silver hatchetfish and ich

[yng...@aol.com]

Despite having treated our marble hatchetfish for ich and swearing we
would not get anymore hatchetfish, my husband decided he really wanted
some silver ones. So right now we have three silver hatchetfish and
five cory cats in a QT tank.

I am paranoid about ich now on those hatchetfish. I *think* I see some
tiny white spots on one of the hatchetfish, but I am not sure. With
the marbles, I could tell it was ich because the number of white spots
increased every day. With these fish, this one has some spots that are
kind of reflective but they are in the same place and the same number
every day (we've had the fish for five days now). Unlike the marbles,
the silvers don't want to stay still long enough for me to get a
really good look either.

Is there any good way to tell ich from some normal color variations? I
went through this with one of my guppies until I realized he has
always had a light spot on his back near the tail and it just looks
white if he is right under a light. If the spots don't change for a
couple weeks, can I assume they are normal for the fish and not ich?

Thanks--
yngver

[NetMax]

I can't recall exactly how long the white spot lasts at tropical
temperatures but 5 days is probably approaching the interval. To
distinquish, the white spot should have a different texture (non-
reflective) and be slightly raised. A 2 week QT should identify if
you have any Ich in the water, but it is more difficult with silver
fish.

Silver hatchetfish are obviously related to the Marbles, but other
than where they hang out in the tank, I find they are quite
different. The Silvers are larger and much more gregarious,
aggressive and speedier, more suited to a faster tank with tetras &
barbs, while the Marbles were more suited to a tank of Angelfish,
Discus, Gouramis etc. Have fun!

NetMax

[yng...@aol.com]

Okay, thanks. I was thinking of QT for three weeks just to be sure,
The temp in that tank is 76 up to 78 when the lights have been on a
while. The corys are punctatus so I could raise the temp a degree or
two if it would help.

The silvers are definitely different from the marbles--the marbles
just sort of hang at the top in one place and it was easy to
scrutinize them for signs of ich. The silvers zip around so much it's
hard to get a good long look. This is why my husband wanted them--he
was disappointed that the marbles, although attractive, are kind of
boring.

I did get a better look at two of them today--the third one wouldn't
come close enough. The one that I suspected does not seem to have ich.
The spots look more like they are under the skin and not raised, and
only visible when light reflects on that side. No spots on tail or
fins, which is where I noticed ich on the marbles. The other one seems
to have a tiny bubble like dot right below the pectoral fin, but it's
clear, not white.

In the main tank we do have a small school of glowlight tetras (7) and
recently added two platys to the main tank, but the two remaining
marbles we have (lost one when accidentally left the lid open
overnight) don't pay any attention. They just stay at the top next to
a few strands of floating hornwort and the other fish don't come to
the top. I thought the two kinds of hatchetfish might school together,
since we don't intend to get any more marbles, but I noticed at the
LFS that although the silvers and the marbles were in the same two
tanks, they seemed to ignore each other.

Thanks, I just hope I don't have to treat again for ich.
-yngver