Is This a Parasite on This Fish?

This fish seems to have a problem, but they aren't quite sure what it is.

Spend enough time around water, you are sure to see some interesting things. But what this fish has attached to it seems to be a bit of a mystery at the moment. The white wormish looking creature seems to be some type of parasite.

Parasite, tape worm, lamprey, and it's man thing are a few of the guesses being tossed around in the debate. Obviously some of those are more realistic than others.

To me, it looks to be a tapeworm of some type that the fish is passing, but I am no wildlife biologist. But one thing I do know is that it isn't supposed to be there. Check it out below.

A safe bet would be to leave it be and definitely don't catch it and eat.

Nature, always leaving us with surprises and mysteries.

NEXT: GRAPHIC: You Won't Believe What Kind of Gun Resulted in This Hunting Accident