Cacatoides' black markings

[tjudy]

I just purchased some wild (at least advertised as wild) A. cacatoides. I bought them because they seem to have a greater proliferaton of black markings on them than what I have seen on wild fish before. They would be called 'ob' if they were rift-lake cichlids! The markings are in the fins and on the body.

Is this normal for wild cacs?

 

[Aquatico]

That is a parasite. I dont think you can get rid of them, but the good news is they dont seem to hurt the host.

Don

 

[tjudy]

What type of parasite is it? The markings are very irregular, and do not appear to be subcutaneous. They look like pigmentation in the skin.

 

[Z Man]

Ted, I have had this on some of my fish and also seen it in other wild fish. I was also told that it is something from the wild but really has no ill effect on the fish that have it or any other fish in the tank. Also some of these guys have bred for me and it never shows up on the resulting offspring.

 

[tjudy]

Cool.. my curiosity is piqued. Anyone else know anything about this parasite?

 

[Bissot_J]

Ted do you have any pics ?

 

[Randall]

Black Markings on Wild Fish

Dear Ted,

If the discussion on this thread is what I think it is, the black marks sometimes seen "speckled" on wild fish are a type of fluke that is very difficult to get rid of. From my experience, Zack is absolutely right in that it won't harm the effected fish nor is it contagious.

This fluke needs an intermediary host to spread, like a bird. In the wild when a bird eats an infected fish, the protazoa can be spread to other fish through the birds' feces. For some reason, the fluke doesn't spead in the absence of an intermediary host.

I'd recommend you isolate the infected fish and treat with Fluke Tabs at half strength. This is the recommended treatment. After two treatments, the fluke should be dead but may take several weeks to fall off.

Good luck!

Randall Kohn

 

[tjudy]

In the name of scientific curiosity... I am going to use a miscrocope. A couple have eh markings on the soft rays of their fins, so I should be able to clip a black mark without harming the fish.

More later....