Consumption Warnings Issued For Fish From Caddo Lake and Toledo Bend
The Texas Department of State Health Services has issued consumption warnings for a couple of area lakes that might cause some to re-think that next fish fry.
For years, officials have warned of possible high mercury levels for certain species of fish in Caddo Lake, but this is the first time I've seen Toledo Bend included on these warnings.
According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife website, we see the following:
Big Cypress Creek in Marion County; Caddo Lake in Harrison and Marion counties; and Toledo Bend Reservoir in Newton, Panola, Sabine and Shelby counties
Chemical of Concern: Mercury
All Locations: For largemouth bass and freshwater drum, adults should limit consumption to no more than two, 8-ounce meals per month, and children should limit consumption to no more than two, 4-ounce meals per month.
Looks like they're not totally against the consumption of these species of fish, but they do warn against consuming large amounts. And considering the increasing popularity of "catch and release" practiced on most largemouth bass, and the fact that I've never eaten a Gasper Goo (Freshwater drum) in my life, it's probably easy to heed these warnings and stick to frying up crappie, catfish or bream from the lakes.
Personally, I've eaten fish from both of these lakes for most of my life, and probably not going to stop any time soon, but it's certainly going to make me re-think just how often we eat them, and what species we're eating.