My daughter’s new word: Flippery
Used in a sentence: “Dad, I won’t hold that fish if it’s going to be all flippery!”
I took two of my kids and my Dad out to LB Saturday morning, and it turned out to be a productive day. We launched at 7:30ish and headed over to the mouth of the benjamin slough where we’ve had good success for cats for that last month or so. We did our usual with a night crawler under a bobber. (why does the spell check not recognize ‘bobber’ as a word?) We managed to boat two bullheads and lost a nice channel as we were trying to get it in the net. I missed a whole lot of bites and I’m thinking maybe I need to buy a hook sharpener. At 9:00 the biting stopped and at 9:30 we headed out to find a new spot.
We headed over to what I think is called “the L” and anchored in about 4 feet of water. Most of us took our bobbers off and just sunk the worms weightless. I left the bobber on my daughters pole because I figured it would be easier for her to detect a strike. It worked and she soon boated a nice channel cat. I convinced her (and the fish) to hold still for a quick picture. [:)]
We boated a total of 4 channels, 2 bullheads and one carp to use for bait next time. At one point my Dad had something REALLY big hooked (I don’t think I’ve ever seem a pole bend so much) but his line broke as we were getting ready to net it. I’m guessing the first thing he did when he got home was change out his 20 year old line.
A couple of questions about fish consumption advisories. I think I read on the website that they only recommended 4oz of catfish out of Utah Lake a month? How strict do I really need to follow that? Does preparing or cooking the fish a certain way minimize the toxins? Are certain parts of the lake worse than others? What about other species? Are they also tested?
“A couple of questions about fish consumption advisories. I think I read on the website that they only recommended 4oz of catfish out of Utah Lake a month? How strict do I really need to follow that? Does preparing or cooking the fish a certain way minimize the toxins? Are certain parts of the lake worse than others? What about other species? Are they also tested?”
**Sounds like a good trip overall. **
Carp and larger catfish are the primary carriers of the dreaded PCBs. They get bigger and live longer so they accumulate more of the bad stuff. Other species have not been subject to warnings. Also, smaller cats have less of a potential problem than larger ones.
Filleting the cats alone removes a lot of the PCB accumulation… from the fatty internal organs. And if you slice out the red sensory tissue along the lateral line that also reduces the problem. You can reduce it even further by the way you cook it. Grilling it and letting the juices (fat) drip off drops the problem potential even lower. So does deep fat frying…or smoking.
In short, if you keep only the smaller cats and prepare them properly you should not have to worry about glowing in the dark or growing extra appendages. Lots of Utah County families have lived on a steady diet of channel cats for generations without any unusual health problems.
Nice fish. Looks like a great family day on the water!
TD is right on about the PCB fish preparation. It is in the fat of the older fish. Be sure to remove the back and belly fat as well as the dark side line.
Nice report on Utah Lake, glad to see the cats around there are still producing! As we always say at UT Lake the cats make excellent babysitters…now for the consumption advisory. Some people listen to the advisory and others do not. All in all I would listen to what the advisory says…The signs do not tell you “here is how you can get around the PCB’s with the following cooking techniques.” There are people who will tell you that you can eat them in moderation but those people might as well take a shot of PCB’s straight to the veins! A fish consumption advisory is there for a reason…and the signs around Utah Lake do NOT say that the smaller Channel Cats are ok for consumption (although it is true that the bigger fish, the more PCB’s). I have a buddy who has been fishing/eating out of that lake for 35 years and he claims the rule is complete hog wash cuz he is still walking and talking. Every fisherman has their own opinions tho…
We personally have noticed a taste difference between the bluegill at Mantua and the ones in Utah Lake. That is mostly due to the muddy conditions/pollutants in the water there. As for if the fish are tested…yes every species is tested every year in nearly every Utah water. I forgot where the site is but you can look up the information about what fish are not edible and which ones are coming soon to the list. F.Y.I. catch the salmon at Causey while you can. Take it or leave it but we release all our Channel Catfish at Utah Lake.
Nice fish. Looks like a great family day on the water!
TD is right on about the PCB fish preparation. It is in the fat of the older fish. Be sure to remove the back and belly fat as well as the dark side line.
I just thought I would add this website to the discussion.
It has some good diagrams and info on how to prep and cook fish from waters with PCBs. http://www.state.nj.us/…ok-prep.htm
I just visited the link posted above and it says…“Proper fish cleaning and cooking techniques may reduce PCB levels by approximately 50 percent when compared to raw fish fillets.” Key words there are “may” and “50%”.
Here is some information about the health effects of PCB’s taken from wikipedia…
" few studies of workers indicate PCBs were associated with specific kinds of cancer in humans, such as cancer of the liver and biliary tract. PCBs also have been shown to mimic the action of estrogen in breast cancer cells and can enhance breast carcinogenesis.48 Rats that ate food containing high levels of PCBs for two years developed liver cancer. The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has concluded PCBs may reasonably be anticipated to be carcinogens. The EPA and the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) have determined that PCBs are probably carcinogenic to humans.
