Surgeonfishes: Tangs for  Marine Aquariums Diversity, Selection & Care New eBook on Amazon: Available here New Print Book on Create Space: Available here by Robert (Bob) Fenner

Kole Tang      6/1/18
Good evening Crew!
I have a 60G shallow tank, 60lbs of mature liverock with a very little bit of green hair algae growth. I've had my Kole Tang for almost 6months now, and I'm getting increasingly concerned over what I presume to be the fish's "thinness".
<Not much space to grow food in a 60>
I've had a Kole Tang before for years in my previous tank, and I'd say this particular fish's behavior is normal. He eats aggressively, and I typically feed frozen Mysis, Spirulina, brine, Spirulina, etc...
switching daily and feeding at least five times a week (if I'm out for the weekend) if not every day. The fish will consume until finally he ignores it and lets it fall to my Yellow Watchman Goby. I believe if the fish was still hungry, he'd continue to eat.
<Usually, yes. Six mo.s in captivity though... do you suspect intestinal parasites?>
On weekends where I can manage two feedings, I've fed when the lights first come on and then again at night, thinking he'd pack on a little more meat on the bones, but I haven't noticed a difference. Bottom line, when I feed... there's never an instance where this fish won't eat... he's always there consuming. Do you have any recommendations for me? Would an algae clip with nori be a good option?
<I do have a strong recommendation; for you to add a good quality pelleted food to your daily offerings. Hikari and Spectrum are my fave brands. These foods add a good deal of mass and food value compared w/ what you're currently using>
I don't think it makes a difference to my question, but the tank is lightly stocked with only two Picasso Clowns, the Watchman Goby, a Canary Wrasse, and then my clean-up crew.
Dave
<Good to have the data. Cheers, Bob Fenner>
Re: Kole Tang       6/1/18
Hi Bob,
I thought the same thing, adding a good high protein pellet. I've offered a small Spectrum pellet of appropriate size and the Tang has taken the odd one, but it mostly goes to the goby or else eventually my sandbed. Perhaps I should try a different kind?
<Yes I would... and mix in right before feeding with other types of foods in an increasing percentage>
How would I determine intestinal parasites?
<Mmm; sampling of feces, examining under a 'scope... is best>
Aside from looking skinny, there's nothing else that appears out of the ordinary.
Dave
<This is a bit of diagnosis itself. Bob Fenner>

Kole Tang; hlth., and Cu f'      10/18/17
Good afternoon Crew,
<Dave>
I unfortunately experienced a loss in my tank last night - my Kole tang.
I've had a Kole Tang previously for years... a curious outgoing fish that was constantly on the move. I have a shallow 60g tank, 79f, 1.024 salinity, no signs of nitrates/nitrites/ammonia - although I have been purposely
allowing a little hair algae to grow for the upcoming arrival of my Kole Tang. I'd say overall I feed rather lightly, sometimes every second day (but am observing my fish growing/fattening up), and only enough that just
a small amount of thawed frozen Mysis/brine/etc... falls to the substrate for my snails/crabs/serpent star, etc
I currently have a few corals, bta, two clowns, yellow watchman goby, royal gramma... I noticed a plump Kole Tang with what appeared to be ICK at my LFS and offered to buy him at a greatly reduced price because I've
successfully QT and treated ICKY fish with Cupramine in the past, and without losses. The Kole Tang went straight into my 30g QT bare bottom tank and I followed the Cupramine instructions as always. The Kole Tang would sometimes eat, sometimes not, but frequently picking away at scraps that had stuck to the foam cover on the filter. He remained active and plump for the 16day QT. With the Cupramine treatment over and no signs of white spots, and what looked like a healthy active fish... I introduced him to my display tank.
The Kole Tang's been shy, not as active, and while I've witnessed him picking away at the glass and rocks from time to time, I rarely saw him feeding with the other fish. Almost two weeks later... Last night, he was on his side in the corner of my tank and breathing rapidly. He still looked to be of a healthy size, but something was obviously wrong. I felt that removing him at that point would cause more stress and certain death.
Watched my cleaner shrimp jump on him at that point, and the Kole Tang swam away. I checked on him this morning and his outer body had been completely picked away by hermit crabs and my serpent starfish.
Question... do you think the death may still be Ick related, even though he appeared to have successfully finished a Cupramine treatment?
<Ick/Crypt might have been a factor... to extent here. As well as the copper exposure. I suspect this fish had a trauma issue though. Perhaps from collection, holding, transport...>
I don't think anything in my tank could've harmed him, and he had no wounds of any sort. I'm assuming my small to medium sized bubble tip anemone wouldn't have been the culprit (unless the BTA had actually caught him and was eating him)?
<Could have had a brush here as well>
I'm stumped... I thought I had success in saving this fish from the store.
Dave
<Sometimes Dave, sometimes not. Bob Fenner>
Re: Kole Tang     10/18/17
Could a simple brush from the BTA have done something like that?
<Not likely a Ctenochaetus tang would perish from glancing a BTA; no; not of/by itself>
I was thinking possibly trauma from collection, but in the QT he was really active, breathing at what I perceived to be a normal rate, etc... Cupramine indicates to treat at .5mg/l, and that toxic levels exist at .8mg/l My
treatment was definitely at .5mg/l, having checked multiple times throughout the 16 days. Are some fish (tangs?) more delicate with copper treatments?
Dave
<Re copper exposure; there is no sub-physiological dose. Akin to old treatments of humans by mercuricals and arsenicals; you're killing the host by degrees along w/ the parasite. Tangs are amongst the most sensitive fishes to copper poisoning. Bob Fenner>

