# Fish dangers



## CCC (Sep 3, 2008)

Someone posted that he heard of a boat that had to stop and lend a hand because a grouper had hold of another fisherman's fingers. We all know to be careful around sharks, cudas, sting rays, all your mackerels, and the snaggle tooth speckled trout, but what are some fish one might not think to be careful of when handling ? I know the gill plates on red snapper will cut you wide open, but what are some others to be careful of ??????


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## southern yakker (Jun 25, 2012)

Catfish!!! Everyone should know that though. A lot of fish have sharp spines that you have to be careful of like pinfish but they aren't too bad. Blue fish have a set of teeth that will rip you open. Pretty much any fish with teeth can hurt you in some way. My cousin got bit by a trigger fish on his heel that drew a lot of blood. One of the worst pains I've had was I was trying to grab a live shrimp and he kicked his front barb thing and it got me right under my nail. It hurt like a bitch! You just have to be careful handling most species of fish especially if you aren't familiar with them.


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## JD7.62 (Feb 13, 2008)

A frozen bag of cigs can be dangerous. That spike on their anal fin always seems to find its way under my finger nail at least once during a day of fishing!


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## KingCrab (Apr 29, 2012)

Wait till my ex gets a hold of ya. You'd rather it be a Barracuda or Mako .:shifty:


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## CCC (Sep 3, 2008)

10-4 on frozen cigs, I also would not want a sheepshead to nip a end of a finger !


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## hsiF deR (Oct 4, 2009)

If a redfish has a bait deep, it's best not to put your finger down in its crushers.

Also lipping a cobia isn't pleasant. I would also suggest never grabbing a large jack cravelle by the lip with the palm of your hand.


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## southern yakker (Jun 25, 2012)

hsiF deR said:


> If a redfish has a bait deep, it's best not to put your finger down in its crushers.
> 
> Also lipping a cobia isn't pleasant. I would also suggest never grabbing a large jack cravelle by the lip with the palm of your hand.


With redfish its not that bad. I've had my hand down quite a few redfishs mouth and it will scrape your hand but not bad. I've had it draw blood and not notice because of was such a small nick.


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## MrFish49 (Jun 30, 2012)

I just try not to stick my hands in any saltwater fish's mouth. I just assume it has some sort of teeth or crushers that will make me regret my choices extremely fast.


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## KingCrab (Apr 29, 2012)

Ditto, Don't do it.


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## sniperpeeps (Mar 5, 2011)

I have not seen it happen, but if ya got the tip of your finger in a triggers mouth.....dang!


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## Rickpcfl (Nov 12, 2013)

Triggerfish bit me on the soft part of the bottom of my hand while pulling him off a spear. A guy I used to work with had one bite him on the foot while it was laying in the bottom of the boat.


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## hsiF deR (Oct 4, 2009)

southern yakker said:


> With redfish its not that bad. I've had my hand down quite a few redfishs mouth and it will scrape your hand but not bad. I've had it draw blood and not notice because of was such a small nick.


I'm talking about their crushers. Down at the front of their throat, not their mouths.
I have a picture somewhere of a bull red I caught where he swallowed a mirrolure. The back half of the lure is in its crushers and it broken in half. The other half was hooked behind his top lip.

If a reds crushers can break a mirrolure in half I I just assume not put my fingers in there.


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## hsiF deR (Oct 4, 2009)

sniperpeeps said:


> I have not seen it happen, but if ya got the tip of your finger in a triggers mouth.....dang!


Quite possibly the scariest thing that can happen to you is when your kayak fishing and a trigger gets loose in your lap! Haha


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## KingCrab (Apr 29, 2012)

Catch about 20 triggers on a rough day. Someone's driving the boat, everyone else is fishing. Triggers are swimming in the boat biting everything that's moving.:yes:


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## Aquahollic (Sep 24, 2009)

Pinfish got that name for a reason


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## CCC (Sep 3, 2008)

So triggers just keep chomping ????????


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## KingCrab (Apr 29, 2012)

CCC said:


> So triggers just keep chomping ????????


Yes in water.:yes:


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## tiderider (Oct 1, 2007)

Saw a tourist once lip a bluefish like a bass, not the greatest idea.


