diagnosis - is this black ich or something else?

[Gulrez]

@hemdal
second round of prazipro ongoing and prior to this QT in copper power. wasn't sure if this was black ich or flukes. I see mix of black spots and a bit of dusting. he does seem to enjoy the flow but is hovering there for quite a bit. remaining fishes don't display these symptoms. this has been going on for last 10 days.

 

[Gulrez]

 

[Gulrez]

 

[vetteguy53081]

@hemdal
second round of prazipro ongoing and prior to this QT in copper power. wasn't sure if this was black ich or flukes. I see mix of black spots and a bit of dusting. he does seem to enjoy the flow but is hovering there for quite a bit. remaining fishes don't display these symptoms. this has been going on for last 10 days.

While I see black ich, i also see skin irritation, possibly mucus cones which May be mixed with mucus and/or ich. Black ich are worms that give it the appearance of ich as melanin pigmentation causes the appearance of black dots are turbellarian worms and likely the Paravortex version which are smaller and appear as grains of black spots
These worms have a single host life cycle producing several juveniles which can last up to 30 days but rarely do. Best is to treat with Praziquantel better known as prazi pro for two 8 day intervals with a water change on day 9.
other option is formalin based medication such as quick cure or ruby Rally Pro starting with a bath for 45 minutes followed by treatment
Do note that Prazi will lower both oxygen and appetite, so an airstone is recommended for added aeration and monitor water quality during treatment with a reliable test kit. For skin issue, Clean tank water may help but may require treatment with use of coppersafe for 4 weeks
If there is a question of which to treat first - I'd go with coppersafe first followed by prazi

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

@hemdal
second round of prazipro ongoing and prior to this QT in copper power. wasn't sure if this was black ich or flukes. I see mix of black spots and a bit of dusting. he does seem to enjoy the flow but is hovering there for quite a bit. remaining fishes don't display these symptoms. this has been going on for last 10 days.

That does look like a turbellarian worm infection that is often called “black ich”. The other clues are that the fish has had this for over a week, it is a tang, and other fish in the tank are not affected.

Praziquantel is almost always suggested to treat this, but often doesn’t work. These worms are a different species and are more tightly attached to the skin.

Formalin dips and then moving the fish to a new tank is the best treatment. Some people have found that freshwater dips for 5 to 7 minutes will also work. Another treatment, using organophosphates are too toxic to people to use safely.

Jay

 

[Gulrez]

thank you both. I appreciate the quick response on this. at this rate, I may just make my QT as the DT! lol