# a white spot on ottocinclus; what is it



## Glaucus (Oct 11, 2009)

I noticed a white pointed spot on one of the ottocincluses, any clue what it is?


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## davemonkey (Mar 29, 2008)

Looks like "Ick". If so, it can QUICKLY spread.


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## ddavila06 (Jan 31, 2009)

i would say fungus, ick looks more like salt grains on the fish. is good that you posted the pics and you can almost tell it looks like a little cotton ball. watch your feeding and do a few more often water changes, fish will get fungus when the tank is dirty...


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## Six (May 29, 2006)

It doesnt really look like ich, its more of a protrusion than anything. it looks as if the fish may have gotten poked there somehow and that's just the healing process. it really doesnt look like anything harmful. the fish looks like he's in great condition which usually rules out ich. the fact that it's on an oto and not anything else kind of confirms that it isnt ich (they are not as susceptible as other fish).

I wouldnt freak out, but just keep an eyeball on it and if it spreads, take action.

it isnt a fungus for sure. fungus is very rare in water- what some places and meds call "fungus" is actually a bacterial infection. It's possible it could turn into one, but like i said, it looks like the fish is healing from some lesion. 

keep us posted.


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## Qwertus (Oct 14, 2008)

It might just be something stuck on the oto, did you catch it for a better examine?


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## Glaucus (Oct 11, 2009)

Thank you guys for helping me to diagnose this.

I am still trying to figure out what it is. In the mean time i quarantined the fish.

I read up on ICK, fungus. Somewhere i read that fungus displays *raised *spots and ICK *flat *spots. Although the spot on the otto is sticking out from the body, i haven't found any fungus pictures that resembles the spot my otto has. Usually fungus looks rather fluffy (or as patches of mold) not pointy. And ICH normally shows many white spots instead of just one.

This in combination with the response of Six leads me to rule out both ICK and fungus too. I will probably return the otto in the fish tank and keep a close eye on him and other fish.

But let me know if you think otherwise.


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## Six (May 29, 2006)

I think you're on the right track with him. Just keep the water clean and if it was a lesion, the fish's immune system will take care of it. Compromise the immune system (stress) with poor water quality and a bacterial infection could result. If he gets that it will look red around the white spot kind of like our infections if you get a cut. Just like our cuts, there's no need for meds, just clean the area (tank water in the case of the fish) and keep healthy. If the fish is healthy and the water is good, you won't have a problem. By the robustness of the fish in the photo, he looks very healthy- I don't think you'll have an issue with infection. 

GL! Keep us posted.


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## Glaucus (Oct 11, 2009)

I went to my post archive and found this thread to be still 'open'. For those ever coming across this post i can say that the fish survived and is healthy, the white spot was gone completely in a matter of months. Six was right, it was probably just a lesion. Case closed.


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