Thread: Jordan report and, uh... parasites?

So I was cleaning my 11 keepers from last night... Can I get a Halleluiah!?! and came upon this one crappie with several red splotches on both fillets. I dug into the fillets and discovered pockets of small red worms. Okay, down to 10 keepers now. These were pretty easy to catch and I wasn't really looking for anything specific, but it made me wonder if I should be doing more to screen the fish I decide to keep. What do y'all do?

Report:

Bells pier at Jordan Lake
Sunday, Jan. 4th 10pm-1am
20 caught; 11 10.5"+; biggest 11.75"
bottom bouncing minnows in 18' of water

It was a great relief to catch some fish again. It's been a lengthy dry spell at the pier for the past 5-6 wks. Hopefully the Jordan crappie have ended their holiday fast and are once again ready for their three squares.

That is great news. I hope that the trend shows itself on Falls soon or I will join you at the pier. I guess its crowded there at night?

I filleted my crappie from Jordan on Saturday night and did not see any kind of worms. Like you, I am interested if anyone else has seen what you found in that one crappie.

Originally Posted by FishCrazy

That is great news. I hope that the trend shows itself on Falls soon or I will join you at the pier. I guess its crowded there at night?

It can get busy on Fri/Sat/Sun nights but it's never been so crowded that I've turned away. Sat. night was pretty busy... Sun. night was much less so with only three of us fishing from 11pm-1am. If you like throwing bobbers you might get frustrated when the pier is busy, but if you're just tightlining you'll be fine. Most this time of year don't stay for more than an hour or two so prime fishing spots free up fairly regularly.

Skiffless it sounds like you are a veteran of that place. I may have to come over there one night and meet you. I have fished that pier long time ago but not at night. Talked to a guy that was there to fish the night shift when I was there during the day. He had a load of gear that he was just waiting to put out. Looked like he could have occupied a good portion of the rail with all his stuff. Have heard of others that say there are those like him that hog the space. But its all hearsay to me. I only beeen there in the day time.

Congrats Skiffless! Glad to hear ya got 'em.
Mike

Take a kid outdoors!

Good job, no parasites in any fillets so far this winter myself.

Originally Posted by FishCrazy

Skiffless it sounds like you are a veteran of that place. I may have to come over there one night and meet you.

Come any time. I'll make some room for you. I’ve only fished the pier this past year but have enjoyed getting to know many of the veterans who’ve fished there for much longer.

I have fished that pier long time ago but not at night. Talked to a guy that was there to fish the night shift when I was there during the day. He had a load of gear that he was just waiting to put out. Looked like he could have occupied a good portion of the rail with all his stuff. Have heard of others that say there are those like him that hog the space. But its all hearsay to me. I only beeen there in the day time.

Day fishing at the pier (from my experience and others I talk to) is challenging to say the least. Most regulars fish evening and/or night. I’m one of those with a lot of gear but try to keep my footprint as small as possible and readily share anything I have. Many others I observe do the same. I normally straight line four setups using ~6-8’ of railing. If few are fishing or the crowd thins out, I’ll throw a couple bobbers or cast some shad looking for catfish.
Some downsides to public pier fishing:
a. Too many people litter. The WRC sends someone every couple weeks to pick things up but it’s often a mess out there. It’s a depressing way for them to spend our license fees but a necessity, unfortunately. For my part I collect spent 1lb propane cylinders and bring them to the hazardous waste site on a regular basis.
b. General etiquette: some feel it’s okay to subject the rest of us to their brand of music; others crowd or cross lines fairly regularly
c. Illegal activity: No fishing license; “netters” who cast for game fish (any size will do) disrupting fishing for everyone else; those who make multiple monofilament drops (no rod) around the pier leaving it all for others to clean up after they leave
d. If fish are holding below ~18ft., we go home and watch a game or look at boats on craigslist
Some upsides:
a. Car to fishing in 5 minutes
b. Cheap
c. Great conversation with good people who look out for one another
d. Always spare minnows to be had
e. Forget something in your car? Retrieve it in 2 min.
f. Store with (food/drink/propane/minnows/tackle) is 3 min. away
g. Start pouring? Wait it out in your car.
h. SO calls and needs you home? You can be on the road in 5 min…. wait, strike that and put it under “downsides.”

Yeah, I've found several of those worms. Usually if a fish has them they have more than one it seems. They are nematodes. Did a search on here and found another posting on one of the boards with pictures and info. Also googled it and found info. They live in the fish for a while and then leave. Harmless to humans if you fail to get them out. The hot grease will kill them too.

Originally Posted by the crappie soldier

Yeah, I've found several of those worms. Usually if a fish has them they have more than one it seems. They are nematodes. Did a search on here and found another posting on one of the boards with pictures and info. Also googled it and found info. They live in the fish for a while and then leave. Harmless to humans if you fail to get them out. The hot grease will kill them too.

Thanks for the research, crappie soldier. Those fillets will be waiting here for ya if you'd like to come retrieve them.