Florida fishing & poison

[cougar91]

I recently came across a news article about some fisherman gotten sick eating snappers while fishing down in FL due to this toxin inside reef dwelling types of fish such as groupers and snappers. Supposedly the effects can be very serious (vomiting, pain in the belly, can't function) and last as long as a year.

 

Has anyone ever heard of this? Do you eat snapper or grouper caught in FL? What's the risk?

[minivin5]

I recently came across a news article about some fisherman gotten sick eating snappers while fishing down in FL due to this toxin inside reef dwelling types of fish such as groupers and snappers. Supposedly the effects can be very serious (vomiting, pain in the belly, can't function) and last as long as a year.

 

Has anyone ever heard of this? Do you eat snapper or grouper caught in FL? What's the risk?

 

I have not heard of this at all. The only fish that has the potential to be toxic is Cudas as far as I know. I have never been sick from eating and fish/shellfish from Florida waters and I have been eating my catch for 9 years now. Where did you hear this information?

[cougar91]

I found several references to ciguatera toxin:

 

http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environme..._narrative.pdf

[minivin5]

I found several references to ciguatera toxin:

 

http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environme..._narrative.pdf

 

Which is why you dont eat cudas! The other species would have to be huge in size and that just does not happen, to much pressure on our game fish as it is, they never are able to get that large and old to get Cig. Goliath grouper would have this toxin in them for sure, you cant keep them.

 

Do you actually have a recent story, are you scared of eating fish in florida? I personally would not be that concerned about this, you have a greater chance of getting sick eating raw oysters than getting Cig.

[DerrickT]

I found several references to ciguatera toxin:

 

http://www.doh.state.fl.us/environme..._narrative.pdf

 

 

 

Thats for Barracuda's. I fished the Keys for many years, and ate plenty of snappers, grouper, grunts, and never had a problem.

 

I was once told by a local that if you put a piece of cudda meat on the ground and the ants eat it, its safe to eat. I never trusted that, and never ate them. Chunked up though they make great shark bait.

[Drako]

I hate to tell anyone not to worry about something just because it hasnt happen to me.

ciguatera posioning does happen down here and it also has happen in NC, we also have posioning in our ICW.

It pays to learn as much as possible about the area you are going too, and than ask questions from locals.

 

Most of us won't eat anything from a spillway down here, but you have some people that will

We have alot of things that can hurt you, so do your research ask questions and if you arent sure of something.

Don't touch it or eat it

[cougar91]

Here is the story I read, it happened back in July of this year. It was yellowfin grouper, not cuda:

 

By KEVIN DEUTSCH

 

Palm Beach Post Staff Writer

 

Friday, July 18, 2008

 

For eight days, the fishermen's boat was a living hell.

 

With blurred vision, aching joints and burning skin, the men struggled to hold down food. At night, they itched so badly that they scratched parts of their skin off and couldn't sleep.

Ciguatera

 

The culprit: a dinner of yellowfin grouper that left the fishermen feeling as though they might die.

 

"It was the worst I've ever felt," said Tim Sperling, 52, of Jupiter, who along with John Ely, 50, of North Palm Beach, contracted ciguatera during a sport-fishing trip in the Bahamas in mid-June. "I didn't eat anything solid for eight days. I lost 14 pounds."

 

The men recounted their ordeal Thursday as federal health officials tried to determine exactly where the toxin-laden fish, which have sickened at least 10 Palm Beach County residents since the end of June, were caught.

 

If the spots can be pinpointed, the government might place restrictions on fishing there, local health officials said.

 

The Palm Beach County Health Department said five of the recent ciguatera cases were reported last week, with ties to a Whole Foods Market and the fishing trip to the Bahamas.

 

Ciguatera is caused by eating fish that contain toxins from reef algae. It leads to vomiting, diarrhea, vertigo, itching and the unusual symptom of a reversal in sensing temperature, so that things that are cold feel hot.

 

Sperling and Ely, both professional sport fishermen, had just finished taking a group out on a fishing trip off the southern Bahamas in mid-June when they decided to treat themselves to a grouper dinner.

 

They caught and ate the healthy-looking fish. Six hours later, the toxin took hold.

 

Stuck out at sea, the men wasted away for eight days before feeling well enough to venture back to land.

 

"We lived on Gatorade and yogurt," Sperling said. "If I touched anything cold, it burned my skin. It couldn't have been much worse."

 

"We took care of each other as best we could," Ely said.

 

Back in Palm Beach County, the men sought treatment and learned that symptoms of ciguatera can linger for weeks or months. They were still feeling the effects Thursday.

 

Palm Beach County Health Department spokesman Tim O'Connor said that in some cases people have reported feeling symptoms a year or more after eating the tainted fish.

 

"It affects each individual differently," O'Connor said.

 

Symptoms of ciguatera appear within hours of eating contaminated fish.

 

Ciguatera is the most common marine toxin disease worldwide and is seen mostly in Florida, the Caribbean and the Pacific Islands.

 

It is most commonly found in barracuda, hogfish, red snapper and grouper.

 

Statewide, 82 cases have been reported since 2003. Palm Beach County had the highest reported rate during that time, with 36 cases, followed by Broward, with 13, and Collier, with 10.

