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Hawaiian Fishes 



THE SQUIRREL OR SOLDIER FISH FAMILY 



63 Family Holocentridate 

 , The soldier fishes are easily recognized by their red color and by the 

 fact that their eyes are usually very large and are placed on the sides of 

 their head. The scales of these fishes are large and rough and the bones 

 of the head are very spiny. In addition, to their red color their bodies 

 are usually marked with lines or stripes. 



The soldier fishes live near rocky banks in tropical seas and are 

 abundant about coral reefs. They have a firm flesh and are a good food 

 fish, although they are not numerous enough to reach the market in 

 large numbers. 



The members of this family are known by a variety of names. They 

 are called soldier fish, squirrel fish, Welshmen, soldados, matajuelos, 

 malau, ala-ihi, etc. 



Of more than seventy known species, at least eighteen are known 

 from Hawaiian waters. 



Japanese Squirrel Fish 



63-1 Ostichthys japonicus (Cuvier) 



Drawn from Jordan & Evermonn 



The Japanese squirrel fish is rosy colored in life, reaches a length of 

 twelve inches, and has very rough scales. It is found from Mauretius 

 eastward to Japan and the Hawaiian Islands. It is an uncommon fish in 

 Hawaiian waters. 