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## bay slayer (May 26, 2008)

I've been bit by sheepshead a time or two and its pretty bad. Ghost shrimp will cut your fingers right off with one pinch.


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## CCC (Sep 3, 2008)

You mean Mantis shrimp ??????


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## flounder1156 (Jul 9, 2009)

Sometime in the early 70's.....early morning king mackerel bite was going off at the Pensacola Beach Pier. A teenage kid hooked up and brought a 12-15 lb. school king....... which I gaffed for him.Kid decided to stick his hand in the fishes mouth to remove treble hook/leader......the fish started a dying tail thumping quiver on the deck. Was not a pretty site.... Ernie Silverthorn or Joe Seeley,( I can't remember......) sent him to the lifeguard shack at Casino beach. He ended up with stitches.....but was back at the pier. 
Later that afternoon Pete Brooks found out why they call those Mangrove ...snappers....ouch!


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## KingCrab (Apr 29, 2012)

Ever seen a Nar whale schrimp? Has a Big single horn sticking out of its head. Give to Unicef because the mind is a terrible thing.


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## coin op repair man (Aug 28, 2012)

Grab one of these guys the wrong way and you will not do it again, a leatherjack or a crazyfish. If a crazyfish does spine you with one of those belly spines, take some of the slime off of its sides and rub it onto the wound and that will eas4 the pain, can't say the same for ol' leatherjack though.


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## KingCrab (Apr 29, 2012)

YEP & KING MACKERELS LOVE EM !!! Crazy fish, Kittys, Bumpers, Will lite u up.


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## capt'n slim (Feb 8, 2008)

Trigger fish, got bit in palm by one last year, that sucker hurt and didnt let go. And never get your hand close to their mouth the one that bit me reached out prolly an inch and half just to bite my ass


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## jjam (Dec 9, 2007)

*Thumb stuck in grouper's mouth!*



CCC said:


> Someone posted that he heard of a boat that had to stop and lend a hand because a *grouper had hold of another fisherman's fingers.* We all know to be careful around sharks, cudas, sting rays, all your mackerels, and the snaggle tooth speckled trout, but what are some fish one might not think to be careful of when handling ? I know the gill plates on red snapper will cut you wide open, but what are some others to be careful of ??????


& don't put your thumb in a groupers mouth!









Jimmy


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## Kim (Aug 5, 2008)

This is a good one. Pretty green fish to leader it I think.


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## Justin618 (Aug 18, 2013)

Lol that dude got nailed in the head


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## panhandleslim (Jan 11, 2013)

That's one pissed off Black Marlin. That poor camera man didn't have a clue what was about to happen. The chair back should have been up in one of the staterooms or inside a hatch; not laying around on the deck and leaning against a bulkhead. Wrong place for something that's not needed anyway.


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## foxtrotuniform (Nov 11, 2013)

panhandleslim said:


> That's one pissed off Black Marlin. That poor camera man didn't have a clue what was about to happen. The chair back should have been up in one of the staterooms or inside a hatch; not laying around on the deck and leaning against a bulkhead. Wrong place for something that's not needed anyway.


Why are they always running hard astern into the waves during these videos? Seems like it would be safer to fight the fish a little longer. I sure as shit wouldn't want him coming over the gunwale fresh. That's WAY more dangerous than a shark on board.

Or are they just catch and releasing these things, so they want the fight over quick? Seems like I heard that somewhere. 

Either way, it's a good way to get jacked up by a marlin or sink your boat, like these jackballs...


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## Kim (Aug 5, 2008)

That Black Marlin video is a great visual aid for some safe thinking.

1) Aggressive boat techniques have inherent hazards associated with using them. In this case at times a couple thousand pounds of water was awash in the cockpit. Fortunately the design of this boat mitigates this with watertight seals on fish boxes and hatches as well as high volume cockpit drains. 

2) Leadering a green bill fish or any large predator fish always has the associated risk of it powering out of the water along side the boat into the cockpit. In this case they were lucky and the fish flipped back into the water. If it had remained in the cockpit there would have been a lot of damage, injuries and the potential for fatalities. Anglers have been killed by bill fish and sharks in the cockpits of boats.

3) Yes it is a large boat with a huge cockpit but gear adrift will get you every time. The big cooler was great for keeping cold ones handy but when the situation turned critical it was a trip hazard that got the tag man who ended up losing control of the tag stick adding a potential spearing hazard into the mix.

