My Corydoras Sterbai is sick - big white pimples on his body

jolita

Hallo,

something is wrong with my Corydoras sterbai and I can't find what it is.

He has about 5 grey-white big pimples on his body, some scale about his eyes and on the head are lost, his fins are crumbled and his colour is not as pure as it should be. He's behavior is normal. He is playing with other Corydoras, eating very well. At first I thought it could the white-spot disease and we were treating the tank with special medications, but no results at all.

Water parameters are good, except NO2 and NO3 are higher then it should be (but this is because the tank is quite new), other fish is healthy (I hope they are, I don't see any abnormal behavior or physical disorders). My tank is 190 liters.

I attach a photo of my poor Cory. I really hope somebody could tell what's wrong with him.

Sincerely,

jolita

Attached Images

Corydoras.jpg (54.7 KB, 70 views)

nicolaas

Maybe it's fungi

jolita

Maybe... I add few more photos made today...

Attached Images

	Corydoras2.jpg (66.0 KB, 61 views)
	Corydoras3.jpg (54.7 KB, 62 views)
	Corydoras4.jpg (51.1 KB, 62 views)

bettababy

Can you please list some more details about your tank? How many and what kind of fish are in this tank with this cory? What kind of filter are you using? What media is in it? What is the water temp? Can you also please post the exact numbers for test results of ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and pH? Without exact numbers for these tests there isn't much anyone is going to be able to do to help you.
It would also be helpful to know how long this tank has been set up, how long it has had fish in it, how many were added at what intervals, what your water change/maintenance schedule is, what foods you are offering and how much/how often, and if you are adding any chemicals regularly to this tank such as water conditioner(s), fertilizers, etc.?
Are there live plants in this tank? And lastly, what specific medication(s) have you used so far and when was the last dose given, and how long since it has been removed?

The more details you can offer the faster I will be able to help you.

jolita

Fish in my tank:

Paracheirodon axelrodi (The Cardinal Tetra) - 9
Tanichthys albonubes (White Cloud Mountain Minnow) - 1
Kryptopterus bicirrhis (ghost catfish) -1 (he lost his friend two days ago)
Botia macracanthus (Clown Loach) - 2
Crossocheilus siamensis (Siamese Algae Eater) - 3 (added to the tank on the 18th of Januray).
Corydoras sterbai - 2
Corydoras paleatus - 2
Baryancistrus sp. – 2

Filter

Bluewave 05. Internal system equipped with: double water intake, Bluclima heater, bluepower pump, mechanical filtration, biological filtration and absorbed filtration.

Water temperature: 25 C after the night, 26 - 27 C in the evening

Water parameters: CL2 - 0, PH about 7, KH 6, GH 14, NO2 - 5 mg/l, NO3 - 50 mg/l.

Tank was set up on 10th of January, all fish were added on the 18th of January.

We changed about half of water once after the treatment - on the 24th of January.

Food: Hikari Tropical (micro pellets), TetraRubin, Daphia (snack) (once in the morning), Green Algae Wafers(3 tablets in the morning, 2 tablets in the evening), Hikari Sinking Wafers (1 tablet per day in the morning).

Fertilizer: Bloom & Grow for plants, 4 ml on 26th of January.

Plants: Vallisneria gigantea, Echinodorus amazonicus, Lobelia cardinalis, Crinum calamistratum, Hygrophila difformis.

Treatment: with Sera Costapur on 19th, 21st, 23rd of January, each time – 4 ml injection to the water.

This tank is a new one. Before this we had a smaller for about 2 years. Water parameters were good, except NO2 and NO3 the last time we checked it (I don't remember exactly, how much it was, but surely less then in a new tank). We had plants in old tank (not the same as in a new one). Food - the same. Fish - the same. Filter: Aqua EL Filter Bio FS 80, media: Mechanical, biological, chemical. I cleaned tank and changed some water once in three weeks.

O noticed one pimple on Cory a day before we moved fish to the new tank, but I didn't thought that something is wrong with him. Only when I saw Cory in the new tank were lightening is different I realize that Cory is sick. And he is getting worse (his physical appearance). But he eats well, plays with other Cory.

bettababy

What size is this tank? How much water do you change at a time? Do you have a quarantine tank available if needed? Do any of the other corys show any signs of these symptoms?

I apologize for all of the questions but these are all things to know to properly diagnose the problem and offer you any help.

jolita

Tank is 190 liters (50 gallons), and water there is about 150 liters (40 gallons). We change about 1/3 water at a time. The other Sterbay Cory became a little whitish and other two - Paleatus and Albino - are fine. NO2 and NO3 decreased a little. And no, we do not have a quarantine tank now...

jolita

One more symptom of still unknown disease appeared. Between his fin and body (in the armpit) appeared a brown "pimple" and it looks like it is some kind of transparent bubble...

bettababy

I apologize for not being able to get here sooner. I tried to log in last night but was unable to get a connection to the forum.

The first thing I can see going on here is the very high nitrite and nitrate levels. Those alone have the potential to cause the problems visible in the photos. Also evident in the photos is lateral line erosion, what you had mentioned looked like "missing scales". So the first step to getting your fish well is going to be getting the water parameters where they need to be... ammonia 0, nitrite 0, and nitrate well below 40.

Another thing that would greatly help would be a vitamin supplement (such as Zoe, made by Kent Marine) added to their food. I'm not sure where you are located? If you're in the United States then it should be pretty easy for me to suggest specific products for you. If you're outside of the states then we may have to discuss back and forth what you have available that would be effective.

It's difficult to say diagnosing this via internet, but there is also the possibility of a protozoan problem, which would help account for the "pimple" type bumps. For that I would suggest treating the tank water with a medication called quinine. Follow the directions on the medication and be careful not to overdose.

Between now and the time you are able to get the medication I would urge you to use either polyfilter or purpad in the filter to help reduce the nitrite and nitrate levels quickly yet safely. Do not do any massive water changes as that would only make the situation worse. Also, do not substitute the medication I have suggested without consulting me, as not all medications are safe to use with corys and most especially with clown loaches in the tank. If quinine is unavailable I will help you find another safe medication to use in place of it, just let me know.

If there's anything more I can do to help you, such as links to the products I have suggested, also let me know and I will post those for you.

Best of luck to you and your fish.

jolita

I live in Lithuania (it's in Europe) and I couldn't find any quinine medications or vitamin supplement as Zoe here. What I can get is mostly JBL's, SERA's, WEITZ - WASSERWELT, MICROBE - LIFT, EASY LIFE, TETRA's production.

For example, Sera Fishtamin ( sera GmbH - Products - sera fishtamin ) or JBL ARADOL ( JBL Aradol - Aquatis Fresh water - JBL ). Of course, there is much more, but I just don't know, which one is good and save.

Nitrite and nitrate levels are decreasing.