[cougar91]

More info I found about this. Cooking doesn't help whatsoever, that's why I am concerned.

 

What is ciguatera?

 

A type of food poisoning caused by ciguatoxin, a marine poison that accumulates in reef-feeding fish.

 

How common is it?

 

Ciguatera accounts for more than half of all seafood poisoning and is estimated to sicken 50,000 people annually worldwide.

 

How do you get it?

 

Ingesting the toxin by eating either plant-eating fish or carnivorous fish that have eaten contaminated plant-eating fish. Miniscule amounts of toxin - less than one-hundredth of a gram - can cause ciguatera fish poisoning.

 

What are its symptoms?

 

Within hours, the toxin causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, stomach pain and reversal of hot and cold sensation. In extreme cases, death through respiratory paralysis might occur within as little as two hours of ingestion.

 

How can I spot toxin-filled fish?

 

The toxin is tasteless and isn't affected by cooking.

 

How can I prevent getting ciguatera?

 

Avoid predator reef-feeding fish such as barracuda, amberjack, grouper and snapper. Fish that weigh more than 5 pounds are more likely to have the toxin.

 

How can I report ciguatera?

 

People who have become ill from the disease can contact the Florida Poison Control Center at (888) 232-8635 or the Palm Beach County Health Department at 840-4500.

[minivin5]

Are you concerned or trying to create a panic? Are you actually going to visit our state? Are you actually planning on deep sea fishing? Why would you even attempt to eat a fish that is clearly stated as a potentially toxic fish?

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/groupyf.html

 

Fishing from the beaches you can not catch these species as they are deep water fish excluding the Cudas.

[cougar91]

Are you concerned or trying to create a panic? Are you actually going to visit our state? Are you actually planning on deep sea fishing? Why would you even attempt to eat a fish that is clearly stated as a potentially toxic fish?

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/groupyf.html

 

Fishing from the beaches you can not catch these species as they are deep water fish excluding the Cudas.

 

Please know that I love FL fishing as I have done so on several occasions, as late last last Oct and had a great time fishing the Keys. I have no incentive to create any type of panic (I don't even know why you would make that accusation). The info I gather from FL Division of Health stated any reef dwellers such as snapper and groupers can potentially have this toxin and I did catch those type of fishes while in FL last time and because I was on vacation, I did not cook and eat them but next time I may very well do that.

 

An exchange of information, even if it deals with potential danger to people's health, is vital if we are going to consume wildlife taken from natural resources. Again that is not to create panic, but to ask what the locals do when they catch snappers, groupers, etc and if this is ever a concern to them.

[minivin5]

Here are the fish species that you catch on the inshore reefs in the Keys most often:

 

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/snapgray.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/snaplane.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/snapyt.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/groupbla.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/groupred.html

 

These are the most common, for a complete list of our species click on the provided link: http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/index.html

 

The gentlemen that got sick were in fact in the Bahamas on a fishing charter which has nothing to do with fishing the inshore reefs of Florida.

[billfishhead]

from what i understand its a reef thing and even depends on what part or side of the reef you get the fish from. cudas and larger fish are the worst

[DerrickT]

Like I said, I've caught 100's of fish over a 10 year span, my dad has caught 100's of fish over a 10 year span, and my grandfather has caught 1000's of fish over a 50 year span, and non of us have ever gotten sick from eating any of it.

[Fishoholic]

My dad got ciguatera poisoning from a big red snapper before. It almost killed him. He refuses to eat any FL reef fish anymore (ie snapper,grouper, cuda, etc..) in part because even a tiny exposure again could kill him..

It laid him up for weeks. Crappy thing is he was actually in cuba and the hospital was pretty nasty...

 

The danger is in the accumalation of the toxin that makes some fish deadly..as long as you stay away from the big fish you are pretty safe. Barracuda are generally the carriers of toxic levels. You can still eat the little cudas 24" and under and its pretty safe. They are actually pretty tasty I have eaten several. An old trick a bahamian old timer told me is to lay a piece of fish in a pile of ants. If they eat it its ok..If they dont it has too much toxin. I wouldn't trust it..but they do

 

Personally I would and do still eat snapper and grouper... but there is a slight risk.

 

And in reference to the spillway comment..I have eaten literaly hundreds of snook from the boca and boynton spillways..and I'm prefectly fine

[Fishoholic]

Here are the fish species that you catch on the inshore reefs in the Keys most often:

 

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/snapgray.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/snaplane.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/snapyt.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/groupbla.html

http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/groupred.html

 

These are the most common, for a complete list of our species click on the provided link: http://myfwc.com/marine/FishID/index.html

 

The gentlemen that got sick were in fact in the Bahamas on a fishing charter which has nothing to do with fishing the inshore reefs of Florida.

 

from what i understand its a reef thing and even depends on what part or side of the reef you get the fish from. cudas and larger fish are the worst

 

it has nothing to do with where on the reef you fish.. its a poisonous growth on the reef that small fish eat. Big predators eat the small fish.. big fish have eaten more of the little fish which contain the toxins intern have higher concentrations.