Please help me positively ID this parasite/infection (spots on clowns)
- Thread starter Mercer
- Start date
WaffleWalffle22
Zoa Extreemist
They images are very fuzzy, but I'd say black ich.
patriots81
New member
ya i'm pretty sure it's ich
patriots81
New member
you're right, the last pic looks different.
WaffleWalffle22
Zoa Extreemist
The last pic is a fungus. I'm not sure why, but since the start of 2009, I've seen fungus on loads of fish in the LFS! The first pic isn't ich. It looks like white scales are falling off and making the orange come through. I'm not sure what kind of fungus is on the last pic, but get an expert in diseases to figure it out and tell you. Since I started salt water none of my fish have ever got sick so I'm no expert in disease...
Mercer
New member
He seems to hyperventilate, and likes to rest inside the toadstool. He'll take 3 or 4 breaths per second. Seems to me he has always had this slight discoloration around his stripe. But, the time I have had him he is always in the toadstool. He's in QT presently without the toadstool, perhaps it'll resolve itself if it was hypermelanization.
tufacody
New member
Not surprising at all. Fungus is often a secondary illness that will atack fish with already weakened immune systems, and can be extremely contagious. Many LFS already have stressed fish or less than optimal environments already and run all their tanks on a closed system. Perfect for mass infection.
Mercer
New member
pH hovers around 8.0-8.3 depending on the day. NO3-, NO2-, NH4' are all negligible. I would assume there is plenty of oxygen going in in the tank. The water gets mashed up in the recirc skimmer all day, and dosed with ozone. The ORP is usual found somewhere around 400. The clown's condition has actually been going on awhile now, perhaps since I originally purchased him at the LFS. Part of me thinks it may have had something to do with the LFS side of things, either burnt by ammonia or low pH during transport.
So we're now questioning a fungal infection for the dart fish then? Not ich?
Mercer
New member
Currently they're all in QT due to black ick, right now riding at about 1.019sg. The three white spots remain on the dart, however the clowns won't come close enough to me for inspection. Foolishly big QT tank. The three-spot-zebra-dart has also developed similar spotting on the opposite side. Currently the yellow tang is not so happy about it all, but not showing signs of distress. Just, not showing signs of curiosity when I come up to the tank. Both the yellow tang & smaller clown show signs of black ich (the primary reason for the current QT.) The larger clown (who I've had for ages) seems okay at this point. But I can't see his gills. At this point I'm glad I don't have a more extensive collection of fish. Can you imagine the headache?!
So I'm thinking: For feedings, does it make sense to collect the fish from the tank + move them to a smaller container where you feed them? To prevent excess food from building up in the otherwise pristine water.
Do you feel formalin would be effective against the fungi showing on the dart?
Lastly, once in hypo @ 1.009sg they fish remain there only until all visible signs of the parasite are gone? What about the ones we can't see externally, like in the gills? Is it just assumed that they are smaller, weaker parasites than those on the exterior and as such we then assume they will parish? About.com has an article recommending freshwater dips as an additional preventative because "it doesn't hurt to give them a quick freshwater dip or bath as a preventative measure." :eek2:
Mercer
New member
Thanks for the infos! The black ich is actually not shown in any of the photos. It has actually gotten a lot worse on the clowns since they were moved into QT, but it's still dropping to hypo. Just slowly. It's almost like little bits of pepper.
The zebra dart is the one with the questionable fungus
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