F
rom time to time, an-glers will find wormsin the fish they arecleaning. Although un-sightly, these commonmarine parasites poseno human health threat because even if they arenot all removed when the fish is cleaned or filleted,they will be killed when the fish is cooked orfrozen. This brochure provides a summary of thetypes of worms commonly found in fish and offersgeneral guidelines for preparing fish to minimizehealth concerns.
Types of Worms
Parasitic worms can invade and live on or withinanother organism, called the “host.” Althoughvirtually all fish can become infested with worms,certain groups of fish appear to be more suscep-tible to them. Fishes of the drum family, such asred drum, spotted seatrout, croaker, and blackdrum, are most often affected, but worms are alsocommon in amberjacks, groupers, and sharks.Most worms have a complicated life cycle thatrequires that they inhabit more than one hostanimal before they can reproduce. The wormstake advantage of the marine food web to grow andmultiply, moving from one type of animal to an-other as predators become prey.Worms are rarely harmful to the fish they in-habit, and in fact, they can be good indicators ofthe overall health of a marine environment.Generally, fish in healthy marine systems will havea greater diversity of species of worms in relativelylow numbers, whereas fish in more polluted areaswill have fewer species in greater abundance.There are four major types of worms commonlyfound on or in fish. A brief overview of their ap-pearance and life cycle is provided here.
Tapeworms
Tapeworms (
cestodes
)are the most commonparasitic worms. As theirname implies, tape-worms have long, ribbon-like bodies that are usu-ally white or yellow. The flat body of the worm issegmented; each segment, called a proglottid, hasits own complete reproductive system and canproduce eggs and sperm. In most species of tape-worms, a few new segments are continuouslybeing formed. Tapeworms obtain nutrients by ab-sorbing them through their skin. Adult tapewormscling to the digestive tracts of their hosts, usuallyby hooks or suckers. These structures—along withthe distinctive shape of the body—are the defin-ing features of this family of worms.Typically, two or more host animals are un-witting participants in the tapeworm’s life cycle.Adult tapeworms usually take up residence and re-produce in sharks and rays. The worms or theworm segments containing the eggs are released
WORMSINFISH
Unsightly But Safe
Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation CommissionFish and Wildlife Research Institute
From a silver perch intestine:
Scolex
(1 and 2), larval cestodeswith multiple suckers; and an oval digenetic trematode (3) and its egg (4).
4321
into the water along with the discharged intesti-nal wastes of their host. After about a week, onetiny swimming larva pops out of each capped egg.The larvae are eaten by tiny crustaceans such ascopepods, advancing the worms to another larvalphase. If the crustaceans are then eaten by anappropriate fish, the larvae continue to develop andmay remain in this intermediate, “middleman,”host for a few years. The life cycle is complete whena shark or ray consumes the fish, paving the wayfor the worms to reach adulthood and reproduceinside this final host.Few bony marine fishes act as hosts for adulttapeworms, but they do harbor a rich variety oflarval ones. For example, larvae of one species oftapeworm,
Poecilancistrium caryophyllum,
arefrequently found inside spotted seatrout. Sinceseatrout are a favorite food of sharks, especiallybull sharks, this parasite has apparently adaptedto live within the specific fish that will best increaseits chances to reach maturity and reproduce.Examinations of many seatrout suggest that theworms do not harm these fish but merely usethem as a sort of natural incubator. Trout wormsare typically found only in larger seatrout.Wormy trout occur year-round because oncea host is infested, the worm may live inside it fora year or more.Because tapeworms have such long and twistedbodies—giving the illusion of dozens of individualworms—many anglers may think their catch ismore worm-infested than it actually is. In reality,few fish have more than three or four tapeworms.
Flukes
Flukes (
trematodes
) are among the largest groupsof parasites affecting marine fishes. Flukes aresimilar in shape to tapeworms, but are shorterand broader. Unlike tapeworms, flukes have a gutin which food—for example, the blood and theintestinal contents of their hosts—can be digested.Many flukes show a distinct preference for hostanimals of a certain age or length.Flukes are divided into two main categories,monogenetic and digenetic. Monogenetic flukestypically lodge on the gills or on the outside of thehost and do not require an intermediate host inwhich to spend certain life-cycle stages. Digeneticflukes live internally and require multiple hosts intheir life cycle.Monogenetic worms have only one hostthroughout their life cycle. They primarily infest thegills or the skin of fishes, although a few mayoccur internally. An adhesive organ bearing several
2
Most sharks infested with tapeworms are at least 4.5 feet long, presumably because large sharks eat more seatrout than small ones do and are thusmore likely to consume individuals with worms.
From the gill of a snook: a monogenetic trematode, or fluke,with a developing egg. A digenetic trematode from the intestine of a silver perch.
3
clamps or suckers attaches the worm to its hostorganism. These external worms usually lay asmall number of eggs each day. The eggs hatch intolarvae that are fringed with hair-like cilia. Theselarvae can swim onto the same fish or another fishand repeat the cycle.Some adult monogenetic flukes are so small thatthey can be seen only through a high-powered mi-croscope, whereas others may be larger than athumbnail and are often visible to the naked eye.When these larger external flukes are on the toughskins of sharks and rays or on the gills of jacks,drums, seatrout, and many other fishes, they maybe fairly easy to spot.Digenetic flukes are considerably more variedin their adaptations than monogeneans are. Manydifferent groups of animals serve as intermediatehosts for digenetic fluke larvae. Most fish harborboth larval and adult digeneans, and some haveseveral different species in their bodies. Almost alldigenetic flukes use a snail or bivalve mollusksuch as a clam as one of their intermediate hosts.In fish, internal flukes usually inhabit the digestivetract. Most digenetic flukes have two suckers, onefor latching onto tissue in its host animal, and theother for feeding, holding, and moving about.Some larval digenetic flukes are enveloped incysts and can be seen only through a microscope.The dark pigments that occasionally appear aroundthese cysts can be seen with the naked eye. Anglersrefer to this condition as “black spot disease.”
Roundworms
Roundworms (
nematodes
) are true to their name.Both the immature stages and the adults are round,long, and thin, tapering to a point at each end. Theydo not have segments and are covered with a hardouter skin called a cuticle. Roundworms are usuallywhite or red.Although small, inconspicuous, and seeminglyinconsequential to humans, nematodes are amongthe most abundant and ancient animals on earth;thousands of species are found on land and in thewater. Most nematodes are not parasitic.Unlike other worms, which move in a coordi-nated “inchworm” style of locomotion bycontracting their muscles, roundworms move in awhiplike, wriggling fashion. Roundworms are found
One digenetic fluke that may be familiar to anglerswho target billfish and other deep-water species isthe giant stomach worm (
Hirudinella ventricosa
).When fully stretched out, this Goliath of the wormworld may be longer than a man’s hand.One common nematode found in the gut of at least 13 estuarine and nearshore fish is
Spirocamallanus cricotus.
When viewed under a microscope, this species displays a golden,beautifully ribbed capsule that it uses toattach to the digestive tract of its host.
A nematode from a red drum intestine.
Spirocamallanus cricotus
from a silver perch intestine.
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Sea Stats - Worms in Fish
From time to time, anglers will find worms in the fish they are cleaning. Although unsightly, these common marine parasites pose no human health threat because even if they are not all removed when the fish…
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