Eclipse (Sun) Catfish w/ white splotches

[Breeze]

Hey there,

I have an eclipse or sun catfish, about 5" long, who has had these white "marks" on it for about a month and a half.

At first I thought, that looks like it got beat up, into a fight. But this fish is in a tank with one 3 " banjo catfish and one 4" Raphael catfish, currently in a 10gal awaiting rehoming.

The strange thing about the white Marks is that they dont look like fungus and the fish is very active, no lethargy and ears just fine. This leads me to believe that with the fish having had these Mark's for an extended period if time, they are something different than fungus entirely. I dont think its columnaris, either.

Check out the pictures, let me know what you think. Tank has mature water with stable parameters.

Thanks in advance.

 

[pops]

kinda look like scars.

 

[Breeze]

kinda look like scars.

Right? I thought the same thing. Unless they're self inflicted somehow, I have no clue. Its tank mates are just too docile to harm the fish.

 

[twentyleagues]

The other two cats are armored and sharp edges. They were probably fighting at night.

 

[Breeze]

The other two cats are armored and sharp edges. They were probably fighting at night.

Setting up a low light time lapse tonight

WE SHALL SEE!

 

[Breeze]

twentyleagues btw banjo catfish are squishy, not armored. The raph cat, on the other hand, is armored

 

[Deadliestviper7]

He probably picked on the raph and it crashed into him, looks like scar tissue.
Also that's a huge dorsal fin for an eclipse!

 

[Breeze]

He probably picked on the raph and it crashed into him, looks like scar tissue.
Also that's a huge dorsal fin for an eclipse!

Ha I always thought the same about the dorsal fin on the Eclipse. Even when it was a little guy the dorsal was huge ha.

 

[thebiggerthebetter]

Never seen this on suncats.

If these superficial skin abrasions were from a fight, or burns from a heater, they would probably heal up eventually and take on the (semi) normal coloration. But you state they have been like that for 1.5 months. That makes me doubt that these are from a physical injury.

I must note that the fish has abnormal body proportions. Looks like a short body version of an eclipse (sun) catfish. Funny enough, I rescued one with a similar stubby body a few months back. Until then, never saw them like that.

Anyway, the two unusual things might not be coincidental - that it has the abnormal proportion and the abnormal coloration because gene mutations, if that's what this is, occur in bunches.

Lastly, this reminds me a bit of the lateral line erosion disease in synodontis, where white marks appear on fish's body along the lateral line but could be present in other places. The cause of this disorder is not enough plant matter in the synodontis diet.

 

[Breeze]

That's an interesting thought, about the body being disproportionate. I'll keep an eye on them to be sure of what's happening, regardless of if I know how to treat it .

It's worth noting that I keep a stick of relatively fresh zucchini in my tanks for my plecos. This sun cat has lived in common tanks with those plecos and never showed much interest in veggies. I've tried 2 or 3 different types, so maybe exploring that option would be cool.

I think the gameplan is basically observe, and base my treatment accordingly. Like theres so way to be sure at this point because the fish is active, eats well (bloodworms and Hikari Carnivore pellets) and can be seen around the tank all night long (Super active at night).

I'll be sure to update.