Fish pathology question.

[e.muehlbauer]

I have a question for anyone out there who is familiar with fish pathology. Last night I caught a bluefish. When I filleted it I was horrified by what I saw- a greyish mass of what could have passed for eggs, but above the swim bladder, where the kidney should be. Here is a link to the photo I posted on Nor"Easter http://www.noreast.com/postedreport...ype_ID=0&startRecord=1&orderby=date&daysold=7
The fish was surprisingly sluggish, and was actually snagged in the side. Other than behavior, it appeared plump and healthy. I realized afterwards that I should have saved at least some of it, but I was so grossed out by it that all I could do after taking the picture was to toss it in the creek for the crabs and raccoons to eat. Any idea of what this is? Parasites? Tumor? I've never seen anything like it...only disease I have seen in 30 years of fishing in Peconic bay, although I did once see a striper covered with what I assume was Lymphocystis. Take care, Eric

 

[jejton]

Have you tried sending photos to Cornell or Stony Brook's Vet or Zoology departments? I am sure someone there could help. By the way, I am moving out to Stony Brook in two weeks. Hows the fishing ( sw or fw ) for someone without a boat ?

 

[e.muehlbauer]

I emailed the DEC, and the photo was passed on to a pathologist. Here is his reply:
"Impossible to say from a visual but many bacterial diseases localize in the
> kidney - going by the picture it appears to be localized there and by the
> fisherman's account it doesn't sound like there were any external signs.
> Mycobacteria possibly (been found in LIS bluefish) or other gram-neg. bacteria.
> Some protozoan parasites will also cause nodule-like formation in the kidneys.
>
> Not much else I can say. Although a sample would be nice - it sounds at least
> as if the fisherman didn't handle too much of the viscera - good for him."
After reading that I washed the cutting board and fillet knife with chlorox.
Fishing out on LI is generally excellent, at least for SW (I've hardly done any FW fishing in the past 25 years...), so I'd assume the Stony Brook area would be as good as any. Many areas along the Sound have steep dropoffs, and can have excellent fishing. I think the Nissequogue (???) river lets out into the sound near SB, and I would assume that would be an outstanding place to fish. Log on to NorEast.com for reports specific to that area. Take care, Eric

 

[meschaefer]

When i lived out there, I used to go fishing off of the pier in Stony Brook wich was good way to kill some time. If I was feeling "serious" i would drive to Smith's Point and do some surfcasting.

 

[jejton]

I didnt realize there was even a pier to fish from in SB. Where is it?