Stonefish- S. verrucosa, S. horrida, sel.    5/2/08
Hello to the crew at WWM-
It is always a pleasure to browse through this website and read all the great advice you guys give. Certainly has made my saltwater fish keeping a lot easier and successful.
I read all I could find here on Stonefishes (S verrucosa and S. horrida). I have been collecting Scorpionfish on and off for about 5 years now. I have a lot of experience with the various species as I have been looking to obtain a true stonefish but always end up with a scorpion that the LFS thought was a stonefish.
I have a 120 gallon tank (4 x 2 x 2) with just sand and liverock- 40 gal refugium/sump a RS80 skimmer set up. The only problem is, I don't have a stonefish. Im not certain where to get one. I emailed many places, called too. And what ends up happening is a promise to get one (usually hear, "oh yeah, they're not hard to get-we get them all sizes from 2" to footballs..") and either i never do get one or they end up sending a Scorpionfish of some sort that doesn't even look like a Verrucosa.
<Are actually quite rare in the trade. Most specimens encountered in the wild tend to too-large size to ship practically/economically>
I have done all I could to find one and i know there's at least one person in the crew with Stonefishes so I thought I would try to ask you at WWM personally- where can I get a stonefish?! I am willing to pay top dollar, and devote an entire tank to one specimen.
Email me any info you may provide-
I'm in the Chicago -land area in Illinois if that helps- Thanks in advance and keep up the great work,
Al Eng
<Have your LFS contact Quality Marine and Sea Dwelling Creatures. Marine livestock wholesalers in LA... Are you familiar with Old Town Aquarium there in Chi town? Ask the fellows who own this place to special order THE species you're interested in. They can do it/this. Bob Fenner>

Stonefish Compatibility/Stocking  5/14/06
Dear crew:
<<Rick>>
I currently have a scorpion of about five inches in length as the sole occupant of a 38-gallon tank. He was sold to me as a "rusty scorpion", but I think he is most likely a Pacific spotted scorpion.   As I am sure you know, he is reclusive and largely sedentary.  The tank has a Rena canister filter, in conjunction with a hanging external skimmer, and a large Aquafuge external refugium.   "Shlomo" [I did not name him] appears happy and healthy, though he is admittedly not the most charismatic fish.
I have an opportunity to acquire a verrucosa sp. stonefish, approximately four inches in length, and making them roommates.  I have a reasonable degree of confidence that they are not likely to consume one another, but I am concerned about bioload.  I feed very sparingly, mostly ghost shrimp, re-hydrated freeze-dried shrimp, raw crustacean flesh, and the occasional small live feeder fish or surplus damsel.  I typically wait until I see him venturing out from his cave and seeking food, and have never seen any leftover food. I am fully cognizant that both of these guys will grow, and I purchased the scorpion with the intention of moving him to a larger tank later this year.  My concern is whether I would be pushing my luck in the near term.  Your thoughts would be much appreciated.
<<Rick, your tank is border line in size for keeping the scorpion fish.  Would not add anything else to this tank.  James (Salty Dog)>>
Sincerely,
Rick Walters

Adding More Stonefish
Dear Sirs;
<Hi! MikeD here>
      I currently have a 125 gallon salt water tank with two
lionfish (Pterois volitans) and one stonefish (Synanceia verrucosa).  These
fish are all getting along with each other since I had the tank set up
professionally, a year to year and a half ago<OK. I have a similar combination in a 125 and my 300>.  As to this, I would like to
know where I could purchased the other species of stonefish (Synanceia
horrida).  I live in the Washington metro area if that helps and if
overnight delivery is necessary that's fine with me.  The company that set up
my tank and supplied me with those fish listed above is having a time
finding that other stonefish.<Not surprising, as many companies refuse to handle them due to their extreme toxicity>  If you can be of any assistance, I would very
much appreciation the help.  Please e-mail me at hurricane2003@XXXX
with any information that you have or can get with this information.<I do need to ask one question. I also have a Stonefish, the S. horrida that you're seeking, as I said, and frankly mine WOULDN'T FIT in a 125 gal. tank. While it's about 13" long, it also weighs in at nearly 3 POUNDS and would overload the average 125's bioload capacities all by itself.  I'd suggest just looking at the on-line sites if you feel that you still have to have one, but think it might be the straw that breaks your tank's back>
Peter Noreiko
P.S.  I do know the dangers regarding these fish and with the ones I have
now, I am extremely careful.<Me too! I've actually not been able to find mine when it's sitting out in plain sight, by far the best camouflage expert I've ever seen>

