How Long Do Gill Flukes Live/last

[barb-e]

A little while ago I had some fish in my ten gallon tank and they all died from what I believe was gill flukes. I left the tank up and running but it had no fish in it. I have to cycle the tank again because the long-lasting lack of a source of ammonia. When I add the new fish, would it be possible for them to get sick from the disease/bacteria that was in the tank 2 months ago. Also could it survive in the filter and filter media because I still have the same filter cartridge as before in there because I was hoping it would help the cycling but could it be harmful?

 

[Bignose]

Flukes have a life cycle that is around 2 weeks long, maybe as long as 4 weeks. They are obligate fish parasites, so if there have been no fish at all in the tank, the flukes will not still be alive after 2 months.

If you are pretty sure they had flukes, next time this happens you should be aware of a medicine called praziquantel. It is a very effective anti-worm medicine that has essentially zero side effects to your fish and your filter. Praziquantel itself comes in power form, but there is a liquid medicine called PraziPro made by Hikari (I think) that is nice since the poweder form can be a real annoyance to dissolve.