- Joined
- Apr 26, 2020
- Messages
- 299
- Reaction score
- 109
Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Looks like nick or injury but also can be bites marks from a tank occupant
https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/fungal-infection-on-helfrich’s-firefish.720306/
This looks exactly like my fish. Sent a message to other op for advice. Do you have more info on the copepod thing?? This one is a helfrichi
Thank you very much . It’s just strange that my fish looks exactly like that other. I can’t set up another tank due to space. Should I just let this ride?It could be a bacterial infection from an injury - external fungal infections of marine fish are almost non-existent, I've only seen a couple in my career.
I don't know if helfrich's can get the copepod, but I bet they do.
Here is an excerpt from my book about them:
The purple firefish, Nemateleotris magnifica has a copepod parasite specific to that species – Serpentisaccus magnificae. Described by George Blasiola in 1979, this parasite is seen on newly imported firefish. The body of the parasite is buried in the flank of the fish, behind the gills, either on one or both sides. When the female copepod develops its egg sacs, these emerge from the fish’s skin as tiny coiled strands. Treatment should not be attempted for this parasite, as the adults are buried too deeply into the body of the fish for physical removal to be done safely, and no known chemotherapeutic will eliminate internal crustacean parasites without also harming the host fish. This copepod is thought to have indirect development with a series of planktonic larval stages, so there is no real concern of the eggs hatching and then fully developing and causing reinfection of the host.
Jay
Well, if it spreads then it is more likely bacterial….trouble is, you shouldn’t dose your display tank with antibiotics, so without a treatment tank I think you’ll have to see if it can ride it out…..Thank you very much . It’s just strange that my fish looks exactly like that other. I can’t set up another tank due to space. Should I just let this ride?