Kole Tang injury?       4/1/17 Hi WM crew hope all is well. <Yes; thank you Bernard> I added a Kole Tang to my 72g Bow Front a couple of days ago. Tank parameters Salinity 1.025, PH 8.2 early morning tests before the lights come on, Ammonia 0, Nitrites 0 and Nitrates 0(undetectable) on a Salifert test kit. Tank occupants 4 Red leg Hermits, 4 Green Chromis, two Cleaner Shrimp. Tank was down for a couple of years and I restarted when I moved to north Texas from California around July of 2016. The recently added Kole tang has what appears to be a wound on his side. <Agreed; I see this in your excellent photo> He has been very skittish as expected since I added him to the tank a couple of days ago. Today he was out more but I noticed that he has what appears to be a wound or parasites? <Wound> We had a severe storm and lost power for over 12 hours the night he was added. He goes at the live rock constantly(eating) when out and about and ate the New Life Spectrum Thera A+ soaked in garlic that I fed when I got home this evening. Had to take the photo from a distance as he's still skittish. What do you think? Should I leave in the tank and just keep parameters optimal? <Yes> I do have a hospital tank I could use. Should I treat somehow? <I would not move this fish; more stress> I'm thinking this is a wound from hitting the rocks, he darts to cover very quickly when I enter the room.. Hoping time and good parameters will allow him to heal as he gets more comfortable in the surroundings.. Getting a battery backup to run air lines this weekend just in case there is another extended power outage:) Thanks for your assistance Bernard <Thank you for sharing. Bob Fenner>

Re: Kole Tang injury?     4/14/17 Wanted to thank you for your response and also send an update, the injury healed amazingly quickly, I was very surprised. <I am not! Heeee> New pic with a quick question there are a couple of bumps just behind his eye on the same side as the original injury.. He's much less skittish.. Do you think these are also injuries from bums in the night/day? Water parameters still measure the same.. <Can't tell, but would not be concerned re... These too should self-heal in time. Bob Fenner>

Kole tang       8/31/15 <Your pix are too small, too far away to make out much of anything. Crop them and send better resolved images> Please help me find out what is wrong with my Kole tang! My local fish enthusiasts can not figure it out as well. I have had him for around 3 months about 1 month ago he started to develop these white spots on his gills. They have not moved, he is still eating, and does not act sick. Thoughts at first thought he might have flukes <Might be> but his eyes are not cloudy and he doesn't seem to itch. They have not moved or spread and nothing is in his eyes. <Might not> All my levels are in the normal range. <...> I have been feeding more often just to keep his immune system up which also means I have been doing 20% water changes 1-2 times a week to keep nitrates down. 55 gal tank11 months old.1 maroon clown1 pajama cardinal1 wrasse Reef tank (lots of soft and hard corals) Sent via the Samsung GALAXY S®4, an AT&T 4G LTE Smartphone <Try again. Bob Fenner>

cropped

Kole tang bumps           5/17/15
Hey crew hope all is well, need help identifying....
My Kole tang has several bumps UNDER the skin on both sides of body. My Heniochus picked at them and now they're light pink from skin shedding. I Google and couldn't find a good identifier. I just bought him last week, could this be from capture and handling?
<Yes>
Just concerned it will get worse and unsure if it's HLLE. Any ideas? He swims all over and eats well.
Thanks much
<Scan through the Ctenochaetus and Surgeonfish disease FAQs. Bob Fenner>