HELP! What the HECK is this thing???

[vetteguy53081]

What do you suggest I do then? Dip the horses and pipes?

These parasites die from low salinity but not applicable for the seahorses and don’t dip them
Often there is only one and will come as a hitchhiker from plants, rocks and fish

 

[1Meshy]

These parasites die from low salinity but not applicable for the seahorses and don’t dip them
Often there is only one and will come as a hitchhiker from plants, rocks and fish

Yeah, there was only one. I've thoroughly checked the other seahorse and two pipefish and they're clean. There was no wound on the seahorse with the bug and they're all eating and swimming perfectly fine.. would you say it's OK to add the new seahorse in tomorrow??

 

[1Meshy]

These parasites die from low salinity but not applicable for the seahorses and don’t dip them
Often there is only one and will come as a hitchhiker from plants, rocks and fish

It's possible it came from a coral or something then. The tank only has two seahorses, two pipefish, gorgonians and leathers, and a pistol shrimp. Maybe it came from one of the corals?

 

[tbrown]

It's possible it came from a coral or something then. The tank only has two seahorses, two pipefish, gorgonians and leathers, and a pistol shrimp. Maybe it came from one of the corals?

What was the most recent addition to the tank and when was it added?

 

[tbrown]

Unfortunately you're getting a lot of generalizations and helpful answers. Wether you should add th seahorses or not is entirely up to you. My personal choice would be to wait and make sure no more show up before adding them but I don't know enough about this particular critter.

 

[vetteguy53081]

It's possible it came from a coral or something then. The tank only has two seahorses, two pipefish, gorgonians and leathers, and a pistol shrimp. Maybe it came from one of the corals?

Yes and as stated, often these are isolated but observe tank daily for at least a week for prscence of any more.

 

[1Meshy]

What was the most recent addition to the tank and when was it added?

The gorgonians were most recently added. I bought them also from kp aquatics but were originally in a different 10 gallon tank to observe them. I didn't dip the corals this time so maybe that was the cause.

 

[1Meshy]

Unfortunately you're getting a lot of generalizations and helpful answers. Wether you should add th seahorses or not is entirely up to you. My personal choice would be to wait and make sure no more show up before adding them but I don't know enough about this particular critter.

I would put the new seahorse in a tank by itself to make sure no other bugs show up, but the hospital tank I use is currently in use for another fish. It's risky, but I think I'll add the new seahorse in and just observe them like a hawk for the next couple weeks. If any of them get bugs again or start acting weird, I'll buy another quarantine tank if I have to and debug them. I'm keeping faith that this was just a one-off thing and won't be a problem anymore..

 

[vetteguy53081]

I would put the new seahorse in a tank by itself to make sure no other bugs show up, but the hospital tank I use is currently in use for another fish. It's risky, but I think I'll add the new seahorse in and just observe them like a hawk for the next couple weeks. If any of them get bugs again or start acting weird, I'll buy another quarantine tank if I have to and debug them. I'm keeping faith that this was just a one-off thing and won't be a problem anymore..

From experience, again often these are isolated cases

 

[1Meshy]

From experience, again often these are isolated cases

Okay, fair enough. If it WERE an infestation though, wouldn't all the seahorses and pipefish be having these little bugs on them? And wouldn't I have seen them the moment I got them? They were clean when I got them.

 

[vetteguy53081]

Okay, fair enough. If it WERE an infestation though, wouldn't all the seahorses and pipefish be having these little bugs on them? And wouldn't I have seen them the moment I got them? They were clean when I got them.

They need a host and would have at least overnight attached themselves

 

[1Meshy]

Thats

They need a host and would have at least overnight attached themselves

Thats true, they would've already attached themselves over a week ago if it was an infestation. Hopefully it literally was just one and hadnt laid eggs yet or something

 

[Michael Hughes]

Just to clarify here, Argulus are currently classified as maxillopods, not isopods. My experience with them is exclusively freshwater, as we'd find them occasionally on gar in the middle Mississippi River during my research. I have a vial of them (preserved in ethanol) in my office somewhere.

They can be somewhat problematic in freshwater aquaculture. I suspect marine species in this genus probably have a fair tolerance to freshwater too, so I'm not sure how effective hyposalinity would be.

If I remember correctly, Argulus can live without a host for up to 2 weeks and they are free swimming as adults.

In my experience with wild fish it was most common for host fish to have only one or two fish lice on them at a time. That said, I have pulled off more than a dozen from one gar. Hence the vial in my office.

Jay, would it be safe to assume that copper works for fish lice? (Not applicable for seahorses, but curious nonetheless.)

 

[Jay Hemdal]

They were from kp aquatics, but they were quarantined beforehand. The others said not to worry about it though??

No doubt the seahorses were from the wild, probably ocean pen-raised though, in Vietnam. Pen culture is how these sorts of parasites get an infection going in a strong fashion.

