Brook on a gramma?

[mjw011689]

So I acquired a few fish from a tank break down, the only 2 I decided to keep were a royal gramma and a bullet hole clown. They’ve been in a qt for like 3 months under light copper (around 1.4, I know, too low for normal treatment).

The clown has been perfectly fine since day one, and for that matter the gramma has zero issues other than a whitish looking mucousy stuff on his back. Been eating fine the whole time, never a sign of stress. I can’t get any photos to turn out, but if this link works, it looks very similar to the gramma in this thread…

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/is-this-possibly-brooklynella.288097/

My understanding is brook is relatively fast acting. If it were brook, wouldn’t it have done something to the fish if it’s had it for that long? And does the fact that the clown hasn’t got it indicate that it’s not brook? Not sure how contagious it is but I know clowns are the usual suspects.

Lastly, if it is brook, can I continue the copper while using the meds for brook, or do I need to pull the copper down?

 

[Jay Hemdal]

So I acquired a few fish from a tank break down, the only 2 I decided to keep were a royal gramma and a bullet hole clown. They’ve been in a qt for like 3 months under light copper (around 1.4, I know, too low for normal treatment).

The clown has been perfectly fine since day one, and for that matter the gramma has zero issues other than a whitish looking mucousy stuff on his back. Been eating fine the whole time, never a sign of stress. I can’t get any photos to turn out, but if this link works, it looks very similar to the gramma in this thread…

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/is-this-possibly-brooklynella.288097/

My understanding is brook is relatively fast acting. If it were brook, wouldn’t it have done something to the fish if it’s had it for that long? And does the fact that the clown hasn’t got it indicate that it’s not brook? Not sure how contagious it is but I know clowns are the usual suspects.

Lastly, if it is brook, can I continue the copper while using the meds for brook, or do I need to pull the copper down?

I wonder if this is actually Brooklynella? That disease typically shows up on newly imported wild clownfish. You're correct, it is also fast-acting. Here is a write-up I did about Brook:

Brooklynellosis​

Cause

Brooklynellosis is caused by a ciliated protozoan, Brooklynella hostilis. It commonly affects newly acquired wild-caught clownfish, thus its common name “clownfish disease.” Entire shipments of wild-caught clownfish have been lost to this infection. It is also commonly seen in marine angelfish and Anthias and sometimes in butterflyfish and tangs. The life cycle is direct, there is no resting stage.



Symptoms

Aquarists often miss the early symptoms of this malady in their fish, so by the time it’s identified, it’s often too late to easily save the specimen. The first signs of this disease may be limited to slightly folded fins combined with lethargy. Soon, skin mucus production increases, as does the fish’s breathing rate. The fish will then lose color, stop feeding, and hang in one location, with death following in a matter of hours to days.



Uronema often has similar symptoms, but a reddish underlying lesion is usually associated with that disease. Bacterial infections can produce similarly cloudy skin, but they typically do not result in rapid breathing. End-stage Cryptocaryon can sometimes be mistaken for Brooklynellosis, as well. Positive identification requires microscopic examination of a skin scraping. Look for medium-sized, barely motile protozoans that are ventrally flattened with a slightly domed dorsal side and have cilia mostly at one end.



Treatment

Few treatments are effective against Brooklynellosis, although two options include a 14-day chloroquine treatment at 15 mg/l or daily formalin dips at 150-167 ppm for 45 minutes with good aeration. The effectiveness of dips is vastly improved if the fish is then moved to a non-infected aquarium. Reducing the specific gravity of the treatment tank may assist the fish in balancing the electrolytes lost due to skin and gill damage. A target specific gravity of 1.018 should be maintained during treatment. Some aquarists have reported success using a proprietary product that contains a low dose of formalin along with acriflavine. Normal level copper treatments do not work for this disease.



Prevention

Acquiring captive-raised clownfish as opposed to wild-caught ones is a good way to help prevent outbreaks of this disease. However, tank raised clownfish that have been mixed with infected wild caught clownfish through the supply chain are equally at risk. Brooklynellosis is much easier to manage in a quarantine aquarium than in a main display tank.