White patches on Niger Trigger

NexDog

Snail Killer
Premium Member
My Niger Trigger looks terrible. Fine yesterday and today it's covered with patches and some skin looks peeled off. It's all over the body and on the dorsal fine. Kind of like a loss of pigemtation. I've seen Brooklynella and it looks different but can't say for sure.

I've never had a parasite in my DT in 4 years. My quarantine proceedures are thorough and brutal so I'm totally at a loss. :(
 
I'm thinking if it was brook with this amount of discolouration the fish would be near death. The trigger looks okay, not as active as normal but did nibble on some pellets. It's not breathing hard or gasping for oxygen at the top of the tank.

And the fish is bulletproof. If it was brook why didn't it hit my Clarkii pair or other Angels, Tangs, Anthias, Butterflies, Foxfaces etc?

One theory I have in my head is that could be the result of an anenome attack? I've never known my LTAs to eat a fish but would it possible for a fish to survive an attack and if so it would leave a mark - possibly this huge discoloration I'm seeing. My son disappeared with my camera but I'll try and find it.
 
Bizarre.

Panic over, Niger trigger is returning to normal. The discolouration of loss of pigmentation is fading as color returns. It has a few long scars on its body kind of like a V shape. One starts on the dorsal fins and travels down to the mid body. That is where I saw the peeling from.

So I really wonder if it got grabbed by the LTA or maybe one of teh many Hammers I have. Or maybe even a bristleworm?

Weird stuff indeed.
 
I'm glad to hear the fish is recovering. It doesn't sound like bristleworm bristles to me, but it could be a sting from your anemone or LPS. Those can show up as lightened patches, and I don't know for sure, but it seems reasonable that if the fish were sensitive to the sting that it could cause some tissue loss like you are describing.
 
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