Cryptocaryon irritans Survival

[meeandcharlie]

Okay so I am researching more on ich. I was trying to find out if at any stage it can release into air. I have not found that answer yet, but I did find something while reading a study from of University of Florida. I'll just paste the portion that caught my attention.

"A more recent study demonstrated that two life stages of one strain of Cryptocaryon (trophonts, i.e., the feeding stage during which the parasite can be found on the fish, and tomonts) survived dormant for 4–5 months at 12°C (53.6°F), and, after the water temperature increased to 27°C (80.6°F), developed and infected fish (Dan et al. 2009)."

Note where one stage can lay dormant for 4-5 MONTHS! Has anyone encountered/read other studies? I will admit I kinda stopped there and have to go finish reading the article. Where did the 72 days come from? Perhaps that's typical. I have to find that study, anyone have a link? (if not google should find one quick).

Now there is no way for me to tell what strain. Honestly, now I am seriously considering taking my DT, sump and all down, cleaning, bleaching and letting it all dry for a few weeks and restarting with all new sand and rock. I'm really pondering this route this as my fish cannot go back in until July anyway. The rock and sand that is in there just isn't worth the return of this parasite.

[Sk8r]

Seriously, no, it doesn't aerosol. I haven't bought a fish that proved to have the pest since 2004, the last time I saw a case in my own tank, and that was quickly handled with no recurrence. It is NOT a huge problem if you a) quarantine b) remove all fish to treatment if you miss one c) keep your alkalinity at 8.3 or thereabouts; d) don't trade wet things into and out of two tanks, including your hands and e) the 4-5 months would be a world record, likely. The usual is half that. Do you have it now? If you don't, quarantine, keep your alk and salinity spot on all the time, and relax.

[meeandcharlie]

Thanks sk8r! I do have it! I started TTM a couple days ago.
I quarantined my first fishes, simple hardy ones like Chromis, Goby, Firefish and a couple others for 6 weeks, treated with Prazi prophylactically. I did not see any signs of disease or parasite so they went into DT (no ich treatment). I purchased a yellow tang a couple months ago. I did TTM and observed for a couple weeks+, no sign of parasite, transferred to DT. Recently I noted him/her scratching/flashing. Then saw the specks.

My alk has always been good at about 8.4 and pretty steady. I have read your comments about it maintaining slim coats so I always pay close attention to it. Recent values salinity 1.025, Ca 400, alk 8.4, mg 1350

Perhaps one of the fishes I added before the tang carried it in and just never displayed any signs or symptoms. None of them have to this point except the tang. Or I messed up the TTM somehow with the tang. I am sure he had it because the LFS had angles in another tank showing specks of it.

I'll assume the 4-5 months is really a rare occasion and the tank will be safe after about 72-90 days.

[Sk8r]

Tang probably had it in his gills. Tangs are absolute magnets for it, rarely die of it [with good care] and give it to everybody else, like that rotten kid with the measles. Tangs, angels and rabbits---just assume they've got it, possibly in the gills.

When you buy any fish, look carefully at the gills. If you see any of the frilly inner tissue outside the operculum [gill cover] that's an indicator of gill trouble, flukes or ich in the gills.

Another thing: if you are seeing ich at the lfs, look at their sump. You may find all the tanks have a common sump. If one tank is having an outbreak, buying any fish is the same as buying from the infested [not infected, because it's not a disease] tank.

One part of the treatment should be to be sure of that 8.3 alkalinity. You know how acid or alkali can irritate your skin---and skin irritation is the last thing you want with a fish trying to avoid skin parasites or skin disease. Your safe range is 7.9 to 9.

You do know, too, that ich is not visible to the naked eye: those white bumps are pimples on the skin chock full of little ich swimmers. They'll feed on the fish for a few days, then the pimple will burst and those little darlings will head straight for the sandbed. They often break free at night, when a fish may be sleeping near the sand, and this is how fishy sleeping spots help the little parasites attack again. A fish can have clear skin---and have ich---just that the pimples haven't broken out yet. Some people think cleaner fish or shrimp can eat the ich. Nope. It just lets them loose. And people will add some ich cure and be happy that 'it worked!'---but what's really happened is that the pimples have hatched and the ich has gone its merry way to start stage 2. Sneaky stuff. But definitely not unbeatable.

I strongly suspect the reason you can have a fish break out in ich just after arrival in a home tank is often because of shock and alkalinity being too low. Sets up the fish for attack because the skin and gills are not producing the normal slime.