The most commonly observed health effects in people exposed to extremely high levels of PCBs are skin conditions, such as chloracne and rashes, but these were known to be symptoms of acute systemic poisoning dating back to 1922. Studies in workers exposed to PCBs have shown changes in blood and urine that may indicate liver damage. In Japan in 1968, 280 kg of PCB-contaminated rice bran oil was used as chicken feed, resulting in a mass poisoning, known as Yushō disease, in over 14,000 people.43 Common symptoms included dermal and ocular lesions, irregular menstrual cycles and lowered immune responses.444546 Other symptoms included fatigue, headaches, coughs, and unusual skin sores.47 Additionally, in children, there were reports of poor cognitive development.["
I think that if the signs talked about the health effects of PCB’s there would be less people begging us for our Channel Catfish on the beach. Do your kids and yourself a favor…do not eat the catfish. Thanks for posting the pics…that one your kid is holding is a big one for sure. Are they still charging for walk in’s at LB? If so how much?
Read this thread earlier and it got me thinking. Especially since PCBs affect the liver and I already have a 55 year old liver in my 28 year old body. I like catfish and living in Provo UL is the best source of them for me. I found the Utah Dept. of Health handout regarding the advisory put in place in 07 for carp and catfish form UL.
Secondly, I read the full report from the sediment study and fish sampling regarding PCBs in UL done in June of 2008. I’m posting the link for anybody who wants to read the whole thing. Basically in the sediment of UL PCB levels are below the detection threshold of 50 ppb. So, the sediment doesn’t have enough contaminants to worry the EPA. As far as the fish go, carp and catfish from UL were found to have PCB levels slightly higher than that of salmon sold in the market. These fish run close to 100 ppb PCB, while the FDA safety threshold is 2000 ppb; fully 20 times higher. From what I understand here, it should be fine for any reasonably healthy non-pregnant person to have a couple UL catfish dinners per year without poisoning themselves. As for myself, I’ve already had my liver poisoned once by a careless doctor in the Philippines, and I need to be more careful than other people do, so I may just drive out to Salem Pond when I’m in the mood for cats, unless somebody knows a better place close to me for them.
If the FDA danger level is correct, the advisory may just be a bit of bureaucratic CYA, so that if in the unlikely case that somebody develops cancer they can say “Well, we put out the advisory, and you still ate the fish!”
At the end the great thing about this country is that we get to decide for ourselves, just trying to help anybody interested make a more educated decision.
As noted the action level on PCBs is so much higher than any number seen in any fish in Utah Lake that it is almost not worthy of comparison. We are all free to make the choices to consume or not the fish from Utah Lake. It might be noted than some of the more preferred lakes in Utah have high mercury levels in fish including American Fork River. mercury is below a measurable number in U.L. While the advisory doesnt say anything about the larger fish if you talk to the folks that have done the studies the levels were only high enough in Large cats and carp to measure. White bass , walleye LMB etc had no PCB or they were below detection level. The advisory is indeed somewhat of a CYA. Do what ever you will but I have to go right now so I can fillet some nice cookie cutters. Thats dinner tonight
A fish advisory is a fish advisory and to anyone who disagrees with that…can you say DENIAL? Personally we are not the type of fisherman who will talk someone out of taking a fish for consumption…however I thought someone should speak up with an opposite view point to the main question before everyone thinks that eating the Channel Cats is all okay. Those signs are posted at EVERY major beach around Utah Lake. Did the DWR just put them up for the sake of pulling our chains? IMHO I would love to see more cats being pulled out of the water at Utah Lake…before they all become stunted and no more fun (although to a kid, any cat any size will do wonders to their day).
Before this post becomes hijacked…how much are the walk ins at Lincoln Beach these days? From what I understand it used to be free until the AF Harbor was closed due to flooding.
P.S. How long are those Mud Cats…from the looks of your pics they look like a great size next to those cookie cutters. I have heard too many stories of guys releasing/eating record sized Black Bullheads at Utah Lake. One of my good friends was out in the same area the other day and pulled a BB Cat that was 1 inch off the record. If they are telling the truth we are gonna see some records broken soon.
Remember that this is coming from the guy that has a third eye in the back of his head !!! TD has been eating those fish for a long time with minimal effects on his anatomy !! Me thinks that this is much todo about nothing. I would be more worried about getting run over on the street or hit by a drunk driver than the amount of PCB’s in fish at Utah Lake.
Yes indeed TD was not able to realize his full growth potential because of those catfish. He could have been well ove 8 feet tall if he had refrained. One last comment on the subject which was off the orginal topic in the first place[sly] The salmon at your grocery store has about the same amount of PCBs as those found in the catfish at U.L.
Figure 3 compares the PCB concentrations in carp and catfish from Utah Lake to fish
collected in the Great Lakes, Hudson River, Delaware Bay, and salmon sold in the
market. PCB concentrations in fish from Utah Lake are comparable to those sold in the
market. Utah Lake’s fish are well below the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) safe
level of 2000 ppb. The FDA considers PCB concentrations greater than 2000 ppb in fish
fillets to be a health risk. Additionally, PCBs found in Utah Lake are at least one order of
magnitude below other contaminated sites including the Great Lakes, Hudson River, and
Delaware Bay.
I am waiting for the fish advisory signs in the fish counter at Smiths . In all honesty I guess if you are nervous about it then stick to the 4oz recomendation. As has been said a lot of people have consumed a lot of catfish from U.L for many years with no ill effects. But if you have concerns stick to the 4 oz. Prepare them as TD has described many times and enjoy. But remember that American Fork river , Jordanelle, Sand Hollow, Rock creek and many other popular Utah waters also have consumption advisories. So many consume fish from these areas without concern. Utah Lake frequently gets a bad rap as do catfish from certain groups. OK I will shut up now[;)]
**Sounds like a good trip overall. **