UL Leeches ?

[lov2fish]

well just one question about utah lake. How safe is ti to fish the lake on shorts in the water? Reason i ask is i hear there were [#0000ff]leeches. [shocked][/#0000ff]
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[fishfinder462]

You will be fine, if there are leeches I dont think there are very many. Last summer I was out there a few times in my toon with my feet dangling in the water and never saw any. Even if you do find some just pull the off and use them for bait, they work great for walleye's.[sly]

FF462[cool]
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Relax. There are bajillions of leeches in Utah Lake...but not the tropical "python-sized" blood suckers you see in the movies or on the Discovery Channel. While there are some that grow to be a couple of inches...in the mud near the warm springs...the leeches in the main lake are generally small little guys like in the attached picture. They could attach to a foot or something, but are not big enough to draw blood on humans. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]They are a food source for many of the fish species in the lake. But, they also attach to the fish when the fish venture close enough to the bottom mud for them to "hitch a ride". You tend to see a lot more of them on fish in the colder months, when the fish are more likely to suspend down near the bottom. And, they usually just attach to the fins, where the blood source is easier to access.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Nature in the raw...eat or be eaten.[/#0000ff]
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[StrictlyBiznuss]

There are leeches in almost every body of water. Like TD said though, they are tiny guys that are nothing to worry about. You'll catch fish that have got some attached to them, but I seriously doubt that they'd latch onto a person...
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[Vivid-Dawn]

You're not supposed to just pull them off. At least that's what I read, when I did some Googling about it. Prying them off with a credit card, or something, kind of like for a bee stinger.
Of course, I didn't know this when I was a little kid. Playing in a lake (Lake Shasta, I think) one day, I felt something weird on my hand. I look, and there's this black slimy thing about 2 inches hanging from the 'webbing' between my fingers. Kinda startled me, so I took it and ripped it away! Later I find out this can get infected, if they end up leaving jaw parts in you... but I don't remember getting a sore or anything.
Then...being the weird little girl I am...after the shock wore off, got curious and fascinated, and started searching for more to study! LOL
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[lov2fish]

thre is just something about one of those bugers getting too close to me.. Thanks for the info.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Just bite them before they bite you. Shoot a little lemon juice and tabasco on them and go for it.[/#0000ff]
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[fsh4fun05]

Woah TD! I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.[pirate] Is there anywhere in Utah where the leeches get any bigger?
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]There are bigger leeches in Utah Lake. Also in the warm trickles that come into the lake around Saratoga. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I used to know an old boy that fished only with the leeches he dug out of the mud in ditches and canals around that end of the lake. Caught just about all species on them and did especially well fishing through the ice and tipping his jigs with leeches.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Leeches are annelids...members of the worm family, just like crawlers. They have a similar scent to fish. But, they can wiggle and change shapes radically. They can instantly go from a long thin worm to a flat ribbon. Lots of visual appeal. And, they are tough...really stay on a hook well.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Bass, walleyes, cats and white bass all depend on leeches throughout the year, especially during lean times for minnows and fry. That is one of the reasons that a plain black or purple tube or twister works so well in Utah Lake at times. Good leech representation.[/#0000ff]
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[lov2fish]

[]in the mud huh. [angelic] thanks for the idea. Fished the spill way today due to weather conditions and hooked a cat on a jig and noticed some of them on his fins.
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[chefwhofishes]

I have seen some big leeches in Fish Lake. Been years ago, but I remember them getting a few inches down there.
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[Therapist]

As TD said, they are not worth worrying about. In fact I am looking for a new leech pond. Spanish Fork filled mine in, no place to catch em now. great Walleye bait.

[Jedburton]

As many have said there are leaches in utah lake, but like many have said they are nothing to worry about. Most of the leaches around here will grab on you if you are there, but are just using you as support like they would a rock or a branch the leaches around here are almost exclusively predators on zooplankton and have no more interest in you than a rock or something else to anchor to.
Jed
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