tank mates. such as my two clown fish and my lawn mower blenny. and i was wondering if it would also eat all my crabs, and snails? and would it eat my serpant sea star or my mushrooms? so how big of a fish would he be able to fit in his mouth? and would i be able to house to of them in my tank? any information you can give me would be great. even if i didnt ask for it on here cant have to much info.

 

[SkiFletch]

Well, they can open their mouths easily twice as large as they appear when closed... If the clownfish are pretty well grown and about 3" in length, they should be OK, otherwise they might be a risk. Crabs and the starfish are probably also gonna be a meal for it, but the snails should be fine.

 

[andywg]

Dendrochirus zebra have a reported max size of 7" IIRC. This would make me expect 6" in captivity. Anything less than half that size (so 3" and under) is likely to end up on the menu sooner or later.

As Ski says, they really can open their mouths much larger than you would expect.