White spot id please.

BamaFan13 · Mar 20, 2012

Can anyone identify the two white spots on the yellow tang's right pectoral fin. They have been there for 8 days. They showed up after 3 1/2 weeks of it being in the qt. I thought it was ich and have been treating with coppersafe, but there has been no change in the size or number of spots. The fish is eating fine. The kole tang has no spots but was in the qt with the yt so it is being treated also. If this is not ich, I want to get the fish out of the copper asap. I took about 100 pictures and this is best I could get. The spots on the left pectoral fin are actually on the glass.

TIA.

revhtree · Mar 20, 2012

Hmm looks like it could be ich but according to what you are saying I am not sure.

Mike&Terry · Mar 20, 2012

Hard to tell in the pic, but it looks like lymphocystis which is a virus. It will go away on it's own with good water quality and proper nutrition.

BamaFan13 · Mar 20, 2012

That's what I thought it was. But nothing has changed for better or worse in 8 days of copper treatment. The first day I did see the yt rub that side on some of the the pvc a couple of times, but I haven't seen it do that since the first day.

BamaFan13 · Mar 20, 2012

What do you suggest? Should I take it out of the copper and just keep it in the qt for observation?

chestnud · Mar 20, 2012

Maybe try a freshwater dip?

revhtree · Mar 20, 2012

BamaFan13 said:
What do you suggest? Should I take it out of the copper and just keep it in the qt for observation?

How much longer is it supposed to be in QT? I would say to let the QT run it's course and to keep the tang fed well.

BamaFan13 · Mar 20, 2012

It's been in qt since Feb 23. In copper treatment for 8 days. I don't want to keep the fish in copper if it's not needed.

Mike&Terry · Mar 20, 2012

Can you get a better pic of the tang's fin?

If you cannot determine for certain whether it is ich or lymphocystis, I would finish out the copper treatment. I would also followup with a couple of rounds of Prazipro as a preventative for flukes and worms.

Lymphocystis can look similar to ich in the beginning, but will start to take on a cauliflower-like shape. There is no treatment for lymphocystis, but it will go away in time.

-Terry

BamaFan13 · Mar 20, 2012

If it's ich, shouldn't the spots vanish in at least 10 days? From what I think I understand about the life cycle of ich, it only stays at that stage for 3-7 days. Then drops off of the fish. At what point should I be able to be certain that it's not ich?

Mike&Terry · Mar 20, 2012

Yes, the trophont stage lasts 3-7 days, so, yes, I would agree if the spots are still there on day 10, they are not ich.

BamaFan13 · Mar 21, 2012

I will try to get a better picture later today.

BamaFan13 · Mar 21, 2012

I tried to get a better picture but couldn't. After looking at the fish and researching Lymphocystis, I'm pretty positive that is what the fish has. I assume I should keep the fish in the ht until the spots disappear. I'm going to do 20% water changes everyday to get the coppersafe out of the ht. I'm going to move the kole tang back to the qt. How long should I keep the kole tang in the qt?

Mike&Terry · Mar 21, 2012

I would not add additional time in the QT for lymphocystis as it is harmless. It will go away on it's own, but may take time. Good water quality and proper nutrition will help boost your tang's immune system to fight off the infection.