Hi all -
I have a group of young Boesemani rainbows purchased over a year ago that I know are the source of a very problematic parasite. It looks like difficult-to-see flukes beneath the scales. If the fish turns away from you under good lighting, you can see white flukes slowly wriggling just beneath the rear edge of the scale. Some fish carry many of these. I have already tried PraziPro (praziquantel) and Clout (trichlorfon) and these didn't touch 'em. The fish don't flash, swim/school fine, and eat well. However, the worst affected fish have areas of poor slime coat, I presume because of constant irritation.
I became very frustrated because typical meds didn't seem to eradicate these - they returned every time. I captured a badly affected rainbow and used a sterile razor blade to remove a fluke, then looked at it under a microscope. It's a dead ringer for Transversotrema patialense, which apparently need Malaysian trumpet snails as secondary hosts. Guess what I have like 1,000,000 of in my substrate? Ya.
Total breakdown of a 180-gallon planted tank later, I have these fish in a 90 gallon. They remain showing the flukes, and to my horror a green terror in a separate 125 - with no snails! - is now also covered in the flukes.
Has anyone dealt with this? Are there any known look-alike parasites? I think I'll try Seachem Cupramine next, screw the plants. If you had to nuke snails, what's your med of choice?
Hope you're all having a great Sunday!
I have a group of young Boesemani rainbows purchased over a year ago that I know are the source of a very problematic parasite. It looks like difficult-to-see flukes beneath the scales. If the fish turns away from you under good lighting, you can see white flukes slowly wriggling just beneath the rear edge of the scale. Some fish carry many of these. I have already tried PraziPro (praziquantel) and Clout (trichlorfon) and these didn't touch 'em. The fish don't flash, swim/school fine, and eat well. However, the worst affected fish have areas of poor slime coat, I presume because of constant irritation.
I became very frustrated because typical meds didn't seem to eradicate these - they returned every time. I captured a badly affected rainbow and used a sterile razor blade to remove a fluke, then looked at it under a microscope. It's a dead ringer for Transversotrema patialense, which apparently need Malaysian trumpet snails as secondary hosts. Guess what I have like 1,000,000 of in my substrate? Ya.
Total breakdown of a 180-gallon planted tank later, I have these fish in a 90 gallon. They remain showing the flukes, and to my horror a green terror in a separate 125 - with no snails! - is now also covered in the flukes.
Has anyone dealt with this? Are there any known look-alike parasites? I think I'll try Seachem Cupramine next, screw the plants. If you had to nuke snails, what's your med of choice?
Hope you're all having a great Sunday!