4) The chair back should have been either left attached to the fighting chair or securely stowed. There were also two smaller blue bags awash in the port side of the cockpit. The proper place for all of this stuff would have been the mezzanine deck just up from the cockpit, safely stowed and out of the way.

5) This video shows perfectly how things can go horribly wrong in seconds.


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## MrFish (Aug 21, 2009)

We have been over the marlin video before. It was a tournament boat and they were backing down hard to grab the leader.


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## lastcast (Oct 12, 2007)

Watch out for those pretty colored Wrasses and Pearly Razorfish. They will reach out to bite!


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## Team Fish Head (Oct 1, 2012)

Salt water cats seem to be the bane of my fishing experiences from shore and it never fails that I get poked or nicked by a fin when beset upon by them. A dorsal fin impalement of a foot is a crippling experience almost as bad as a gout flareup.


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## samoajoe (Dec 28, 2010)

When I was a kid, I scaled a fish with a spoon and had a anal fin spine stab me under my finger nail. Pulled it out with tweezers, and it went as deep as my first knuckle.


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## southern yakker (Jun 25, 2012)

Team Fish Head said:


> Salt water cats seem to be the bane of my fishing experiences from shore and it never fails that I get poked or nicked by a fin when beset upon by them. A dorsal fin impalement of a foot is a crippling experience almost as bad as a gout flareup.


Running the belly of the catfish will take most of the pain away. I didn't believe it till I tried it myself. You will thank me next time you get stabbed.


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## southern yakker (Jun 25, 2012)

Another big one is fire worms! I've never been hit by one but I heard it can send you to the hospital.


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## Downtime2 (Sep 27, 2007)

Got slammed in the gunnel several years back wiring/billing a blue. Cost me two cracked ribs...


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## Play'N Hooky Too (Sep 29, 2007)

I've seen pier fishermen in North Carolina that have lost fingers to large Bluefish. Those things have a mouth like a piranha.


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## Split 1 (Aug 16, 2011)

Heading out one dark morning and emptied our bait trap int a 5 gallon bucket and as I reached in there to transport them to the livewell an oysterfish latches on to my finger. Bled like as stuck pig.


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## Sea-r-cy (Oct 3, 2007)

And then there is the harmless looking soap fish. Handled one years ago trying to figure out what it was. That night, worst case of diarrhea ever. The poison is absorbed through the skin.


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## captken (Feb 24, 2008)

*The worse I've ever been hurt by a fish--*

I was fishing off the Rube Allen Pier in Panama City when I was about 18. I caught a really big Ladyfish on a yellow dude and, when I was unhooking him he flopped really hard. It jambed the hook into my thumb nail then flopped again and yanked my thumbnail out by the roots. I puked my guts out.

It hurt for days.

Don't grab a decent size Jack Crevalle by the tail. They can cut you bad.

Don't grab a green Dolphin by the tail if he is laying on the deck. Good way to get broken fingers. 

I see- guys in kayaks with Kingfish in their lap. They can ruin your day. A severe bite could kill you before you could get back to the beach.


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## JD7.62 (Feb 13, 2008)

Sea-r-cy said:


> And then there is the harmless looking soap fish. Handled one years ago trying to figure out what it was. That night, worst case of diarrhea ever. The poison is absorbed through the skin.


Really? Never heard of that, I caught one once, knew it was a soap fish, hooked him up on a larger rod and dropped him back down and nothing touched it so I guess they are poisonous!


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## MrFish49 (Jun 30, 2012)

JD7.62 said:


> Really? Never heard of that, I caught one once, knew it was a soap fish, hooked him up on a larger rod and dropped him back down and nothing touched it so I guess they are poisonous!


Yeah, the slime is toxic. That's why they are a crap shoot to keep in any fish tank. Because if stressed they will release a bunch of toxic mucus and nuke the tank.


