12-26-2003, 04:26 PM
[cool][size 1]Sadly, there are flesh worms in many of the bluegills taken from Pelican. They are about the size and color of maggots...which makes them very unappetizing. There are seldom more than a half dozen per fish, and not all fish have them.[/size]
[size 1]The good news is that these are not parasites that will infect humans, and they are killed by cooking. If you simply don't like the appearance, you can fillet your fish and easily see and remove them from the flesh with the point of a knife.[/size]
[size 1]I first started fishing Pelican in the late 70's and the worms were in some of the fish then. I understand that like most parasites, these things become more pronounced when the fish are stressed and weakened...like during years of low water or depleted oxygen levels. Healthy and active fish tend to have fewer of them.[/size]
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[size 1]The good news is that these are not parasites that will infect humans, and they are killed by cooking. If you simply don't like the appearance, you can fillet your fish and easily see and remove them from the flesh with the point of a knife.[/size]
[size 1]I first started fishing Pelican in the late 70's and the worms were in some of the fish then. I understand that like most parasites, these things become more pronounced when the fish are stressed and weakened...like during years of low water or depleted oxygen levels. Healthy and active fish tend to have fewer of them.[/size]
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