Could this be ich?

[levinsh]

Hi

I've got a new tank with live rock, 3 Damsels, some snails and a couple of hermit crabs. The Damsels have now been in the tank for 6.5 weeks (I decided to use them to cycle the tank before I read about how that's not necessary/an outdated idea etc). Anyhow, One of them has a couple of what looks to me like white spots or possibly some damaged scales. I took the photo, below, which doesn't look at all like white spots. There are about 5 of these on the other side of the fish, but it doesn't want to pose on that side for the camera :? It may have had the one's in the photo when I first got it, and then they disappeared, but it definitely didn't have the ones on the other side.

Any idea what this could be? Is it possible that this fish just scraped itself up a bit, or got into a fight with the other fish (although it is the most aggressive of the 3 by far)?

Also, my intent was to return these to the LFS when the tank is cycled (which I'm sure it is, but I haven't been able to because of my schedule). I'm setting up a quarantine tank, and wanted to get a couple of Clown fish for it. So, now I'm wondering what to do? If the LFS will take these Damsels back, should I get the Clownfish and put them in the quarantine tank for 6-8 weeks and have nothing (except snails and a couple of hermit crabs) in the main tank? Would I need to add some food to the main tank every now and then to keep it cycled?

Thanks for any help/advice you can give.

- Stu

 

[SnowManSnow]

Hi Lev

The picture doesn't LOOK like iCH to me.. but i guess it COULD be... it GENERALLY looks kinda like cotton tufts on the fish.. a lot of the time you see it on the fins first....could it be parasites? somthing a cleaner shrip can take care of?

If it IS ICH. Lots of times fish will heal themselves from ICH.. they become very apt to get it when they are stressed,...much like yours from being in a new home probably with high nitrate levels from the new LR curing process.

whatever you do dont treat the fish IN your display tank. A QT tank is best for that (as im sure you know)

GL!

B

 

[dodo99]

One of my Damsels had one spot like that as well. It went away after about 10 days. I thought it was ich, and was going to look into some meds, but it didn't spread to me percula, so I counted my blessings...

My two blue damsels even spawned. The bigger of the two, which I assume is the female, laid eggs on one of my coral replicas. All th eggs are gone now though.

 

[ChrisRD]

One of them has a couple of what looks to me like white spots or possibly some damaged scales. I took the photo, below, which doesn't look at all like white spots.

In the photo they don't look like white spots to me - looks more like damaged scales from a skirmish with other fish. Ich usually looks like little bits of table salt stuck to the fish.

If the LFS will take these Damsels back, should I get the Clownfish and put them in the quarantine tank for 6-8 weeks and have nothing (except snails and a couple of hermit crabs) in the main tank?

It's definitely best to quarantine the clowns. If they look OK after 4 weeks I'd put them in the main tank. IMO the main tank should be fine with no fish in it for a few weeks. You could put a small piece of raw table shrimp or something similar in there as a source of ammonia, but it's probably not necessary...

HTH

 

[WATERMAN R 83]

It doesn't look like ick to me, but i have been wrong before! If you think that it's a disease, I would suggest maybe getting a pair of cleaner shrimp. One would certainly do the trick, but in a reef it's best to have pairs because they will mate and feed corals in the tank.

 

[levinsh]

Thanks for all the comments... I ended up taking it to the LFS. They said it looked like he'd been picked on. Considering my intent was to return the Damsels once the tank was cycled, and how difficult this one was to catch, I decided to leave it there rather than take it back home.

I had been a little suspicious about their agreement to take the Damsels back, but I did actually see them put this one back into the tank where they have all the Damsels