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## Rustifaro (Jul 16, 2008)

Years ago we were crabbing on the wharf at Sherman Cove Marina. A father and his boy showed up and were crabbing next to us. They were from Connecticut and had never caught a crab before. When they caught their first one Pop told the son to get the glove and get the crab out of the net. The kid reaches in a bucket and gets a cloth garden glove and grabs the crab. You know the rest of the story……


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## grouper1963 (Feb 28, 2008)

Did anyone mention Leatherjackets? We caught tons of the damn things thinking they were awesome bait - after several painful jabs in our hands, we realized why nothing would touch them... 

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/Gallery/Descript/leatherjacket/leatherjacket.html

Often caution the tourists who catch them on the pier...


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## GROUPERKING (Sep 28, 2011)

Years ago I was shark fishing out at fort Morgan from the beach. I caught some kind of weird looking skate. Well I had never caught one that looked quite like that one, so I didn't know if it had a barb like most rays do. I looked his tail over pretty good for a stinger, but he didn't have one . At this point I decided to just grab the thing and take it off the hook. Immediately after grabbing this skate it felt like I had just stuck my finger into a wall socket. I dropped the skate and my pliers and fell backwards into the sand. I just sat there for a minute wondering what the he'll just happened. After failing to come up with a rational cause or reason for my being shocked I now began to think it might be some kinda of voodoo going on here. Now the funny part. So I decided what ever it was ,its gone now so I reach down and grabbed the skate again and start to take it off the hook. The bastard lets me have it again. I think I may have peed on myself a little this time. That's when I realized that it was the damned skate that was shocking me. My buddy was fishing about 30 yards down from me , so I yelled out to him to come look at this thing. When he got there I told him what had happened, and he began to laugh his but off and tell me that I was full of crap. That's when I invited him to touch it, suddenly it wasn't quite as funny any more. He finally did a sissy one finger touch but it did shock him. That's when we cut the line. That happened over 20 years ago and I haven't caught another one of the shocking skates since.


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## captken (Feb 24, 2008)

*Torpedo Rays--Skates.*

Years ago, Torpedo Rays (Electric rays) were very common. I haven't seen one in years. They can give you quite a jolt. Kinda funny, really.


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## spb65 (Mar 15, 2008)

Got bit through a wet suit by a Trigger that I did not put on a stringer, I was getting low on air so I left him on the spear and while I was ascending the bastard bit me just above the knee, bit right through the suit. Thought it was a shark for a second. Thing is I know better cause It happened to a buddy of mine before.


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## 20simmons sea skiff (Aug 20, 2010)

don't forger the fish flopping around in boat, a king, cobia or wahoo will run u for gigh ground. One member on here got a hook thru thumb and drone himself bach 30 miles, cant image doing that.


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## bamagator (Mar 31, 2009)

don't forger the fish flopping around in boat, a king, cobia or wahoo will run u for gigh ground. One member on here got a hook thru thumb and drone himself bach 30 miles, cant image doing that

:001_huh:?


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## Candy (Jan 6, 2008)

A triggerfish bit my husband on the hand and he had nerve damage that took over a year to heal.


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## reelthrill (Oct 3, 2007)

I know a guy who brought a 400lb. bull shark into the boat and it slid forward right into his friends foot and clamped down. Guy had to be life flighted and underwent several surgeries, enourmous amounts of stitches, and micro surgery.


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## eddy2419 (Oct 28, 2007)

spb65 said:


> Got bit through a wet suit by a Trigger that I did not put on a stringer, I was getting low on air so I left him on the spear and while I was ascending the bastard bit me just above the knee, bit right through the suit. Thought it was a shark for a second. Thing is I know better cause It happened to a buddy of mine before.


First one I ever shot I put it on a stringer through the eyes, not the mouth. Bit through my suit also.


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## WhyMe (Apr 21, 2013)

Not only everything mention here, but what about getting a bad case of Sun Burn can ruin the next day of fishing. Please wear your protection.


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## swhiting (Oct 4, 2007)

Dropped small trigger on the deck after de-hooking and was watching a pole, instead of the fish. Reached down to get it and he got me right between two fingers. I knew it instantly....


.............................


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## Mullethead (Oct 4, 2007)

Lionfish ?
Any tips on cleaning and handling? I snagged one on a diamond jig and treated it like it had leprosy ... but with gloves and a long knife I got the fillets off ...


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## Kim (Aug 5, 2008)

Mullet head get the award for the first rod and reel Lion Fish post! Attaboy, sorry but that's all you get.


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