Heres a bigger pic.
http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll19 ... 1209167865

I feed NLS cichlid pellets and NLS Thera A..Ans HBH Cichlid frenzy flake....Is this a parasite,Fungus,or infection...need help.....Fish it a young Aulo.Fire fin female.

 

:x I have the same problem. I was just on here about to post the same question.

 

can you post a pic...Mine doesnt look like the Black spot diease pics I have found on the web...Mine is flush with the fish body...the pics I have seen are black bumps like ick.....I think there is two differnt kinds of this.....its spreading and now in three tanks...I dont know how to treat it because I am unsure if its a parasite,fungus or a infection....

 

That sounds exactly like what I have. It is alomost like they are black spots of color on the fish. They are not raised at all. And a couple of them have it on their fins. I cannot post a pic, my camera is not good enough to catch it as the fish swim by.

 

i also had somethin like that on my mbuna but strangely it didn't appear on the convict or GT that were in the same tank. Its gone away though and didn't seem to do much harm. have no idea what it was. How long have you had your tanks set up? I'd suggest lots of water changes and decreasing the temp. a little. I've also had a lot of success treatin parasites on other fish with aquarium salt but i dont know with cichlids.

 

You are probably feeding too much Spirulina. These are called by some hobbyists "spirlunia spots". What do you feed the fish? If it's mostly a spirulina diet - you need to offer a bit more variety. Try to add a little freeze dried krill to their diet, or more of a protein flake. Will go away on it's own.

 

Not too much spirulina in NLS and TheraA... :wink:

Your other two potential problem areas are stress (can be caused by a myriad of different things) and something called "black ich", but with the treatments you have used, I can't believe it's that.

How is your tank maintenance?

What are your water parameters on all 3 tank?

Kim

 

I Have been told this is a fungus...I believe it may be..But I cannot find any info on the web about this and it is not the "Black Spot Disease" parasite I have found on the web because the black spots look like paint on the fish not bumpy like ick .I wonder if it could be some type on infection?....I am now treating the tank with parasite Meds so I wont take water samples....I am starting to think this is some kinda fungus...and not the black spot parasite I have found on the web. :x

 

I totally have the same thing going. It's on my moorii and one of my peacocks. I thought it was just weird, cause sometimes it just goes away. Let me know if you find a cure....lol.

 

Mine has not gone away...its slowly appearing on other fish.I dont think any parasite could live thru the treatments I have done.....I am ruling out parasites for now.

 

How is your tank maintenance?

What are your water parameters on all 3 tanks?

Kim

This would be the next thing I would look into...

Are you doing enough water changes and substrate vacuumings?

How long have the tanks been established?

Are there different sources for all of the fish, or did they all come from the same LFS or breeder?

Kim

 

Stress guys.

Ask yourselves were in the pecking order the fish with the black spots are. Most of the time they are at the bottom.
If there is also a preditor in the tank such as a Dim. Compressicep or Nim. Fusco then the smaller fish in the tank become a possible meal, at least thats what they think.
A small tank will also do it to.

In my own experience, when i first started out with cichlids i stocked all sorts of things in the one tank such as peacocks, red empress, small electric blues x2 and you guessed it a male Dim. compressicep which was an awesome fish, one that i loved to death but as he matured he became extremely aggressive, stalking and hunting everything. The smaller fish were running scared.

It got to the point were three of my fish including 2 peacocks and the electric blue were covered in black spots. So i got rid of Dim. Compressicep and without a doubt within 2 months all fish were back to there normal selves without a single black spot them.

In saying that i have heard that spiralina can cause this occurance also. Try a few different things like diet or maybe remove the into a tank of it's own, see if that get rid of it.
Some fish just don't suit the environment

 

I do not believe it is caused from stress...heres why...That same female I posted in the pic.is now grown three time the size and has spawned four time now.....heres the weird part...when I strip the fry from her they almost all have the same black looking specks on the top of their heads...The fry develop their head first therefore I think some kinda fungus or infection is the culprit...I dont belive the fry are that stressed in her mouth...I have 16 tanks and have been breeding cichlids for 15 years I do keep my tanks clean.I have had people tell me its just a pigment in their skin/body but I do not see that spreading to other fish therefore I rule that out...I interduced her to my tanks and now I have a problem.I am not listing my water info because I have had every med. under the sun in my tanks the last two weeks....and I hate doing that(meds)...as far as spiralina goes the fish eat pure spiralina flake mixed with HBH cichlid flake just afew times a month and havent had pure spiralina in atleast one month..Their main diet is NLS cichlid pellets mixed with NLS Thera + A .......I have also used a whole bottle of melafix with no results(in the 29 gallon over many days) ....this problem is in two 55 gallon tanks and one 29 gallon tank....The Black Spots look like spray paint on the fish?.... :x...I wet a swab/qtip and rubbed it along a bad black spot on a fish and some very light black color tranformed too the swab/qtip.... :x

 

I have 3 fish in my tank that have like 1 black spot. It just mysteriously appeared also. I've been really on top of water changes, whenever I test my water, everything looks great, and I keep dealing with this kind of craziness. It just looks like pigment but not there yesterday and here today... makes me believe something else. But like you, not raised or anything.

