IsopodFAQ2

Isopod options, please help 9/25/17
Hi guys,
You have been so helpful over the years, I hope everyone is well and you can help me with this too. I have a young Kole tang in my QT. He was purchased 2 weeks ago and doing great, feeding, active, good colours, etc. He does however seem to have a small lump on his back fin, right at the tip and this has grown a bit over the past week. It is definitely not lymph or Ick. It looks like a small isopod although I can’t see eyes (yet!). It’s hard to take a good picture of it but I’m pretty sure that’s what it is although it hasn’t moved at all for the past 12 days. It looks like a grain of rice, only maybe ¼ - ½ of the size.
<Mmm, okay>
My question is what is the best way to remove it?
<IF it's only the one, I would try carefully netting (use two, one in either hand, to manipulate the animal, rather than chase it), hold the fish near the surface of the water (watch out for the tangs on the caudal peduncle! They are sharp, and the fish knows how to wield them), and daub (with a cotton swab) full strength (37%) formaldehyde directly on the object. See WWM re Formaldehyde use, sourcing>
I don’t know if I should dose Cupramine in the hope it would kill the parasite?
<Mmm; no... not copper product/s. Will kill the host, much else before killing isopods>
Manual removal would be easy as it’s just on his fin but hubby is not keen on getting the fish out of water to perform this. I have never had to perform FW dip and this scares me but is this also an option?
<I would not pull on this spot just yet. IF it is an isopod, it will be VERY well attached and you will damage the fish. Better to poison/kill it as I've mentioned above, and have it drop off on its own>
Many thanks and hope to hear from you soon.
Jo
<Please do report back your further observations. Bob Fenner>

Re: Isopod options, please help 9/26/17
Thank you so much for your fast response, Bob! Yes, it is just the one and it hasn’t moved.
<Okay!>
Ok, I will look into sourcing the formaldehyde now.
I have a bottle of Seachem’s Paraguard too, not sure if that will be any good.
<Not useful here>
I dosed the recommended amount of this broad spectrum treatment but the parasite seems perfectly happy still.
Just one more thing regarding manual removal. The parasite is attached to the very tip of the tang’s back fin so I was thinking of perhaps cutting this tiny bit off?
<Mmm... as an alternative, I'd try squishing it with strong tweezers and just pulling here>
It will be no worse than having a nipped fin and I believe it will regrow. What do you think? As I said, it’s right on the very end.
<An unusual position for a parasitic isopod... they tend to attach on the body, in the mouth, at fin insertions... where they can rasp, suck up tissue>
I am attaching a picture which doesn’t show the parasite in detail but shows the position of it. ( I tried 3 different cameras including a DSLR but due to the fish’s colour, it’s impossible to focus on it well and he is a bit jumpy so I can’t get super close).
<Can't really make out; but thanks for sending along>
Thanks again
Jo
<Welcome. BobF>

crop

Re: Isopod options, please help 9/26/17
Yes, I was just thinking that the fin is probably not the best place for it but it makes it a bit easier to remove. I seems a tiny bit bigger today but again, after spending 30 min.s by the tank, I've given up trying to take a picture! Will keep you posted
Thanks again
<If possible; please do send along better resolved pic/s. B>
Re: Isopod options, please help 9/26/17
Hopefully the next picture I send will be of the little beast removed from my beautiful tang! Watch this space, feeling determined!
<Ahh, tres bien!>
I had a flame angel in the QT too but after having observed it for 2 weeks (wasn’t brave enough to copper it), I decided to cut the quarantine short and move him over as I didn’t want that thing to move or drop off and start multiplying (don’t know much about them as have never come one across!). Angel has made himself at home in the DT and not taking orders from any of the old inhabitants, not even my 11 year old veteran Sixline!
Thanks again
Jo
<Welcome Jo. BobF>