A 7 minute FW dip will help dislodge any remaining Argulus. Use dechlorinated tap water at the same temperature as the tank. Offer the seahorse a hitching post in the dip and go for at least 5 minutes, seven if the seahorse seems to be tolerating it well.

I've only had Argulus cause serious health issues with freshwater stingrays, where it causes "wandering spot disease". The fish show trails on the skin, ending with a large Argulus stationary, feeding on blood. This leaves the rays anemic and subject to secondary bacterial infections.

Here is a good review of Argulus in aquariums (but the focus is on FW fish):

FA184/FA184: Argulus (Fish Louse) Infections in Fish

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. Published by Animal Systems

ask.ifas.ufl.edu

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Just to clarify here, Argulus are currently classified as maxillopods, not isopods. My experience with them is exclusively freshwater, as we'd find them occasionally on gar in the middle Mississippi River during my research. I have a vial of them (preserved in ethanol) in my office somewhere.

They can be somewhat problematic in freshwater aquaculture. I suspect marine species in this genus probably have a fair tolerance to freshwater too, so I'm not sure how effective hyposalinity would be.

If I remember correctly, Argulus can live without a host for up to 2 weeks and they are free swimming as adults.

In my experience with wild fish it was most common for host fish to have only one or two fish lice on them at a time. That said, I have pulled off more than a dozen from one gar. Hence the vial in my office.

Jay, would it be safe to assume that copper works for fish lice? (Not applicable for seahorses, but curious nonetheless.)

No, I've not found copper to work against these, not at concentrations that the fish would be able to handle. We now suggest people use amine-chelated copper products, they are milder. Because of that though, they do not control crusteceans.

Dimilin works to control the juveniles, but it only affects Argulus at the point of molting, so it doesn't kill the adults. Organophosphates work, but are too toxic to fish and people. Same issue with formalin. Most people use long FW dips to control these on seahorses - 7 to 8 minutes.

 

[1Meshy]

No doubt the seahorses were from the wild, probably ocean pen-raised though, in Vietnam. Pen culture is how these sorts of parasites get an infection going in a strong fashion.

A 7 minute FW dip will help dislodge any remaining Argulus. Use dechlorinated tap water at the same temperature as the tank. Offer the seahorse a hitching post in the dip and go for at least 5 minutes, seven if the seahorse seems to be tolerating it well.

I've only had Argulus cause serious health issues with freshwater stingrays, where it causes "wandering spot disease". The fish show trails on the skin, ending with a large Argulus stationary, feeding on blood. This leaves the rays anemic and subject to secondary bacterial infections.

Here is a good review of Argulus in aquariums (but the focus is on FW fish):

FA184/FA184: Argulus (Fish Louse) Infections in Fish

A UF/IFAS numbered Fact Sheet. Published by Animal Systems

ask.ifas.ufl.edu

From what I understand kp aquatics just catches them from the wild in Florida. I've talked to Philip himself (owner) and he's a scuba diver that harvests them off the Florida keys. Also, I inspected the horses and pipes before adding them to the tank and I never saw anything until a week later. Why would that be?

 

[1Meshy]

No, I've not found copper to work against these, not at concentrations that the fish would be able to handle. We now suggest people use amine-chelated copper products, they are milder. Because of that though, they do not control crusteceans.

Dimilin works to control the juveniles, but it only affects Argulus at the point of molting, so it doesn't kill the adults. Organophosphates work, but are too toxic to fish and people. Same issue with formalin. Most people use long FW dips to control these on seahorses - 7 to 8 minutes.

I can do a fw dip for sure, but do I need to worry further after that? Do I need to do anything to my DT tank? What about the pipefish?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

I can do a fw dip for sure, but do I need to worry further after that? Do I need to do anything to my DT tank? What about the pipefish?

These may end up being self-limiting, that is, they are not going to be able to complete their life cycle in the confines of an aquarium. In fact, many people suggest just removing any visual ones on the fish with tweezers. the trouble with that is that you can't clearly see the smaller ones, so a FW dip helps with that.

 

[1Meshy]

These may end up being self-limiting, that is, they are not going to be able to complete their life cycle in the confines of an aquarium. In fact, many people suggest just removing any visual ones on the fish with tweezers. the trouble with that is that you can't clearly see the smaller ones, so a FW dip helps with that.

Oh, that's genuinely a relief. I'll go ahead and dip the two ponies in FW today, and then I'll add the new pony in and just observe to see if there are any more. Thank you so much for your advice, Jay

 

[1Meshy]

These may end up being self-limiting, that is, they are not going to be able to complete their life cycle in the confines of an aquarium. In fact, many people suggest just removing any visual ones on the fish with tweezers. the trouble with that is that you can't clearly see the smaller ones, so a FW dip helps with that.

Oh wait, do I fw dip the pipefish too? Or just leave them alone