White spot disease

White spot disease

White spot disease (white spot) caused the Ichthyopthirius multifiliis parasites so that the disease is often called Ich. Almost all the fresh water ornamental fish can this disease. Although most of the seed is attacked 1-5 cm-sized fish, but this disease is also often attack large and small fish.


The spread of this disease is very fast, especially in the optimum temperature (15-25 ° Q. at a temperature of 30 ° C or more, the disease will die or stop cycle. Parasite life cycle is divided into several phases, namely parasiter (tropozoit), pre - cyst (tomont), cyst (trophont), post-cyst (theront).

This cycle of life going for 6 days at a temperature of 25 ° C, 10 days at a temperature of 15 °, and more a month at a temperature of 10 ° C.
Phase parasiter the active phase is formed nodula (spot or spot) in the white skin and gill epitel fish. When mature, the parasites out of nodula and form a cyst pre-swim freely explore places such as aquarium patch, drain, and place the plant air.Di pre menempelnya - cyst will develop into a cyst in a tomite.

Tomite this is to be split into many. Furcation tomite broken so that the cyst tomite out. Tomite will then be developed into the form of post-cyst. This is the active phase of the fish. The amount in the water very much. Each cyst can produce more than 1,000 post-cyst.


If the infection is widespread throughout the body to form white spots the fish can die. The sign of this disease is a fish will rise to the surface of the water and the white spot on the skin. In the attack seriously enough, the fish will grind to the body wall aquarium or pond, giving rise to injury. Injuries may be secondary infection by fungus.


Preventive action is done with how to save fish in the water flow or fish density reduced. To do with the way it treated the sick fish soaked in a solution MOO 0.1 mg / e for 12-24 hours.

Once soaked, put fish back to water. Soaking fish in the solution of blue metil 0,7-1,0 mg / e for 24 hours a day can help eliminate this disease is when the situation has not been severe. If there is no drug, soaking in salt solution 4 g / l for 5-10 minutes to eliminate this disease.

Because this parasite life cycle during the six days it is suggested be treated for seven days in succession. This is done so that the seeds of disease are really exhausted. Besides the drugs and salt, the temperature is 31-32 ° C for 10 minutes can kill parasites.

source: SL Darti and Iwan D, spreader Swadaya, 2006