Help ID Clownfish spots

[himynameis]

A bit of background: new to reefing, finished tank cycle (fishless, dry rock, live sand, Dr Tim’s) in Red Sea 250 about 12 days ago then OCT 30 introduced my first livestock. Two Clowns, one firefish, one hammer coral. Added a cleaner shrimp and a watchman goby yesterday. All seem to be acting normal, eating both dry and frozen.

About two days ago I notice the larger clown has some blotchy white “sore” looking thing on right side of the anal fin. Fish is acting normal for now. Not sure what to make of this, a little concerned, should I be? Again, new to reefing, new to this forum, learning a lot, help appreciated.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Looks like either sand or bacterial. Assure it does not fall off fish ( try to appraoch with net and see if particles fall of as it darts away. If not - bacterial gram negative type and will need treatment with something like Maracyn 2 or seachem kanaplex , but assure first its not sand

 

[himynameis]

Looks like either sand or bacterial. Assure it does not fall off fish ( try to appraoch with net and see if particles fall of as it darts away. If not - bacterial gram negative type and will need treatment with something like Maracyn 2 or seachem kanaplex , but assure first its not sand

Will give it a check with the net later.

 

[himynameis]

Looks like either sand or bacterial. Assure it does not fall off fish ( try to appraoch with net and see if particles fall of as it darts away. If not - bacterial gram negative type and will need treatment with something like Maracyn 2 or seachem kanaplex , but assure first its not sand

Looking around, possibly a case of Lymphocystis? It does look a bit like a “cauliflower” sore. Also I think it’s been visible for at least 36-48 hours by now.

 

[himynameis]

To play it safe, would it be wise to do a QT Kanaplex treatment anyway? Or if it’s unnecessary could that cause more problems?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Looking around, possibly a case of Lymphocystis? It does look a bit like a “cauliflower” sore. Also I think it’s been visible for at least 36-48 hours by now.

That isn’t Lymphocytis. It is either bacteria, thickened skin mucus or Brooklynella. Given the fish is ok in other respects I think it may just be thickened skin mucus - that shows up really clearly on darker clowns.
I would hold off adding any new animals and let your tank mature a bit more….for a month at least. Going forward, quarantining new fish is always best, but I understand it is a lot more work.
Jay

 

[himynameis]

That isn’t Lymphocytis. It is either bacteria, thickened skin mucus or Brooklynella. Given the fish is ok in other respects I think it may just be thickened skin mucus - that shows up really clearly on darker clowns.
I would hold off adding any new animals and let your tank mature a bit more….for a month at least. Going forward, quarantining new fish is always best, but I understand it is a lot more work.
Jay

Agreed, QT would be ideal, will be setting up in the near future. And I won’t be adding anything else into this tank for a bit. Will keep a close watch on this clown and going to go pick up some Kanaplex in case I need to start treatment or it gets worse.

 

[himynameis]

Will give it a check with the net later.

Not sand. Going to try a FW dip shortly to see if anything comes off/out. Picked up some Kanaplex but will hold off on that to see if the FW dip helps first.

 

[himynameis]

Complete a FW dip and the clown seems to be acting a lot less erratic than before the dip. Before dipping, he was swimming across the tank from one end to the other constantly. Now, a few hours post dip, far more relaxed and hanging out like normal. Also the spot on the fin is far less visible now, almost like it got darker. All good signs I hope! I never did see anything come off/out into the FW bucket, there were a few white dots suspended in the water but I wasn’t sure if that was from the net or the clown. Not having a black bucket makes seeing it a bit tough. Will report back if things change! Thanks all.

 

[dedragon]

I would have held off that fw dip as it wouldnt really help the fish too much if it was bacterial and it causes unneeded stress especially if it wasnt being transferred to a qt tank right after (although probably more annoying to do as you just introduced more fish and this is a new setup).
This could be a sting from the hammer and/or extra mucous buildup from the sting as it tries to heal itself.
Listen to Jays advice as well, he knows his stuff and will guide you if you have to go the route of treatment.

 

[himynameis]

I would have held off that fw dip as it wouldnt really help the fish too much if it was bacterial and it causes unneeded stress especially if it wasnt being transferred to a qt tank right after (although probably more annoying to do as you just introduced more fish and this is a new setup).
This could be a sting from the hammer and/or extra mucous buildup from the sting as it tries to heal itself.
Listen to Jays advice as well, he knows his stuff and will guide you if you have to go the route of treatment.

Didn’t even think about it possibly being a sting from the hammer, another possibility I suppose. I won’t be doing any further treatment unless things progress worse. All advice is appreciated, as I’m learning a lot here.

 

[himynameis]

Quick update - clown still doing good, feeding well and swimming normal. No additional noticeable issues. Doesn’t look to be getting worse but the issue isn’t visibly much better either. At this point, my guess is it’s possibly healing from a hammer sting. If that’s the case, is it best to just let it heal naturally over time or is there something that can be done to help it along? Obviously not wanting to add any undue stress. I’m not sure how quick these sorts of things can take to heal.

 

[himynameis]

Last update - clown is looking good! Barely anything noticeable in the fin now, just some slight indication that will probably go away in a few days. Thanks for the help everyone.