I caught a smallmouth from the NBR about two weeks ago, and filleted it, thank god, because I found small yellow worms actually embedded in the meat. They were 1/4 inch long at most, and moved more like small leeches than worms. Does anyone know what these are? Is it just a rare occurrence, diet, time of year, or something that happens often with NBR smallmouth? Thanks, but unfortunately I don't have any pics. Those would have helped out a lot.
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Yellow Worms in Fish Fillet
- Thread starter pduane44
- Start date
golden beetle
Active member
Because if I hadn't filleted it, I would have grilled it. I would not have noticed the worms and even though I cooked it, I still would have eaten them. Surprised you couldn't figure that out.
Rusty Spinner
Active member
You can call the Division's Lebanon Fisheries Lab for more info. Talk to one of the biologists. That # is 908-236-2118. Shawn Crouse covers the NBR.
Thanks a lot, will do.
golden beetle
Active member
Hallelujah!
CR
New member
Probably a parasite. The good news is that grilling the fish would have killed them all, so I don't believe you would have been in any danger (provided you cooked the fish thoroughly). That's why you are not supposed to eat Sushi, or any undercooked fish. I purchased some cod at the farmer's market last year that had similar worms in it. It is gross, but provided you cook it, should be harmless.
lightenup
A fan of Boobery
Cook 'em....they won't hurt you.....a little tartar sauce and some cold beer..........PBR and yellow parasites make for an interesting bathroom visit..... :toilet-humor:.......
Trout Nazi
And...Boom goes the dynamite.
The worms in the cod where cod worms (go figure), they infect fluke and flounder as well. I've found them in some of my own flounder fillets. They rarely infect humans, especially if you thoroughly cook the fish.
Fresh water fish are more prone to parasites than salt water fish, which is why sushi chefs never serve raw fresh water fish. Most of the species of fish you eat as sushi have low incidences of infection, but not zero, there is a small level of risk, though your more likely to get a bacterial or viral food poisoning from raw shellfish. I love sushi, there is nothing like fresh toro or pacific uni, so I accept the low risk.
Fresh water fish are more prone to parasites than salt water fish, which is why sushi chefs never serve raw fresh water fish. Most of the species of fish you eat as sushi have low incidences of infection, but not zero, there is a small level of risk, though your more likely to get a bacterial or viral food poisoning from raw shellfish. I love sushi, there is nothing like fresh toro or pacific uni, so I accept the low risk.
Trout Nazi
And...Boom goes the dynamite.
Its not just warm water fish. I've caught brook trout up in VT out of mountain streams where worms have just exploded out of them when I cut them open, like a horror movie. You should really cook fresh water fish to temperature. I flinch when Bear Grylls bites into those live trout on TV, hope he's spitting them out off camera.
Ummm.....because I feel like eating smallmouth bass. They are a great eating fish. By the way, I have filleted many warmwater fish from 80+ degree water and this is the first that had worms.
BrownChickenBrownTrout
New member
Seriously man. Did you try google? Took me like 3 seconds to find this:
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_grub
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_grub
dcabarle
Administrator
This is why you can hold the title, "BrownChickenBrownTrout" and he can't.
Yes I did try google. I found this article very quickly but there were many others that seemed to fit the description. I wanted to see if anyone actually encountered a parasite that fit the description I gave.
Trouser Trout
Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?
The loser in your avatar is a parasite as well.
Pete
Trout Hunter
If you've been eating bass or sunfish regularly, it's almost a sure thing that you've eaten the eggs of various parasites.
If you haven't been infected, it's because you cooked them...
If you don't like the idea of eating worms , don't eat them
uking-smiley:, but if you cook your catch, don't worry about it either. BTW: Pickling, and cold smoking may not be sufficient. Tapeworms are a common complaint, in Scandinavian areas where uncooked pickled herring is popular.
If you've been eating bass or sunfish regularly, it's almost a sure thing that you've eaten the eggs of various parasites.
If you haven't been infected, it's because you cooked them...
If you don't like the idea of eating worms , don't eat them
BTW: Pickling, and cold smoking may not be sufficient. Tapeworms are a common complaint, in Scandinavian areas where uncooked pickled herring is popular.
Alright, I wasn't really thinking about eggs. This is the first that had visible worms. Even though cooking kills them the idea of eating worms is just too much.
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