Uronema Marinum

[xxHLTxx]

mods can change if this is in the wrong forum thread... but couldnt find better.

Title says it....

first off id like to thank Seachem for helping me diagnose and sadly tell me the fate of my tank.
2nd off id like to throw this out there and ask if anyone else has dealt with this parasite before?
3rd... lets get to what this is.

Uronema is a free floating free forming parasite that needs only trace bacteria or detritus to thrive... not live or survive... THRIVE. algae can supplement growth by the parasite turning the algae into the host to reproduce and when the algae is scrubbed off, not removed... it spreads and finds a new spot to thrive. This parasite looks like bacteria when hosted to a fish, it will burn the fish and turn is slime coat to an acid. If the parasite has not infected the bloodstream of the fish through the eyes mouth or gills, the burning acid it turned the fishes slime coat into originally will blister and make an open wound for the parasite. Now in the bloodstream the parasite can reproduce ridiculously fast, sometimes tripling or quadrupling in numbers within hours and once dead, the fish now is a host for the parasite and open blood to the tank allows the parasite to free float to another acceptable or unwilling/willing host. This parasite can be treated with copper in the water column, on a 2x the recommended dosage thus killing the rock, sand, inverts and any biological or bacteria in the tank. If a fish has the parasite in the bloodstream, euthanize it because it will, and this is indefinite, die. If a fish is infected and the slime coat is thin, not shiny or slimy to your touch, you can freshwater dip only in FW of equal PH for up to 30 minutes, in hopes to rid the fish from the external parasite. If this does not work, living in the copper sometimes can. if the tank cannot be dosed with copper of that level, the tank must be drained and bleach washed. The only option.

...so id like to say now that I am dealing with this parasite and crossing my fingers we only lose the inverts and can save the fish.

 

[rmougey]

My condolences.... one of the worst critters you can get in your tank... much more deadly than oodinium in my experience.

I've bleached a few holding systems in my time due to this horrid creature.

 

[CRW Reef]

Yikes this is scary and I'm sorry to see this, hopefully you end up at the winning end of this!!! Couple of questions...how did you get Seachem to help diagnose this and do you know where it came from?

 

[jda123]

I had a friend in KC who swore that he had this and treated it with lots of UV, tons of carbon and kept his fish healthy. Who knows if he really had it or not.

If you are going to nuke the tank with copper then it won't matter, but UV will kill whatever goes through the reactor and carbon will soak up some (and some of their food).

Do you know/suspect where you got it?

 

[xxHLTxx]

Not a clue. We run UV on the tank and it has 2 sand filters. Not too sure how it got in the tank seeing as none of the fish had any signs of disease/sickness when added and this just came up over a week after the fish were added. We have urchins and stars, hermits and a lobster. They unfortunately will all die because this parasite cannot be treated without copper, and any tank the fish or inverts get moved into will then have the parasite spread to it as well. Very very very horrible parasite and a very unfortunate fate for the tank and inhabitants

 

[CRW Reef]

Is this your tank or a client's? Also how did SeaChem end up diagnosing this? Did you send them a watwr sample ir fish sample or what??? Also were the fish bought locally or via wholesaler or web?

 

[CRW Reef]

Sorry for 20 questions this just makes me nervius for the whole community if this was brought in locally. Well just hope for a rare secluded instance.

 

[xxHLTxx]

It was an account I have, not my personal tank at all. We order the fish via wholesale but we pay more to have them hand picked prior to the list we receive of fish that have been QTd and visibly healthy. We are contacting them about this because through a QT and hand pick, this shouldn't have gotten through. As far as seachem goes, I called them and spoke with a specialist who I told every symptom to and helped me narrow down the possibilities. And from the quickness of symptom diagnosis to fatality as well as the major symptom of the fish growin almost an almost tumor like growth under the skin which later ruptures.

Most of the fish in the system have passed prior to the tumor, out of what's left, the fish are less stressed and allowed the parasite to progress enough to fully diagnose, instead of before where the symptoms looked like a fatal bacterial or fungal infection.

Trust me, anyone who has gotten anything from me does not have to worry about contracting this or it being spread from anything received from me.

So far the list of fish lost totals 9 tangs, 2 angels, a batfish, 4 butterfly fish and 5 chromis.

 

[WatercolorsGuy]

Who bought the eel from that tank?

 

[xxHLTxx]

The eel was removed prior to the explosion of this, I have already contacted the owner of the eel now and he has confirmed his health and condition as well as the health of his tankmates.

 

[jda123]

Are the other fish showing signs? Are you considering a biopsy done before nuking the tank. I was under the impression that healthy fish can fight it off, but I don't know... Is the tank really disgusting and dirty? Are N and P high?

Are you considering hypo instead of copper? This might save some of the rock and sand. Looks like 1.020 is their cutoff.

In any case, whatever you do will likely cause a nice little cycle with the dying reef creatures which will only be compounded with some dying bacteria.

This is terrible.

 

[xxHLTxx]

Yes it is. We have looked at doing a hyposalinity spike, but would need to hit over 1.035 to even stop the parasite. Higher the better. At this point, stressing the fish going from their salinity to that would cause quite a bit of stress and can be a cause for the parasite to host more fish. The best bet is the copper dose of 2-3x the recommended dosage and cross our fingers and pray the rest of the fish don't die from the extreme levels of copper.

Yes this will cause a temporary cycle, in this tank cycles are pretty normal so I'll be looking at about a 2 week period of random swings.

 

[BryanF]

Who bought the eel from that tank?

Eel seems healthy and happy, scary stuff!!

 

[sethsolomon]

What wholesaler did those fish come from?

 

[jda123]

You can probably get this from any wholesaler. Keep your reef clean, fish healthy and QT your stuff and you will probably be OK. I had never heard of this affecting a clean reef tank, and I guess that this tank is no exception.

 

[xxHLTxx]

unfortunately i cannot say which wholesaler due to my contract. It was one out of LA (like that helps) and jda123 you are correct, QT, healthy tank and a clean reef will help prevent this. But because this parasite can thrive off trace bacteria and detritus, it isnt impossible for someone to get it too.