Books on Scorpaeniform, antennariiform fishes... husbandry
Hi folks,
<Vincent>
can you tell me if there are books dedicated wholly to Scorpionfishes,
Stonefishes or Anglerfishes? So far the only book which I've come
across which has the biggest section on these fishes is Scott W
Michael's Reef Fishes Vol. 1. Desperately looking for more books that
cover the husbandry, behaviour and specimen of these amazing creatures.
<There are no such works as far as I'm aware... though some of the upcoming Debelius/Kuiter TMC titles may well offer more insight than currently exists in print. Unfortunately or not, there is just not enough paying interest in these fish groups aquarium use to warrant/attract writers/publishers to produce volumes on their care. Oh, there is an upcoming tome by Anthony Calfo and I on Reef Fishes that should have some coverage of interest... Bob Fenner>

Substrate and Stonefishes
Hi folks..
i will be acquiring a Synanceia Verrucosa and Synanceia Horrida soon. I
know that these fishes in their natural environment spend much of their
time at the sea bottom half buried in the sand. But I'm wondering if
it's possible to keep them in a tank without sand but just rocks. With
your experience, do you think this is possible?
<Is possible. These fishes are kept in this fashion in wholesale facilities and some public settings. Bob Fenner>

Re: About Stonefish....
If possible, could you direct me towards "GREAT" information on the internet
about Stonefish?  I work at the New England Aquarium and I'm trying to more
familiarize myself to these fascinating fish.
<Actually... don't know of such a source. Would have to do what you can... search using your computer. Bob Fenner>
Thanks,
Brandon Holt
Reptiles and Fish New England Aquarium

Question about Stonefish...
Can you give me a site that explains the care or Stonefish in the aquarium?  I'd greatly appreciate it.
<Hi Brandon, WetWebMedia.com has some info here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/stonefishes.htm. The next best thing I could recommend is to use your favorite search engine. I found several dozen hits using google.com. Hope this helps. Don>
Brandon,
New England Aquarium Reptiles and Fishes

WWM Daily Image
Good Morning,
A real stone fish in an aquarium? Brave soul...
<Yes, think this one was in one of the tanks at the Steinhart, C.A.S., in San Francisco>
I've never seen one for sale, could you please give me any details about who owns it and how they got it?
<Oh! Have seen the "real thing" for sale every now and then at wholesalers in Los Angeles... As you know, only small specimens could/can be practically sold... due to cost restrictions on how much space, weight larger ones would entail... So "hand size" individuals can be had from time to time>
I can't see the picture itself as I have a problem downloading the attachments - it shuts down my e-mail software. You might want to look into it, as it only happens with pictures from WetWeb. 
<What? Really? Don't know much re this issue, but will send to Jas and Zo who almost certainly will have something to say, thank you.>
I use outlook express and a Mac G3. I guess it could somehow be my machine, but like I said, it has
only happened with WetWeb stuff. Thanks for your help, James
<Hope to see you soon. Bob Fenner>

Stonefish
<Cheers, Anthony Calfo in your service while Bob is preoccupied wrapping a pallet of camera gear for a forklift to take to the airport for his trip to Australia..."Hey Bob.. jaunt up to New Guinea and bring me back a Gemmatum Tang!">
Hi, i was wondering if would be able to keep a Stonefish and 2
dwarf lions in a 55 gallon tank. And if so do you know where i would be able to find a stonefish. I've been doing a lot of research but no one seems to know about stonefish. So thanks in advance. Mike
<Mike, by and large stonefish are not popular for many good reasons. To answer your question first, no a stonefish would not be compatible. The are best kept in a species tank. But I am strongly recommending that you do not get any. For starters, your tank is way too small. Most species found in the trade grow to an adult size that would make the 55gall a very irresponsible tank choice. They do catch and kill anything they can sallow whole and something's that they cannot. It would be unfair and unnatural to taunt the stonefish will any tankmates including venomous lionfish (you are likely to find a dead lion in the mouth of a dead stonefish who choked to death. Some species have venom significantly more potent than lionfish, and the list goes on. Please admire them from afar until you can afford the space for a larger aquarium that will reasonably hold a basketball sized fish. Kindly, Anthony>

Stonefish
Hi, Jake Pehrson from www.CoralPlanet.com again. Thank you for you help in
the past. I have another question for you. I have recently setup a 240
gallon aquarium. I am planning on putting some Lion Fish and maybe a Small
Banded Shark in it. I would really like to keep a large Stonefish in with
them, but I have only kept them in aquariums where they are isolated by
their selves.
Would I be able to keep one with the Lions and the Banded Shark? The Lions
will be quite big so I am sure that the Stonefish will not be able to
swallow them (at least I think I know they will eat almost any size of
fish).
<You're right... and they should be able to get along... just make sure all are getting food.>
If you could respond to info@coralplanet.com I would appreciate it.
<Be chatting. Bob Fenner>
Thank you for your help.
Jake Pehrson