This Week in Nature:The 4th week in October - 'ama'ama

What's Happening in Hawaii 

during the 4th week in October:

'Ama'ama, a native mullet, makes a six-month migration each year, beginning about this time and ending in April. On O'ahu, legend has it that schools of 'ama'ama swim from the leeward side to the windward side through an underground channel. The actual route is by sea, from 'Ewa around Koko Head and as far up the coast as Lā'ie. Mature 'ama'ama are called 'anae, and the Hawaiians distinguish 'anae-holo, migrating mullet, from 'anae-pali, cliff mullet. 'Anae spawn at sea before returning to the inshore, brackish water they generally prefer.

One of the principal fish in the Hawaiian diet, 'ama'ama are algae-eaters and were raised for royalty in a sophisticated, early form of aquaculture. Trapping nutrient-rich water from the lo'i (taro paddies), fishponds bred algae profusely and thus were ideal places to fatten 'ama'ama. The mullet was known as pua'a kai, or "sea pig," which could be given in offerings in place of an ordinary pig. Around Ke'ehi 'ama'ama were referred to as the "loud-voiced fish of Ke'ehi," owing to the noise fishermen made while driving them into nets. They also gave Wai'anae its name - "mullet waters."

Taken from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events"

published by the Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989

This Week in Nature: The 4th week in July

What's Happening in Hawaii

During the 4th week in July:

"Ka i'a a ka wai nui i lawe mai ai.
The fish borne along by the flood."

'O'opu nākea (Awaous guamensis), a freshwater goby, grows to maturity in mountain steams and pools, where it clings to boulders with a sucker in its belly and eats fallen blossoms of the 'ōhi'a lehua. About this time, it comes downstream to spawn, often riding the run-off of a heavy rain known as ua ho'opala 'ōhi'a, "the rain that ripens the mountain apples."

Traditionally, 'o'opu were trapped in nets as they washed past, or a stream was temporarily diverted into adjacent lowlands, where fish could be gathered easily or stocked for future consumption. Unfortunately, overfishing and human interference with streams have made 'o'opu scarce, and today state regulations prohibit catching them with traps or weirs.

These small fish have been a Hawaiian delicacy for centuries, and among freshwater varieties, o'opu nākea are considered outstanding in both taste and size (as large as twelve inches). Chubby cheeks and bulging eyes make o'opu nākea resemble lizards, and thus they were kapu to families having the mo'o, a legandary giant reptile as their 'aumākua.

For more info about o'opu nākea, visit the Bishop Museum's Waipi'o Valley Stream Restoration Study page. While you're there, check out the other creatures that call Hawaiian streams home.

*For more information about freshwater and ocean fishing, including permitting and licenses, please visit DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources.

Text and drawn image from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events"
published by the Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989

This Week in Nature - The 3rd week in March - Malolo

What's Happening in Hawaii

During the 3rd Week in March:

Swarms of mālolo, the flying fish, (Cypselurus sp.) appear in March and can be found as late as June. Hawaiians described it as ka i'a lele me he manu, "the fish that flies like a bird," though it actually skims the surface, keeping its fins still rather than flapping them like wings. Often netted at night, mālolo were also called ka i'a ho'āla i ka pō, wai lama i ke ahi, "the fish that wakes people up at night and causes a glowing of torches over the water."

People are not the only ones who find mālolo tasty. Along with squid, mālolo rank among the most important foods of seabirds, and are favorites of the mahimahi, or dolphinfish. Beautifully colored and very fast, mahimahi swim just below the surface, following the mālolo. It is no coincidence that catches of both these fish reach their peak at this time of year.

Text and image from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events"

published by Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989

This Week in Nature: The 4th week in January - Potter's Angelfish

What's Happening in Hawaii

during the 4th week in January:

Potter's angelfish (Centropyge potteri), a native reef dweller, spawns this week - the week before the full moon. Its reproductive behavior is tied not only to the moon phase but also to the season and time of day, in a complex pattern that appears to increase the odds that its larvae will survive. Spawning occurs over high reef areas at dusk, when the lunar pull creates tides likely to carry larvae offshore, away from potential predators resting in the lower reef. At this time of year, larvae subsequently will be picked up by northwesterly ocean currents and swept along the archipelago, improving the chances that juveniles eventually will be redeposited on a Hawaiian reef.

Potter's angelfish is among the most common inhabitants of island reefs. It grows to a maximum length of five inches, and like other fish that have little or no value as food, it lacks a Hawaiian name. Today, however, this shy algae-eater has gained popularity as an aquarium fish, ranking third in commercial trade in Hawaii.

Image and text from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events"

published by the Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989

This Week in Nature: The 3rd week in January - aku

What's Happening in Hawaii

during the 3rd Week in January:

 

In Hawaiian tradition, a major fishing kapu was reversed at about this time, as the Makahiki season came to a close. Catching aku (Katsuwonus pelamis) was now permitted, and taking of another important fish, the 'opelu (mackerel  scad), was prohibited. This kapu served to protect the two fish, helping ensure ample supplies in years to come. Present regulations place no seasonal restrictions on aku and 'opelu fishing, but the largest catches are still made during the months allowed by the old kapu. 

Also called skipjack tuna or ocean bonito, aku move in big schools and will bite on almost anything during their daily feeding frenzies. Hawaiian fishing fleets of outrigger or double-hulled canoes exploited this trait the same way local sampans do today. Locating feeding schools by the seabirds that follow them, Hawaiian fishermen attracted aku with live nehu, the silvery native anchovy, then used mother-of-pearl lures to land fish in rapid succession. A Hawaiian warning against greedy behavior says "The aku rush to eat."   

Click here to learn more about aku from the hawaii-seafood.org website.

Image and text from "Hawaii: A Calendar of Natural Events"

published by the Bishop Museum and Kamehameha Schools in 1989