Parasitic isopods in pufferfish 3/8/17
Hi all,
<Jude>
Recently I bought a blue dot Toby puffer that seemed to have a mild goiter.
It was in a copper-treated quarantine (2.5ppm plus hypo at 1.015) for the last two weeks and seemed to be doing fine, albeit a little sluggish, but this morning I found it dead. In my experience a dead puffer with a bulge that won't go down is a sign of gill parasites, and lo and behold, a necropsy revealed a pair of gigantic isopods wriggling away inside a very warped gill chamber.
<Yikes>
If the copper and hypo didn't kill them, is there anything I can do to help a fish with this kind of parasite?
<Yes. Gone over here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/crustdisfaqs1.htm
plus read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/isopoda.htm >
Toby puffer gill openings are very small in the first place, I wouldn't have been able to pull them out without cutting an opening. I also have to assume this is a rare occurrence or else there would be more literature about treating
them, though this is the second time I've seen them pop out of a dead Toby.
<Mmm; not an uncommon marine fish parasite group... But as the saying goes:
"Successful parasites don't kill their hosts" (generally)>
I've attached pictures of the puffer from when he arrived, plus a photo of the isopods. Thank you for your help as always.
Jude
<Welcome. Bob Fenner>

This morning find 5/5/16
Going to take a guess that these are marine Isopoda the main question is.
Good or bad and how to kill them if need be.
<Mmm; yes; appear to be... and can't say... May be... and there are more specific economic poisons for such.
Please read here re: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/isopodcontr.htm
and on to: http://wetwebmedia.com/crustdisfaqs1.htm
The only fish is a male blue jaw trigger that has been removed to another holding tank and this tank is off system
<I might well shy on the side of conservancy here and kill off this swarm.
Thank you for sharing.
Bob Fenner>

Isopod help!! Rdg. 2/27/14
Hi Bob, I am hoping you can help, I found this and think it's an isopod!
<Appears to be>
I am wandering how you can Identify if it is a shrimp of a fish predator?
<Need better image/s. Read here: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/isopodid.htm
and the linked files above>
This was in our quarantine tank,
<Ah good>
I am a bit concerned as had to put all livestock in here late December due to a tank leak! Would any symptoms of them being present in the main system be present by now?
<?>
None of the fish have ulcers and I haven't seen them on any of our fish!
How do you get rid of them? Your help is much appreciated.
<Read. Bob Fenner>
Isopod 2/27/14
Here is a couple more pics of the isopod!
<Ditto>

Re: Isopod help!! 2/27/14
I think it is a Sphaeromatid as the eyes are on the side of the head not the top, it could also roll up!
<Possibly...>
Is there a big difference between the males and females tail? Thank-you!
<Not much. B>

Isopod parasite      11/29/13
I have just removed a half inch isopod from the buccal cavity of my forktail
blenny. They blenny was suffering from swelling in the area and labored breathing and so my LFS suggested a freshwater dip as a last resort to see what was wrong. The copper and Prazi-pro I had previously tried treating this fish with seem to have little effect as the "lump" (now confirmed as an isopod) continued to grow. To my horror this giant (compared to the fish) thing tried backing its way out my fishes gills during the dip.
Sadly it was too large for this and became jammed in. I was forced to extract it with tweezers in an attempt to allow the fish to breath. The fish survived the initial removal but was either too stressed or had too much gill damage. He is now barley hanging on and I don't believe he will survive. I am very concerned about my other fish. Everything I am reading is either about external isopod parasites or the one that eats the tongue. I am hoping one of the crew may know more about this buccal cavity isopod and what I should do to spare my other fish from this horrible ordeal.
<Nothing really>
I am not even sure if they are infected or if this was a one time thing but I do not want to lose any more fish.
A very sad and horrified,
         Jen
<Buccal cavities are not strange places for some isopod parasites... great placement for water movement, protection from predators and foods! Due to their life cycle requirements there is not much chance that others are inhabiting or likely to infest your other fishes. Bob Fenner>
Re: Isopod parasite      11/30/13
Thank-you very much. I tried to find out more about what type of isopod this was but quickly found out that classifying these creatures takes a lifetime of study.
<Classifying perhaps; but identification not a big deal...>
The best I could do is that it is from the family of Aegid. I will be replacing my blenny with a captive bred individual so that
I don't have to deal with the chance of another one of these coming in with a wild caught fish.
Jen
<Yes; BobF>

ID Needed 8/13/07 Hi. This little creature from the coast of Maine (Bailey Island) on a mussel shell is 3.7mm long. Can you please ID? Thanks, David Reed <Interesting... appears to be a crustacean of some sort... any chance for an image of the underside (to show its legs?)... almost looks like a juvenile Limulus with the single trailing "tail". Bob Fenner>

Re: ID Needed 8/13/07 Here are a couple more shots taken when it crawled onto my finger. David
<Ahh! Does appear to be an Isopod here. Bob Fenner>

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