Since I started my tank I've been treating almost constantly with something because my new fish keep wreaking havoc. My husband agreed yesterday that our next batch will be really expensive because they will come home WITH a hospital tank! This is for the birds!

 

Was doing a search online to find something out about this. Here's what I found...

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl= ... n%26sa%3DG

Tiny round black spots in the skin of the fish. Often mistaken for normal coloring. Usually goes away on its own.

Commonly called Black Spot Disease.

Use one of the following Medications. Dose as directed.

In a fish only or quarantine aquarium:
No-Ich Marine and/or Formalin dip** to help eliminate the parasites on the fish.

 

That black spot disease is a raised looking bump like ick trust me I have googled everything close to black spots on fish....Mine is flush like spray paint and I have treated the fish for two weeks with parasite meds....I treated some smaller fish/fry in a 10 gallon for 7 days straight with Formlin (formaldehyde 37%) made from "Aquaruim Products" and it had no effect....I called Kordon and they said there is two grades of Formalin and the 37% stuff is generic...Kordon reconmended their Formalin-3 product (Formmaldehyde less then 3 %)...I am going to use this as a dip/bath treatment......I was also told from Kordon that Praziquantel only has a 6 month shelf life (thats is 1 of the 4 chemicals in Jungles "Parasite Clear")...

 

Hey I am having this same problem as well with my Acei. It started out as one black marking on his top fin when I first bought him. Now, he has a bunch...on his fins, and a bit on his body (Mainly fins). It's concerning me. Hope we can all find a solution.

 

What fish are you guys keeping in the tanks that are experiencing this problem.

What are the dimensions of the tank etc....

In the case of the Acei, they are a schooling fish and are happy in groups of five or six perhaps adding more Acei will help.

I'm still convinced it's a stress reaction. Just like we break out on our skin under stress

 

My tank is a 72 gallon bowfront, not quite sure of the dimensions except it is 4ft long. In it, I have 7 Yellow Labs, and 5 Acei.

 

Strangely, I've noted what may be the same type black spot on a female yellow lab in my 75 gal tank. She's fairly small, but has spawned 4 times since I got her late Aug 07. The spot does not appear raised. It has grown, but is still fairly small--maybe 1/8" dia. She seems to behave normally, but I am concerned as the spot is growing. She may be stressed, as she is often chased by virtually every other cichlid in the tank--other than small fry, and frequently tries to hide, even when not holding. Based on your comments, I may move her to a "hospital" tank for a little vacation. Temp 80 deg F, PH 8, 25% water change weekly. thanks,[/img]

 

[

quote="Patience"]Strangely, I've noted what may be the same type black spot on a female yellow lab in my 75 gal tank. She's fairly small, but has spawned 4 times since I got her late Aug 07. The spot does not appear raised. It has grown, but is still fairly small--maybe 1/8" dia. She seems to behave normally, but I am concerned as the spot is growing. She may be stressed, as she is often chased by virtually every other cichlid in the tank--other than small fry, and frequently tries to hide, even when not holding. Based on your comments, I may move her to a "hospital" tank for a little vacation. Temp 80 deg F, PH 8, 25% water change weekly. thanks,[/img]

[/quote]

It would be a really good idea just to see the outcome, get her healthy and happy

I also beleive that holding females come under a fair amount of stress when conatantly holding due to the fact that they are continually fasting and not eating properly, constantly hiding in cover because they cant defend themselves

 

I was trying to ignore this problem, but it just recently got worse on my Acei. Two of them have these spots, and I really think it has to do with stress. The reason I think this is because the two Acei that have it are the largest in the tank,and are constantly chasing eachother around nipping at each other. One constantly shakes violently, at least twenty times a day.

 

Try removing one if possible. It may be that 2 males are clashing for dominance and neither are willing to give in. Constant harrassment was my cause to.

 

Yes Thats what I have and it is still spreading thru 3 tanks....One of my biggest (boss) fish has this and also smaller fish are like that as well....I am thinking its a fungus?... I have also noticed that on a few fish in the local cichlid store....I pulled some fry out of the mouth of a fish that has this and the fry even had it on their heads....?..It is slowly spreading from fish to fish...I do 20%-50% water changes weekly I have been using salt for a few weeks now.. all water is treated with prime (2 drops per gallon) ..Temp 78-80f..I switched food for a few weeks and after that started feeding alot less...I have tried every parasite med under the sun....some people think this is a pigment in their skin... I dont believe that skin pigments spread to other fish...The fish seem healthy just have that black stuff on them?This is not the bird/snail/fish black spot disease....That second pic is whats in my tanks (well 3 of 16 tanks).Your pic is a good pic. Hopfully other people know how to cure this.