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Hi all,

I have some very new discus added to my tank. When I first got them they seemed fine.

Its about 3 days later and ive noticed some white spots. To me it looks like bite marks/scabs as the scales are not in that spot anymore.

I have noticed that my Blue Gourami is very aggresive towards all of the discus and he does chase them around some times so im thinking that he may be biting them.

I have included some photos to try and get some feedback on to what these scars/spots/scabs etc could be.

Tank info:
45 Gal
Temp 33 Deg C (very hot day at the moment)
PH: 6.5
Ammonia 0
Nitrate 20

With this one you can see on the body he has some white spots which kinda looks like scabs.
http://pserd.gallery.netspace.net.au/album04/CIMG1728

This one looks very serious. This little guy hardly moves and always stays under the moss.
http://pserd.gallery.netspace.net.au/album04/CIMG1746

The other two I have dont have such bad scaring and its not very noicable when taking a picture.

Any help or comments are most welcome.

Not sure but it looks like it could be Head and Lateral Line Erosion.

But that would be a worst case scenario

It does look like HLLE to me. The disease is compounded by a secondary fungal infection in one fish. This is from Aquapharm:

HLLE
also known as Head and Lateral Line Erosion or Hole-in-the-head.

Caused by: Hexamita, diet, and/or environment - the true cause of this disease is highly debated.

Symptoms: small pits or holes develop in the sensory regions of the head and body, especially along the lateral line.

Occurrences: Hexamita is often found as a low-level infection in the intestines of the fish, which when combined with poor environmental conditions, may cause the parasite to multiply and lead to the development of erosions commonly seen in a variety of fish.
Outbreaks could also be related to a poor diet, vitamin deficiencies, and environmental factors.

Treatment/Control: Fish exhibiting HLLE can be treated with General Cure. Feeding a varied, nutritious diet can contribute to healing and positively affect overall fish health.

How do you cure your fish? Simple:
o treat the secondary infection,
o improve your water quality and tank cleanliness,
o feed a better diet.


Your nitrates are too high for discus at 20 ppm, start with 50% water changes for the next 4 days. The water changes will be therapeutic for your fish as it should substantially improve your water quality. Discus are carnivores, they eat insects and smaller fish in the wild. Do feed a high quality flake food in the morning with frozen bloodworm in the afternoon. Do not overfeed.



__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright