Fin problems on yellow tang

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I have a yellow tang that seems to have a progressive problem with its fins. The tissue between the main spicules on its dorsal fin have largely disappeared over the past few months. Now it is beginning on the tail. The spikes are still there, but not the "webbing" (sorry, I don't know the correct terminology for this tissue).

I've read a lot of threads of folks that had this issue, but none that seemed to have actually cured one. Folks have suggested several possibilities, from fin rot/bacterial issues to nipping.

It has no spots of any kind, no HLLE, and otherwise seems healthy. It seems to get adequate nutrition, and has a generally thick body as is typical of heathy yellow tangs. All other fish in the tank are healthy and triving. Two pairs of clowns spawn every 2 weeks, etc.

There are a number of fairly agressive nippers. 2 pseudochromis fridmani, a flame angel, 4 blue damsels, etc. I don't see a lot of nipping on the tank (a 120), but he does sometimes dart around as if afraid.

It seems obsessed with having my coral banded shrimp pair clean him, which they do not seen inclined to do. They do seem to clamp him on his fins with their pincers once in a while. Maybe he is just a masochist?

Anyone successfully deal with such a problem?

 

[plaz]

Sounds like you chose the wrong tank mates. He may have a parasite - those shrimp instead of cleaners in the tank could make a mess of him.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

You think it a tank mate issue rather than a disease?

 

[boxfishpooalot]

I think your ozone is destroying its fins. I pm'd you a picture of a friends tank, that has the same problem and uses a red sea ozone machine. He runs his at 100%, then it runs through a carbon cylinder before entering the tank.

Im thinking somthing is bypassing the carbon, maybee a metal-bromide? Could cause irritation of fins allowing bacteria to damage fins.

Also my lfs has tangs that look this way too. He runs ozone extensivly on his systems.

Maybee somthing is destroying the slime coat, causing infection.

pic sent by pm

 

[dtaranath]

or perhaps its the carbon. I noticed the same thing on my YT a few weeks after I added carbon from a flatworm-destroying episode.

 

[swamib]

I had a similar problem with two yellow tangs, regal tang and foxface wrasse in 1000l reef. Turned off the ozone after reading posts. Two weeks later yellow tangs fully recovered, others on the mend. Carbon stage on ozonised water return was inadequate or bypassed. Was running a Sander C200 ozoniser at about 30% full.

 

[Mimbler1]

Randy, I've had my YT for seven years. A few times he has had that type of fin problem due to stress from me doing things to the tank. Feeding him nori soaked in selcon has always fixed him up in a day or two. I don't use selcon normally because it disrupts skimming, but it sure appears to be beneficial when I do use it,
Mike

 

[dtaranath]

i completely agree with the selcon. I use selcom sparingly, but use boyd's vitachem more frequently since it doesn't mess up the skimming.

 

[Mimbler1]

Right, I use Zoe on a regular basis because it like vitachem doesn't disrupt skimming,
Mike

 

[IBASSFSH]

I read were adding ginger helps the fish's immune system. I will forward you the recipe Randy. I got it from a fellow reefer her on RC.

 

[asnatlas]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8873835#post8873835 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by IBASSFSH
I read were adding ginger helps the fish's immune system. I will forward you the recipe Randy. I got it from a fellow reefer her on RC.

Do you mind posting this recipe, please ??

 

[TerryB]

Hi Randy,

Interesting thought about fee ozone in the tank causing tissue damage. I think that is possible, but I would wonder why the gills are not being damaged if that is the case. How is the tang's respiration?

What you describe is not uncommon in long-term captive tangs and I have seen it in tanks that don't use ozone. Two things that I know of that can cause it are long-term chronic stress (maybe because of how chronic stress affects digestion) and dietary deficiencies. The tang’s body will assimilate tissues in the fins if something is missing in the diet. What do you feed the tang and how often? Do you use frozen spirulina? You may need to change the diet and add more variety.

TerryB

 

[Amphiprion]

Dietary deficiency is the most common cause that I have seen.

 

[IBASSFSH]

I know this sounds like snake oil but I have seen it work!.... Get some fresh ginger root fom the grocery store and ground it up in some water in a blender and soak the nori and other food in it before giving it to the Tang. There is a good chance that the parsites will fall off. Obviously, these parasites have always been in the tank because you haven't added anything, however, your PBT was strong enough to fight them off until the tank was stressed by the anemone spawning. You have to get him back to that point again and this may help.. Keep him eating!"


I got this from Jbanks here on RC. It worked well for me.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Thanks everyone.

I believe the problem started long before I initiated use of ozone, and I am very carefully passing the effluent over a huge amount of carbon, but I have used carbon for longer than I've had the fish, if carbon could be related. He's still about the same. No better and no worse.

What do you feed the tang and how often? Do you use frozen spirulina? You may need to change the diet and add more variety.


That could be the case. I fed nori every day for months with no impact, but that might not include what he's missing. I picked up a differnet type of macroalgae last week, and I'll try that (maybe with ginger ). Maybe I'll try the spirulina too.