Percula Clown in Trouble

[turkeh]

My Tank Raised Percula Clown doesn't appear to be doing well. When I first got him I noticed a small white spot that didn't seem to belong on one of his main fins. It has now gotten bigger and also there is one on his side, his bottom lip and his tailfin. A guy at Aquatics Unlimited, where I bought the fish, said that it is a virus, but it is not deadly and also will not spread. My clown has been swimming and looking just fine during the day, but at night he has been swimming very strangely. He swims, but slower and his body is not straight up and down, his body is at an angle. Tonight he was at a top corner and almost completely sideways. My temp is 78 degrees, salinity is 1.022-1.023, nitrates are 10ppm. I've had him for 2 weeks now. I know the white spots aren't normal, but is his swimming behavior? What should I do?

[rshimek]

I am moving this thread to the Marine Fish forum where you will get better help than I can give you here.

:D

[turkeh]

I just went through a couple of disease books and it seems like my clown has lymphocystis. One said that it is contagious, the other said that it isn't. One said it was fatal, the other said that it was rarely fatal. What do I believe? Does anyone have any experience with this? It looks like white eggs on the outside of the fish. It's on his side, his lower lip, and his fins. Thank you.

[billsreef]

The nightime swimming pattern sounds normal. Lymphocytosis is not fatal IME. It looks much like a small head of cauliflower, hence the common name of cauliflower disease. It is a virus much akin to warts. As such if it does not intefere with the fishes ability to eat than it is not really a problem. Often good clean water and a good diet will allow the fishes own immune system to deal with this.

[turkeh]

Should I do anything besides clean water and better feeding? I'm assuming more brine shrimp rather than just flakes that he's been getting for two weeks.

Also, will this do anything to my other fish? I have a purple goby firefish, blue leg crab, black molly (one of my original startup fish), and two turbo snails.

[billsreef]

Lymph is not normally contagious. So if it apears to spread to the other fish it will be time to rethink the diagnosis.

As for diet I would suggest a mix of quality flake or pellets (I like Vibra Gro) and good mixed frozen foods such as Ocean Nutrition's Prime Reef or Formula 1. Brine shrimp by itself is rather limeted nutritionally, sort of like potatoe chips.