Grouper and other tasty bottom dwellers

After 6 blowouts in a row - it has not stopped blowing here since December - we finally made it offshore. 65 miles to get to 110 feet of water and the bite was on. Check out the size of the porgie! They look like ours and they are excellent eating - even sashimi style! Hopefully we will get out one more time before headed home to NY.

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Nice trip, George. We get some pretty big spawning Scup in the Peconics but nothing like that. If they grew that big in our local waters, I suspect many anglers would forget about spring Fluke fishing!!

Those baskets of Grouper also look very tasty.

@captmike28 That porgy gave a a few good runs. I was surprised at the number of worms i found in the grouper this time! Almost as bad as our cod.

@captmike28 That porgy gave a a few good runs. I was surprised at the number of worms i found in the grouper this time! Almost as bad as our cod.

I never knew Goruper could have worms. Fished for them many times when living in FL in the early 70's. Also, while visiting my folks when they were still kicking in West Palm for decades.
Now I am starting to wonder how many I might have accidently consumed over the years!🤢

@captmike28 That porgy gave a a few good runs. I was surprised at the number of worms i found in the grouper this time! Almost as bad as our cod.

I never knew Goruper could have worms. Fished for them many times when living in FL in the early 70's. Also, while visiting my folks when they were still kicking in West Palm for decades.
Now I am starting to wonder how many I might have accidently consumed over the years!🤢

I'm wondering if they have the same worm, Seal Worms, Terranova decipiens and Porrocaecum decipiens as our cod?? A couple of quick searches says no, they're different, but that is far from an extensive search.

As far as worm-infested cod, it seems the further offshore I go, the less average worms per fish, at times with the fish caught right inside the bay I'll start cutting and just say, "Screw this!!" and toss the entire fish off the dock float to the gulls/green crabs/lobsters delight.

Besides cod, the local redfish and sculpin have worms, but with far less frequency than cod. I've only found a single haddock with worms, and believe it or not, a striper I caught at the NH/ME border!!

Anisakiasis, as infection by cod worms is known, remains relatively rare in the U.S. A 1986 study published in the National Library of Medicine, for instance, noted that only 24 cases had been confirmed in the previous 13 years.

Obviously, it's fine if you consume cod that has been thoroughly cooked or frozen enough to kill the worms. Therefore, Cod Sashimi is NEVER on the Chez Roccus menu, even though I check the fillets for worms during cutting, after cutting prior to packaging, and prior to preparation in the kitchen. As an additional safety check, I usually freeze the cod for at least 4 days prior to consuming.

I never knew Goruper could have worms. Fished for them many times when living in FL in the early 70's. Also, while visiting my folks when they were still kicking in West Palm for decades.
Now I am starting to wonder how many I might have accidently consumed over the years!🤢

If the Capt didn't mention it I wouldn't have known either. Then I made the mistake of removing one with my wife present. When she saw it squirming that ended her grouper eating for life. Until then she wanted me to go on these trips. Good thing we catch mangrove snappers, she will still eat those.

our codfish are not the only local fish that I have found worms in. I have occasionally found the same worms in seabass and also porgies. im sure if I checked those species closer(as I do with codfish) I would probably find them more often. I've yet to see any in blackfish, fluke or ling but I would have to guess those species will also harbor some-sooner or later

If the Capt didn't mention it I wouldn't have known either. Then I made the mistake of removing one with my wife present. When she saw it squirming that ended her grouper eating for life. Until then she wanted me to go on these trips. Good thing we catch mangrove snappers, she will still eat those.

Lep had exactly the same experience with some Cod many years ago. It is my understanding that to this day his wife will also steer clear of any Cod for dinner!

To the point made by Roccus, it is also my belief that if your dinner is cooked to the proper temperature then the risk to humans of eating something like this and having an adverse reaction is very small. Still, it's wise to always check those filets!!