293 
Establishing species-habitat associations for 
4 eteline snappers with the use of a baited 
stereo-video camera system 
Email address for contact author: wfmisa@hawaii.edu 
1 Department of Oceanography 
School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology 
University of Hawaii at Manoa 
1000 Pope Rd., MSB 205 
Honolulu, Hawaii 96822 
Present address for contact author: Fisheries Research and Monitoring Division 
Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center 
National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA 
2570 Dole St. 
Honolulu, HI 96822 
2 Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory 
School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology 
University of Hawaii at Manoa 
1000 Pope Rd., MSB 303 
Honolulu, Hawaii 96822 
Abstract— With the use of a baited 
stereo-video camera system, this 
study semiquantitatively defined 
the habitat associations of 4 species 
of Lutjanidae: Opakapaka ( Pristipo - 
moides filamentosus), Kalekale ( P . 
sieboldii), Onaga ( Etelis coruscans ), 
and Ehu (E. carbunculus ). Fish 
abundance and length data from 
6 locations in the main Hawaiian 
Islands were evaluated for species- 
specific and size-specific differences 
between regions and habitat types. 
Multibeam bathymetry and back- 
scatter were used to classify habi- 
tats into 4 types on the basis of sub- 
strate (hard or soft) and slope (high 
or low). Depth was a major influence 
on bottomfish distributions. Opak- 
apaka occurred at depths shallower 
than the depths at which other spe- 
cies were observed, and this spe- 
cies showed an ontogenetic shift to 
deeper water with increasing size. 
Opakapaka and Ehu had an overall 
preference for hard substrate with 
low slope (hard-low), and Onaga was 
found over both hard-low and hard- 
high habitats. No significant habi- 
tat preferences were recorded for 
Kalekale. Opakapaka, Kalekale, and 
Onaga exhibited size-related shifts 
with habitat type. A move into hard- 
high environments with increasing 
size was evident for Opakapaka 
and Kalekale. Onaga was seen pre- 
dominantly in hard-low habitats at 
smaller sizes and in either hard-low 
or hard-high at larger sizes. These 
ontogenetic habitat shifts could be 
driven by reproductive triggers be- 
cause they roughly coincided with 
the length at sexual maturity of 
each species. However, further stud- 
ies are required to determine causal- 
ity. No ontogenetic shifts were seen 
for Ehu, but only a limited number 
of juveniles were observed. Regional 
variations in abundance and length 
were also found and could be related 
to fishing pressure or large-scale 
habitat features. 
Manuscript submitted 11 August 2012. 
Manuscript accepted 9 July 2013. 
Fish. Bull. 111:293-308 (2013). 
doi: 10. 7755/FB. 111.4.1 
The views and opinions expressed or 
implied in this article are those of the 
author (or authors) and do not necesarily 
reflect the position of the National 
Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. 
William F. X. E. Misa (contact author)’ 
Jeffrey C. Drazen 1 
Christopher D. Kelley 2 
Virginia N. Moriwake 1 
The catch of deepwater fisheries 
comprises a multitude of species that 
live on continental slopes and deep 
topographic oceanic structures, such 
as seamounts, ridges, and banks to 
depths below 2000 m. In the Indo- 
Pacific region, deepwater snappers 
(Lutjanidae), groupers (Serranidae), 
and jacks (Carangidae) that inhabit 
deep slopes and seamounts at depths 
of 100-400 m make up a major com- 
ponent of this fishery. The deepwater 
handline or “bottomfish” fishery of 
Hawaii also targets these groups of 
fishes (Haight et al., 1993a). Some 
of the commercially important bot- 
tomfish species can live in excess of 
35 years (Andrews et al., 2011; An- 
drews et al., 2012) — a longevity that 
indicates low rates of natural mortal- 
ity and susceptibility to overfishing 
(Haight et al., 1993a). Four of these 
key bottomfish species are the focus 
of this study: Crimson Jobfish ( Pris - 
tipomoides filamentosus). Lavender 
Jobfish ( Pristipomoides sieboldii). 
Flame Snapper ( Etelis coruscans), 
and Ruby Snapper (Etelis carbun- 
culus). In Hawaii, these species are 
known by a different set of common 
names, and these names will be used 
for simplicity throughout this article. 
Pristipomoides filamentosus is com- 
monly called Opakapaka, P. sieboldii 
is called Kalekale, E. coruscans is 
called Onaga, and E. carbunculus is 
called Ehu. Opakapaka and Onaga 
rank first and second in total landed 
weight and value in the Hawaiian 
Archipelago, and the smaller spe- 
cies, Ehu and Kalekale, are abun- 
dant but lower in value and landings 
(WPRFMC 1 ). 
From the late 1980s to early 
2000s, the Division of Aquatic Re- 
sources (DAR) of the Hawaii Depart- 
ment of Land and Natural Resources 
(DLNR) and the Western Pacific Re- 
1 WPRFMC ( Western Pacific Regional Fish- 
ery Management Council). 2006. Bot- 
tomfish and seamount groundfish fisher- 
ies of the western Pacific region, 2005 
annual report, 113 p. [Available from 
Western Pacific Regional Fishery Man- 
agement Council, 1164 Bishop Street, 
Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 96813.] 
