Flukes?

[TGIF]

Can anyone give me some information on flukes? I have a new dottyback. Its fins look like they are being eaten away. I thought at first it was ich because the fins are whitish but am wondering now if it is flukes.

This fish is captive bred and was kept in a system that only has captive bred fish. Would it be possible for it to have flukes?

I cant post a pic because my camera is out of commission. tks

 

[TGIF]

One other thing> from what I have been able to get from the internet flukes are a type of flatworm.

I bought some zoas a month or so ago and have recently heard that people are having flatworm problems with the zoas they bought from the same vendor. Can flukes be added to a tank from zoas?

All of my other fish are doing great. This dottyback is very young and small. It seems to be doing great though, it's eating, hunting, swimming around, not gasping for air, etc.,.

It's fins are just a mess.

 

[chaosfinity]

flukes are a small parasite that live in the gills under the scales and on the eyes. Most species are to small to see with the naked eye while some especially on the eyes can be seen as large translucent patches. Most of the species lay there eggs on the belly behind the fins and also towards the start of the tail. But there are some species that spawn in the tank also which would make it possible that you have gotten them from not from the zoas but the rocks they inhabit. Personally i quarantine all corals, snails, crabs, fish and anything else that is "wet" to make sure there are no living parasites.

Since these parasites are so hard to see it is also very possible the fish has always had this parasite and has been maintaining it for some time. When the fish becomes stressed it is very easy for the parasites to multiply and overwhelm the fish. I would suggest reading as much as you can find about the parasite and make sure to take the correct approach to treating it. One large problem with treating the parasite is that it makes so many open wounds on the fish after they have been shed so then the fish has the potential to be attacked by an infection.

Also, flukes usually do not do damage the fish so i would not think that this is the cause for the fins being damaged that may just be "Fin rot" or a bacterial infection that is destroying the fins. Still since you have reason to believe that you may have gotten flukes from the zoas i would read as much as i can and see if indeed you do need to take action.

 

[clekchau]

symtoms of flukes include head twitching, discolored skin, cloudy eyes, rapid breathing and YES damaged fins/tail.

here is a great thread on flukes

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1260067