Nick Zarlinga
Aquarium Biologist
Cleveland Metroparks Zoo
216.661.6500 ext 4485
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-nanfa_at_aquaria.net On Behalf
Of Todd Crail
Sent: Wednesday, July 02, 2003 9:10 AM
To: nanfa_at_aquaria.net
Subject: NANFA-- Sorta OT: things that just aren't cool.
Well, it looks like I'm going out of the Rainbowfish business (there is
nativefish info in here :). Down to about half of them now. Mortality
started last night. My guess is, that between Nitrate and electricity,
environmental issues allowed a massive parasite bloom to get underway.
It seems that until I grounded _off_ of the circuit that everything was
plugged into (which is one I created entirely)... I wasn't getting a true
ground. This was first noticed last week when I fixed the 30 gallon
(everyone is healing up just fine without any medication). However, I made
the assumption that the ground on the rest of the circuit was good, based on
the test I did with the little yellow recepticle tester thingie.
It lied.
I crawled up in the attic and got a heat sink for a vho ballast (when it
says zero, it's zero) yesterday and used that to test because nothing was
getting any better, in fact, worse, and in spite of treatment that should
have killed the bloom. I still had 20 volts floating around. <sigh> I had
to pull the probe while grounding it to a new circuit because it was making
my knuckles hurt. I can't imagine what those fish have gone through.
Why am I writing all of this?
I think that I cross-contaminated them with a NA native "ich" (protozoans,
flukes, whatever) that mainfest in the native 75 by using the same water to
soak freeze dried foods. That was pretty arrogant, or probably more so,
thoughtless. The natives have handled similar issues with ease and without
treatment, and has only been slightly present, in spite of a weak ground. I
expect, now that I have the ground on a good circuit for it to disappear,
and without treatment. It's only currently present on two spotfin shiners
that have been beating the crap out of each other. An orangespot has been
sliming weird, but that's it. It never bloomed in the 30 gallon, and it
would have the same contamination issues.
I'm guessing the rainbows and loaches didn't have the same natural defenses
to stop this stuff. Siamese Algae Eaters, Pleco and Corydoras seem
irritated, but are not showing infection. Pearl Gourami has light
infection, but doesn't seem too worried with it.
Does this make any sense?
And because I had loaches and plants... I couldn't use a _real_ heavy hitter
as a last ditch to try and stop them. Formalin and Metrondiazole didn't
even touch it. Just seemed to make it worse anyway, but that's all
anecdotal... (started with Metrondiazole Monday, Formalin Tuesday)
I guess if I do exotics again in the future (don't have the money to
replace, so I might as well set up more native fish once I've assured this
garbage is gone), I'll have to be more careful about cross contamination.
This was one I didn't expect, and have been well warned. I would normally
shrug it off, but with all the weird things I've tested with this system...
I can be pretty darn sure I have a good environment in there now. And the
usual case of everything clearing up hasn't happened.
By the time I got to it, I think the damage was done. Dunno. Really sucks.
The M. praecox are still in good shape, but that's about it. Ever see a 5"
white polkadotted M. parkinsoni before? It makes me wanna puke... Or cry...
Or both.
Once the loaches go, I think I'm going to use some Methylene Blue and see if
I can't salvage anyone. Mmmmm.... Blueberry Sand. :(
Todd
I hope you know that this will go down on your permanent record.
http://www.farmertodd.com
-- /"Unless stated otherwise, comments made on this list do not necessarily / reflect the beliefs or goals of the North American Native Fishes / Association" / This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes Association / nanfa_at_aquaria.net. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get help, send the word / subscribe, unsubscribe, or help in the body (not subject) of an email to / nanfa-request_at_aquaria.net. For a digest version, send the command to / nanfa-digest-request_at_aquaria.net instead. / For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org /----------------------------------------------------------------------------- /"Unless stated otherwise, comments made on this list do not necessarily / reflect the beliefs or goals of the North American Native Fishes / Association" / This is the discussion list of the North American Native Fishes Association / nanfa_at_aquaria.net. To subscribe, unsubscribe, or get help, send the word / subscribe, unsubscribe, or help in the body (not subject) of an email to / nanfa-request_at_aquaria.net. For a digest version, send the command to / nanfa-digest-request_at_aquaria.net instead. / For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org