Coral Beauty Angel or Dwarf Fuzzy Lionfish?

[Kendalls_reef]

Hello, fellow reefers!

I have decided that i need a 'Star Of The Tank', and by that means i need a fish that will catch people's attention. however, i have a 55 gallon reef tank, so my choices are very slim on what i can actually get. i want something that will stay relatively "small" that i wont need to find a home for one day. another factor is money, i don't have much so i need something rather "cheap".

after doing quite a bit of research, i have landed on two fish that i think i could possibly have in my tank without a problem... this is basically going to be a vote, suggestion, and tip forum between the two fish i have chosen. if you have any experience with these fish, or have a suggestion for a different type of fish, please let me know!

the choices are a coral beauty angel, something that i have always wanted. but i have the fear that they will nip all my corals... could i distract him by constantly giving him seaweed to munch on?
the other choice is a dwarf/zebra lionfish. i have read that they can be reef safe, and only need 50 gallons. but again, these are just ideas of what i want. please let me know if you have had any personal experiences. thank you!

 

[mr_tap_water]

Coral beauty is a lovely fish but might be hit or miss certain corals , and l found with the dwarf Lionfish don’t swim around that much unless searching for food Corals should be safe but some invertebrates may not be,

And being that they are totally two different fish should be fine Though some may disagree.[emoji6]





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[SPR]

I’ve got a coral beauty and he doesn’t touch the corals and is a stunning fish.

He is pretty bossy and aggressive whenever I add new tank mates and chases them normally for a day or so but then seems to settle down.

 

[DaveK]

Considering the other fish your planning, a dwarf lionfish would look at these as a great meal. You'd end up with a star of the tank, but it would be the only fish in the tank. Lion fish can eat fish that are almost as big as they are. The other factor about a lionfish is that they can deliver a nasty sting. When ever you need to work in the tank, you need to be aware of where the lionfish is and what it doing.

With the coral beauty, you at least have a chance. A lot depends on the individual fish. Some are no problem at all, others love to eat corals. You just never know. Have a plan for the fish in case it doesn't work out.

 

[NickF]

Both great choices and currently on my fish "wish list" for my new tank. I'll seriously have to think about the size of the tankmates if I got a Fuzzy Dwarf Lionfish, though I saw a couple of them at my LFS last week and they were tiny. I'm definitely going to get a Coral Beauty, I had a Flameback Angel in my last tank with loads of corals and he didn't touch any of them, but as Dave said each fish is individual so you can never be 100% sure they won't nip at corals. I also want to get a Flame angel as well.