Freeze it intact if your really curious, someone out there will have the answer.I have sent a pic to my local wildlife officer and he said “You definitely do not need to eat that… It appears to be some sort of parasite, I will look into it this coming week and get back to you”.
I will post as soon as I hear back from him. I was hoping meanwhile someone here had seen something similar?
I would not be as alarmed by this had I not had personal experience with a tapeworm in the past! That has since made me a little more concerned with parasites…
Learn something new every day, thanks for updateI talked to the local wildlife officer today, “splendidofilaria” a filarid nematode. I guess fairly common in grouse and ptarmigan. Though usually not this large and advanced. Allegedly safe to eat if cooked thoroughly.