Wormy fish?

[Sergeant Slabber]

I went out to a lake that I never have fished before and had a pretty good outing for gills. As I cleaned them, I first noticed that the meat had a kind of flaky, metallic pink shine to them. That wasn't going to stop me from frying them up though, but something else did. As I was preparing them to fry last night I noticed that a couple of the fillets had 3-4 white looking seed things buried in the meat. I cut that out of the fillets and tapped them onto the counter as I washed off the rest of the fillets. Right before I was going to throw them into the pan, I looked over and saw that those little seeds that I cut out were moving across the counter. They would stretch out and move kind of like a leech. They almost looked like a microscopic squid. Needless to say, my stomach churned and I could not go through cooking the rest. Has anyone ever had this experience or have a clue as to what the heck these things were?!

[LaVoi]

Yes I have seen the same thing in perch before as well. It has been said on here before exactly what kind of worm it is but I just can't remember now. Anyhow as disgusting as it looks, those fish are fine to eat if cooked well. Once you kill those little buggers in the frying pan just think of it as a little extra protein

[kdawg]

I can only hope that if I catch some fish that have them in em, that I don't notice them while cleaning so I can fry them in peace. Sometimes, truly, ignorance is bliss!!

[jiggin pig]

In the new 2006 regulations book it describes the parasites and wormy fish. what to do to make the fish safe to cook. FYI

[WalleyeWeasel]

Crawlin seeds ??

Sounds like a good name for a rock-band !!

[Cliff Wagenbach]

I have even found these grubs in walleyes!

If there are only a a couple of them in the fillet I just pick them out with a knife point and the fillets are fine to eat. Even if you leave them in the fillet they are safe to eat as long as you cook the fish well done.

Cliff

[ratso]

I was told once by a dnr employee that walleyes could not get them but they can huh! The dnr coul not be wrong could they!!!!!!!!!!!

[CrappieJohn]

walleye, sauger, northern in addition to the regulars. These are flukes and cooking completely kills them. They can survive picking when no cooking is involved. If you get one of these dudes growng in you, good luck. I'm done with fish pickles and I don't keep any fish with the black spots. It has been my experience that fish with the blackspot are just as likely to have these units crawling out of the meat on the cutting board.

I hate eggs, but would gladly trade one scrambled for a piece of peppered fish or one that I have seen a grub in. I don't need that much protein.

[mark n]

The crappies I bring home from a spot I fish all have little worms in the chest cavity. Did yours have anything like that? I've never really payed attention to the fillets themselves. Just wash em off and vacume seel them.

Thats all I need, A 20 foot tape worm in 12 months

[Ritz]

Yeah, most fish have these worms you guys are referring to, especially in Northern Minnesota........ But as far as I know, they can NOT survive in the human body, and are completely safe to eat. At least I was informed of this by lots of people who should know.

[efgh]

If those little buggers can live thru freezing, salt water, vineger and wine pickle, they would be some real tough buggers.

[Sgt. Rock]

One of the last issues of the DNR magazine Conservation Volunteer had a great article on parasites. It explained the types and life cycles. Looks like Pike tapeworms are the biggest fear to humans. Need to freeze them before pickling. The other worm/grub deals in panfish are harmless.