THE AXLMAL LIFE OF THE GROUP. 363 



marked with two well devel()i)ecl dorsal fins wliieh are followed hy a scries of 

 little finlets; there is also a similar series of flnlets posterior to the anal tin. 



Though the flesh is usually coarse and dark, it is firm and oily. The opelu 

 especially is much valued as food, two hundred and seventy-five thousand pounds 

 of this species being marketed in Hawaii dui-iiiy the year 1903. The aku is very 

 abundant about Plawaii. particularly in the summer, and ({uantities of them reach 

 the market almost daily. There is a record of a yearly catch for the islands that 

 approaches eight hundred thousand pounds. The ahi or albacore is known fi-oni 

 its cousins by the bright yellow color of its finlets. Though not so abundant 

 as the other species mentioned, it is frequently taken witli a hook, and large 

 specimens are occasionally seen in the markets. 



The little tunny or kawakawa •' is at once recognized as a mackerel, but 

 differs from the ocean bonito^" hy its having the lateral line straight and with 

 no blue-black stripes below the line. They swarm through the high seas in 

 shoals, especially during the summer months, and are easily captured on an un- 

 baited hook. The writer has eauglit them by the dozens from the jil)-boom of a 

 sailing vessel in mid-oeean. AVhen drawn from the water they give one terrible 

 death shudder and are "as dead as a mackerel" instantly. They are usually 

 twenty inches long and weigh about three pounds when seen in the market; 

 they are a fairly good food fish. In this connection it is of interest to note that so 

 far as the records show, the California ])onito has been taken in Hawaiian waters 

 only once. 



]MlLK-FlSH. 



The milk-fish ^1 (awa) is a silvery fish that is largely used for food in 

 Hawaii, notably about Honolulu, vrhere a quarter of a million of i)ounds of 

 the species is offered for sale in the markets annually. Next to the mullet, it is 

 the species most frequenting the artificial ponds into which it runs with the 

 mullet at high tide and is retained. Although it is an excellent food, it is not 

 considered a game fish. Like the mullet it is known l)y different names at differ- 

 ent ages, all of which are combinations of the name awa. They can be recog- 

 nized at once since they have l)ut one dorsal fin, while the mullet has two. Speci- 

 mens five feet in length are not uncommon in the open sea. 



Needle-Fisii. 



Three species of needle-fishes,^- each belonging to a dift'erent genera, are 



* Gymnosarda pelamis. i" Gymnosarda pelamin. " Chanos chnnos. '" Belonidce. 



(Description of Plate Continued from Opposite Page.) 



(Scriold jiiirpurascens). o. Goat-fisli | Kunm | (Psruthiiifiuiis poriihi/r( us) . (i. Comnion 

 Dolphin j ^lahiinahi] {Cortiphana Jiippiirus). 7. .Striped 8urgeon Fi.sli | MaiiiiiiJ (Hcinilui^ 

 sandvicensis) . 8. C'avalla jOniilu] {Carangoides ferdau). 9. Snapper [Opakapaka] {Bo- 

 werfiin violeserns) . 10. Cavalla [Small = papiopio. niediuiii size = Paiipaii, larpo = T'^lua] 

 (Caranf/Hs if/noblli.s) . 11. Siiapjier [X^laiila] (Ktrlis nmrslii). I'l. \ S<niirrcl-fisli | F-u] 

 (Mi/ripristis herndti). ^^^. A Sna]i] cr | I'kn | (Aprion virrsccns) . 14. S\ininil]it | Weke 

 ula] {MuUoiden artrifi(ni>ma). 



