H aw aiian Fishes 



41 



silvery lateral band on their body. These little fishes live in immense 

 schools in warm seas. They swim along the shore and sometimes enter 

 the mouths of rivers. 



The anchovies are of value because they furnish food for larger fishes 

 and because they provide fish for human consumption. Because they live 

 in large schools, they are caught wholesale and made into fish paste and 

 preserved in oil. Their flesh is oily and tender. 



Only one member of this family is native to the Hawaiian Islands. 



Anchovy or Nehu 



Also known as Nehu kulana, Nehu pakii, Nehu maoli, and Nehu pala 



18-1 Anchoviella purpureus (Fowler) 



Drawn from Jordan & Evermann 



The nehu may be recognized by the fact that it has a broad, silvery 

 band down the side of the body as wide as the eye. The dorsal fin 

 contains faint crossbars and the tail contains a series of small pale dots. 

 This species reaches a length of about two and one-half inches. 



This fish has been dried for food in time past although today its use 

 as food is forbidden by law. The commercial catch in 1900 was 90,000 

 pounds. Today the nehu is widely used as a bait by commercial tuna 

 fishermen. 



This fish is known only from the Hawaiian Islands. 



Japanese Anchovy 



18-2 Cetengraulis mysticetus (Gunther) 



The Japanese anchovy is olivaceous in color above. The sides of the 

 body and the belly are silvery in color. The young fishes are marked with 

 a silvery lateral band, which disappears as the fish reaches about three 

 inches in length. This anchovy, when full grown, will reach a length of 

 six inches. This fish is found along the Pacific coast of Central America 

 and IS reported from Japan. 



