Hippo Tang with small threads on body

ghiggi

ghiggi

Member
Our hippo tang has what appears to be small whitish threads all over her body. It looks like she is secreting them from under her scales.
Is this some sort of parasite or Ich?
They appeared suddenly. 48 hours ago, I didn't notice them, then 24 hours ago they were there. I'll try and get a picture, but she's still very active. Gill movement and activity are normal. She's not scratching on the rocks or anything.
Our lionfish just came back (72 hours ago) from a week in the QT being treated for a bacterial infection. He's not showing any signs of any outbreak.
Water parameters:
135g FOWLR
Ammo: 0
Nitrites: 0
Nitrates: 80 (I know that's high. I just switched from CC to Sand and added a fuge about a month ago. They were way off the chart before that.)
PH: 8.0
SpGr: 1.020-1.021
Temp: 80-81F
Any help would be appreciated.
ghiggi
 
ghiggi

ghiggi

Member
I've tried several times to get clear pictures, but she just moves to fast. The close-ups are too blurry and don't show any detail. And the distant shots are too far away to show the problem.
The tendrels/threads/hairs are almost opague until the light catches them, then they light up. It doesn't look like there is a bump or anything in the area where they are attached to here body. It almost looks like she is growing small strands of hair algae. They are very thin were they attach to her and get thicker the longer they get. Some are just barely elongated dots. Others are maybe 1/8" long. They are only on her body. None on her fins and it doesn't look like any are on her gills.
Could it have anything to do with her protective coat? I ran out of water conditioner. I use RO/DI for the make-up (about 5 gal a day) and water changes (about 20 gal a week). I normally dose the water change water before adding it. Since I ran out, I haven't dosed the last two changes.
Hopefully this information will help. Thanks,
ghiggi
 
beth

beth

Administrator
Staff member
It is just hard to imagine what you are talking about since I've never heard of these symptoms. :nope: Please keep trying with the picture. Perhaps try when the lights first go on before the fish gets too active.
 
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