# Edible Cudas



## Sand Dollar (Nov 26, 2005)

Hey I was talking with a friend on mine from Puerto Rico nad he said they sometimes ate the smaller Cudas. He also said they were some of the best fish he's ever tasted. So, I know eating Cudas could make you very sick. Does anyone know of eating Cudas or if there are certain types of Cudas that can actually be table food??

Thanks for the space.


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## fin&scale (May 7, 2008)

What you are referring to is that cudas are a fish that are known to sometimes cause ciguaterra poisoning. Ciguaterra is a toxin that predatory reef fish concentrate in their flesh from eating smaller fish that feed on certain marine algae that occur in tropical reefs called dinoflagellates. This condition is possible in any predatory reef fish found on tropical & subtropical reefs including amberjack, groupers and snappers. The larger the fish the more likely it may contain the toxin in it's flesh in high enough concentrations to cause adverse reactions. In the Bahamas the condition is so common that certain fish are considered dangerous to consume even if moderately sized a classic example is Yellowfin Grouper. The scientific name of this fish (Mycteroperca venenosa) eludes to this.

Now about your question. On the Southern Atlantic seaboard this condition can occur anywhere there are tropical reefs (generally from Jupiter Florida and south). In fish larger than about 15-20lbs you are taking some risk. This risk though is pretty limited if you keep to the smaller specimen. Several friends of mine shoot cudas (spearfish) for commercial harvest and these fish are exported to Canada. Many more of these same fish are consumed locally in restaurants under euphemisms or simply described as the "fish special" or "fish sandwich" or "fish of the day". I am talking astronomical quantities not just a few hundred or thousand lbs a year.

With all that in mind I would advise you to consider keeping the smaller specimen for personal consumption. By smaller I mean less than 20lbs and preferably 15lbs and less. The smaller ones are tastier anyway and by sticking to ones this size your risk of taking a cigua hit are virtually zero.


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## emanuel (Apr 2, 2002)

I'm still not taking any chances. I hate cudas with a passion.:--|


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## BoatlessFishing (Jun 6, 2005)

*Cuda Munchys*

Now before I say what I am going to say this is what I know form friends that eat cudas and in no way do I know if it is a for sure way to tell if one is Bad.

SO you eat at your own risk

Fillet it at your house and makes sure you have a fly or two around

If those flys land on that cuda it is good they say to eat.

I will say that I have had 3 cudas right next to other bait and the bait had flys and only one cuda had flys the other two they would not land on it.

This was told to me by numerous Jamaican Friends and they hold to this.


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## fin&scale (May 7, 2008)

There is only one definitive check for ciguatera. It is a commercially available test kit called CiguaCheck...they are available at several fishing supply outlets or at http://cigua.com/. The test comes with three complete kits and another "test" strip to make sure your reactants are working properly. If you save that test strip and do not use the "test positive" reactant you can get four tests completed for the price of three. At around $30 for the complete kit that comes out to less than $8/fish tested. Not too pricey considering the peace of mind it gives you. NONE of the other "tests" for cigua are reliable including the house fly, fire ant or fighting hard tests known to people in the islands. One other test that I do not recommend is the house cat or dog test which basically means giving a small sample to the animal and seeing how it reacts. It works but they can and do go through the same agonizing cramps, vomiting, heat/cold reversal and diarrhea that anyone else would go through if affected by cigua. Some animals are reported to even loose their fur or die from the severe dehydration that is a result of the poisoning. PS cigua toxin is not broken down by cooking so that will not help.

One last comment about cigua. Tests conducted on positive fish have proven that the toxin seems to deposit itself in higher concentrations towards the head of the fish. For reasons of safety it is not recommendable to make head soup or otherwise consume the heads of very large predatory reef fish....unless you have eaten sizable portions of the body and found no evidence of it being cigua toxic.

BTW none of this is intended to scare you away from consuming cudas. Everything comes with some risk....if you keep you portions moderate and eat smaller specimen your risk is minimal but I will say that I am not a doctor or fish biologist just someone who has done their reading and speaks from vast experience when talking about eating cudas. Good luck


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## Sand Dollar (Nov 26, 2005)

Fin&scale thank you so much for that very imformative write up. I was not aware that other fish, besides the Mighty Cudas, can have the same toxins. I really appreciate it. I am sure others here appreciate it as well. 

Tight lines guys :fishing:


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