What is this on my tang!?

[Poriferabob]

Hey everyone! about a week ago now I found what I thought was ich on my regal and my purple tangs. It started as little white spots that looked just like ich. As the week passed the white spots have gotten bigger and now look somewhat stringy and sort of hang from the fish. What is this?

 

[Sharkbait19]

That's ich. And a bad case too. You need to get it out and QT.

It might be velvet based on how many and how "stringy" it appears, so that would be worse. It is alive, so maybe not velvet. Definitely some kind of parasite that needs to be quickly adressed.

 

[Poriferabob]

That's ich. And a bad case too. You need to get it out and QT.

It might be velvet based on how many and how "stringy" it appears, so that would be worse. It is alive, so maybe not velvet. Definitely some kind of parasite that needs to be quickly adressed.

Hey Sharkbait! Thank you for the reply. I was always under the impression that ich looked like
Salt. Obviously it sometimes looks stringy then?

 

[Sharkbait19]

Hey Sharkbait! Thank you for the reply.

Hello! Glad to help!

I was always under the impression that ich looked like
Salt. Obviously it sometimes looks stringy then?

Well it starts off looking like salt. However, as the case becomes more severe, the ich becomes more fuzzy and covering the whole body. The ich parasites themselves are invisible. What you see are the cysts from the ich bugs burying themselves inside.

How is the tang’s breathing? Does it seem labored?
How are its swimming patterns? Does it appear to be itching against rocks?
Consider a short FW dip to alleviate some agitation. Additionally, you will need to get a QT going. If the ich is in that great a number, I might suggest total eradication by fallow. The truth is, if the tang is showing that many spots, there are a lot in the water, sand, and rocks. It will be difficult to treat the fish in the DT, as you’ll never be able to truly remove the parasites, especially with all those beautiful corals at risk of copper meds