What You Need To Know About Ich?

An Ich is commonly known as “white spot disease”. Ich is a common fish disease affecting many freshwater fish species. It is caused by the protozoan parasite Ichthyophthirius muitifilis.

The appearance of small white spots on the body and fins of a fish is an indication that it has been infected with the disease. However, Ich can present itself in different forms, and other factors besides Ich can also cause the appearance of small white spots.

The only way to know for sure if your fish has been infected with Ich is to scrape its skin and examine the scraping under the microscope.

When viewed under a microscope, Ichthyophthirius appears as large ciliated protozoan with a U-shaped macronucleus. It may appear round or oval, and its shape changes as it moves through the water. It appears to be tumbling as it moves.

How Ich Attacks and Kills Fish

The parasite forms a nodule under the skin or gill epithelium of the fish host. It constantly turns and moves under the skin, feeding on destroyed cells and body fluids. It continues to feed on the cells until it matures, causing damage to the skin tissue. This leads to osmo-regulatory disturbances and osmotic stress, resulting in secondary bacterial or fungal infections.

The adult protozoan then “punches” its way out of the skin and attaches itself to a plant or some other object, and forms a capsule around itself.

At this stage, the tomont, as it is now called, repeatedly divides and reproduces up to a thousand tomites that eventually hatch and swim to seek a fish host. These tomites are the infective agents. They burrow into the fishes’ skin and the cycle starts all over again. With each turn of the cycle, the number of parasites increases dramatically.

Timely Treatment

The disease can be lethal. Thus, it is important to understand a little about the life cycle of the organism, as it will have a bearing on what kind of treatment should be used to eradicate the problem effectively.

The life cycle of Ich takes 12 to 16 days to complete, depending on the temperature. The tomite stage lasts for only three days, and it is only during this stage that the protozoan is responsive to medication.

Mermaid Highly Recommends: