Black Ich

[haras2the3]

i have a question about the worms. I have two clownfish right now and i am looking forward to getting a yellow tang soon and was conserned about Black Ich. Can you see the worms attached to live rock or corals? what do the worms look like?

[leebca]

WELCOME TO REEFLAND!

Black Ich is caused by a flat worm. However, there are several species of these worms that cause this condition. The size of these worms is smaller than a newly hatched brine shrimp. Not easily seen by the unaided eye and for most 'normal' humans, not visible at all unless there are a few hundred of them together in a small space.

They can infect the fish without even the hobbyist/aquarist able to see it.

What IS seen is when the worm causes some hemorrhaging in the fish. That is what creates the tiny black spot. Then the hobbyist/aquarist knows the worm is there.

The life cycle of these worms is to attach to the fish, fall off, multiply on the substrate, then find a fish to attach. If you have a microscope, you may spend a life time looking and never seeing them. If you have an infected fish, then that is your best opportunity to see one of these worms.

The Yellow Tang is the one fish most often infected, though these worms attack many other fishes. The best thing to do is perform a proper quarantine of all newly acquired fishes and keep the worm out of your display tank/marine system. Also, the Yellow Tang should only be kept in an aquarium that is at least 6 feet long.

Thanks for posting. If you have any questions or need more help, just ask. This link takes you to a list of other posts and articles that you might find very useful. Read, read, read.

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[haras2the3]

than you so much for the advice.
i can see different kinds of worms in my tank and have asked the store if they were harmful and they said they weren't. Although, I did notice worms that were green with black stripes and just wanted to make sure they weren't harmful.

Thanks