Looks like cotton on tangs pectoral fin?

[reel soon]

I have a yellow tang that looks like he has a cotton ball on his pectoral fin. He is eating well, it hasn't slowed him down. It is not present anywhere else on his body. I think it is a fungal infection. Should I do anything to treat him, or will this go away on its own? I also have another yellow tang that shows no signs of this. Thanks

 

[mikersx02]

I have had my tang for about 2 months now- he occasionally gets one on his top fin (Tiny) it has appeared twice in the same spot and last about a week or two- then disapears. Doesnt seem to affect him any.

 

[SAT]

Re: Looks like cotton on tangs pectoral fin?

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7111091#post7111091 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by reel soon
I have a yellow tang that looks like he has a cotton ball on his pectoral fin. He is eating well, it hasn't slowed him down. It is not present anywhere else on his body. I think it is a fungal infection. Should I do anything to treat him, or will this go away on its own? I also have another yellow tang that shows no signs of this. Thanks

Does it look kind of like cauliflower? If so, it's likely to be Lymphocystis. That's a viral disease, sort of like warts. There's no treatment other than surgery (not recommended), but it's rarely fatal and usually goes away on its own. It's contageous only between closely related species of fish.

External fungal infections are rare to non-existent in saltwater. Infections that look "fungal" are almost invariably something else. If it's not Lympho, it could be a bacterial infection or some sort of parasite. A photo might help.