Can someone help me out?

[thefishfanatic]

My tank is 150g, its been running for 2 years. Have had 4 deaths in the last 2 weeks, 3 Anthias and 1 Chromis. They have been in this tank for over a year. They have all had the same marking and symptoms. I have attached a couple of pics that show the markings on there side. They start with the marking then start with rapid breathing and in a couple of days they are dead. There appetite doesn't change, they continue to eat until the day they die. The only thing off in my parameters is the Nitrates. I had my skimmer over flow twice because of a power outage which I think is what caused my sudden Nitrate spike. Parameters are:

Ammonia-0
Nitrite-0
Ph-7.8
Nitrate- 40

Had to stop water changes for a while because I have been fighting off Dinos, but thinking of doing a large water change tomorrow. Would like to know what this can be. I don't want any more to die. There tank mates are 1 Sargassum Trigger, 1 Harlequin Tusk, 1 Mandarin Goby, 2 Banner fish, 1 Damsel, 1 clown fish, 1 Anthia left and 1 Chromis left. No one else has marking or symptoms right now.

 

[b0bab0ey]

Looks like Uronema to me. I think QT'ing and using copper is your best option. However, I've never dealt with Uronema before, so read here:

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/disease/uronemamarinum.php

 

[b0bab0ey]

double post

 

[thefishfanatic]

Looks like Uronema to me. I think QT'ing and using copper is your best option. However, I've never dealt with Uronema before, so read here:

http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/disease/uronemamarinum.php

Thanks. Looked it up and it looks like it. I read that there are different treatments that can be done, one that interest me is using Flagyl (metronidazole) can someone give me advice on what would be the best way to administer this and if someone has used it treating Uronema. I am still trying to figure out how they got it. I haven't added a new fish to the tank in months. The last fish being the Mandarin. Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks!

 

[caribfan]

This is interesting, I lost roughly 5 green chromis to something that looks very similar to this. They had been in my tank over a year as well. No other fish showed any of these signs, I assumed my Blue Throat Trigger was nipping them.

I'll be curious to see if anyone else weighs in, meanwhile, I am definintely going to read that threat above. Good luck.

 

[thefishfanatic]

This is interesting, I lost roughly 5 green chromis to something that looks very similar to this. They had been in my tank over a year as well. No other fish showed any of these signs, I assumed my Blue Throat Trigger was nipping them.

I'll be curious to see if anyone else weighs in, meanwhile, I am definintely going to read that threat above. Good luck.

Yes I would really like to know if anyone has had any experience with this, any help or info would be appreciated.

 

[MrTuskfish]

Nitrate at 40ppm won't bother any fish.

I think this is uronema too. Its really nasty stuff and seems to be attacking chromis in particular. It is a protozoan parasite (I think); like velvet,ich, and brook. I rarely heard of this parasite until fairly recently. But fish, and especially chromis, seem to be showing up wit uronema quite frequently. Chromis are dying like flies. For some reason, like in your tank, some fish just seem to have some immunity. I assume any immunity temporary. Ueronema is very quick and and very deadly. In addition to the red lesions; death is also preceded by a lot of mucus.

I tried to cure some fish with uronema for a LFS several years ago and failed. I used copper, if memory serves. (I may be a geezer, I DO remember it was Packers 24 Viqueens 10 last night). The fish were goners before I saw them. I don't really have much faith in any cure for this stuff; it sounds like they are terminal by the time they really look sick.

Fenner (not always THE expert, IMO, but a good writer); suggests formalin dips, similar to brooklynella treatment. I've heard that chloroquine phosphate may work too. This drug is getting easier to find and RC member Alprazo has posted some very good stuff about it. here's a link for an active thread:http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2242639. The down side is that the fish may well be dead, assuming this is uronema, by the time you get the med.

IF THIS WAS MY TANK , I'm not advising this, but see little to lose, I would put the fish that are not showing signs into a HT/DT and leave the anthias and damsel to fend for themselves. (Because they are probably infected already and have proved to be susceptible to uronema in your tank) You could set up a 2nd QT for them and treat with formalin if the CP doesn't come in time. Because some of your fish seem to have some immunity, they may be OK. This suggestion defies all logic for treating protozoan parasites; but you could always treat the tusk, et al, with formalin too. The DT, with the damsel & anthias should stay fishless for 10+ weeks after the chromis & anthias die. Hopefully, they will recover; but I'm just not sure how to handle their contagious condition. If you can cure them in a 2nd QT, great. I would not let these fish have any contact with your other fish or the DT for a long time...if ever. I seldom say this, but it may best to euthanize them if you can't completely cure them with 100% certainty.

The thing that bothers me most: How did this stuff get into your tank? Was any fish, rock,or anything else wet, introduced during the last few months? If not, could the cyst form of this parasite possibly stay dormant that long? Way above my pay-grade. In any event, please keep us posted; we can all learn something.

 

[thefishfanatic]

Thanks for the info. I have been a little busy because of the holidays and haven't been able to read much on Uronema, but I did find this article: http://www.ultimatereef.com/articles/brooklynella/

One of the treatments they mention is this one....

"Flagyl (metronidazole) is by far the most effective drug available against these diseases. Indeed it is the only effective treatment for fish that are internally infected with Uronema marinum, but it has to be administered in the diet. To treat with Flagyl (metronidazole), add 34mg/l (34mg/kg bodyweight is required if treating the internal disease) of the drug to the aquarium water to be treated. A single dose should be effective, but it can be repeated daily, if required, as the drug is well tolerated by most fish. It is a very reef safe drug having little impact on invertebrates BUT it will kill off all protozoans and anaerobic bacteria in the treated tank, so, like all medications that are used in a reef tank, it will have some undesired effects on the ecological stability of the tank."

I would like to know if anyone has ever tried this treatment, it is a treatment I would be able to try since removing the fish from the tank is not something I can do right now. I don't have a hospital tank big enough to keep them in, the Harlequin Tusk is about 7" and he does not like small spaces. It would be war between him and the Trigger in a small tank.

As for how it was introduced in the tank, my only thought is the food I gave them. I had ran out of food and had to leave town suddenly so I went to the grocery store and bought some scallop and added that to there diet. The scallop was frozen and not cooked. I had never bought food from the grocery store for them, I have only used normal frozen fish food. I don't have a LFS in town so I had to get some food quickly so that they had something to eat while I was out. It is the only thing different that was done in the past month. Could that parasite have come from the scallop?

 

[thefishfanatic]

Anyone????????

I would also like to add that I have 2 other tanks, a 55g and a 10g. All of them eat the same food. The fish in those tanks are fine. No symptoms what so ever, of course there are no Chromis or Anthias in those tanks.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[MrTuskfish]

I feed lots of food from the grocery store, its a very common practice. I've never heard of a frozen food spreading a parasite and I think the scallops being responsible is next to impossible. Sorry, but I sure don't have any other ideas on how to solve this without using quarantine. I'd sure separate the chromis and anthias from the fish that seem to be healthy, though.