[clowninaround]

alright i got a new fish (eibl's dwarf angelfish) acclimated and was very careful to do everything i was supposed to do and he is acting fine. he is enjoying his new surroundings. However... an hour or two after i introduced him to his tank, i noticed he had white specs. i about skraight up shanked my lfs owners. i got the fish straight from the box the dealer sent the store. i noticed that ich is usually described to be about the size of a salt granule. now, the white specs on my fish are very very fine and can possibly be overlooked by most people. i would say it is smaller than a salt grain. what could it be? this is my 3rd fish in the tank so far, water is fine, and fish seems happy and ate after the other 2 fish the next day after introduction. what is going on? what do i do?

[Frank_Farmakis]

From what you have described, it seems to be marine ich which i have recently suffered from in my tank. There are many ways to approach and battle it and most require a hospital/quarentine tank (no sand, live rock, coral or inverts). As for the treatment, copper is recommended and hyposalinity. I tried the copper method and did everything correctly but still have 5 fish die. I wish you the best of luck and be extra careful with what you choose to do.

[leebca]

Proper diagnosis is important, however whether this is Marine Ich or Marine Velvet can be taken care of by a common treatment - copper. You need to do a lot of reading. Search the Internet for photos of marine fishes with Marine Ich. There are a lot of them out there. You'll get some idea what it looks like, then.

Always use a quarantine tank for new fishes. I suggest you get busy and read, read, read, then begin treatment of your fish:

A Fish Quarantine Process
Setting Up a FOWLR Aquarium
It Was Acclimation, I know. . .

I would use the product Amquel or AcclimMAX during the initial acclimation of fish shipped in to the hobbyist from out of state sources.

Marine Ich - Myths and Facts

Photos of fish with Marine Ich:
(Part 1):
Marine Ich/Cryptocaryon irritans - A Discussion of this Parasite and the Treatment Options Available, Part I by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com
(Part 2):
Marine Ich/Cryptocaryon irritans - A Discussion of this Parasite and the Treatment Options Available, Part II by Steven Pro - Reefkeeping.com

Copper - Treatment, Use, Problems