Something on Bangai Cardinal's lip

[AdamHorton]

This and one other cardinal has this fluffy white stuff on their lips. I originally thought it was just some bruises from the latest round of breeding/aggression that's sort of typical with these guys, but I thought it looked bad enough to post on here and see what it was. All the other fish, including the other two Bangais in the tank are doing just fine and show no symptoms. Does anybody know what this is and/or what I should do about it? Thanks,

 

[0o.Kelsey.o0]

http://www.reefs.org/library/article/f_marini.htm

Q: My banggai cardinalfish has this thing hanging off its lower lips, it appears whitish, any ideas?

Yes this is the most common problem I encounter with Banggais, its a lip tear and subsequent fungal infection. The lip tear is usually caused by the fish dashing into rockwork or beefing with another tank mate. If the fish is acting fine and eating regularly, donմ worry about it, it will go away. However if the fish has stopped eating or it jaw is displaced or disfigured then its time to treat with an antifungal agent.



just something i came across while researching breeding the cardinals mine currently have eggs

 

[AdamHorton]

All right, it seems like I wasn't too far off with it being related to aggression.

All of the cardinals are acting just fine and eating well. If anything, the two with this fungus are more active and have more of an appetite than normal. I'll keep a close eye on it and hopefully it will just go away.

Thanks for your help.

 

[cmor1701d]

Extra water changes to keep levels pristine always seem to help the healing process too. Fish can usually fight off disease if not stressed.