412 
by Dr. Rene Catala at 114 square miles. The 
population in 1947, the time of the last census, 
was 27,000; in 1958 the Gilbertese population 
was estimated to be 32,652 (Doran, I960). 
The information presented here was collected 
during the period 1953-1962 while the author 
was resident in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands 
Colony with her husband, who was an adminis- 
trative officer with the Gilbert and Ellice Islands 
Colony Government. Residence was maintained 
for varying periods of time on Tarawa, Christ- 
mas Island (in the Line Islands), and Ocean 
Island; personal visits were made to all the Line 
and Phoenix islands, including Washington 
Island, and to almost all of those in the Gilbert 
group. During this time the author learned the 
Gilbertese language, which permitted her to 
gather information directly from the islanders. 
In the course of a study of the scientific 
equivalents of the Gilbertese names for fish it 
was found that while some names would en- 
compass all members of a whole family of fish, 
other names were restricted to a single species, 
and some names defined the development stages 
of a generic group. Through the initial study of 
Gilbertese names for fish, the author became 
interested in Gilbertese traditions and customs 
associated with fish, and finally in an investiga- 
tion of fish toxicity in the archipelago. 
The intimate association of the Gilbertese 
with the sea, almost their only source of dietary 
protein and fat, makes them reliable givers of 
factual information about fish poisoning. This 
dependence upon the sea means that every adult 
member of a community must have a basic 
knowledge about the reefs and the fish species 
around his island, particularly in the area of his 
village. Although in recent years the traditional 
dependence on fish as a major source of food 
has been lessened to some extent by introduc- 
tion of imported foodstuffs, the detailed knowl- 
edge of environment has been preserved and is 
still known by the elders of the Gilbertese com- 
munity who are the traditional custodians of 
natural lore. These "old men” — the term in Gil- 
bertese is traditionally one of respect — have 
proved to be the most fruitful source of infor- 
mation when dealing with the history of fish 
toxicity. Younger men, active fishermen, have 
provided information on the species caught and 
the areas fished. 
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. XVIII, October 1964 
Due to the restricted nature of the Gilbertese 
diet, there are very marked preferences for cer- 
tain species of fish. Fish considered to be very 
fatty or greasy are greatly sought after, because 
the Gilbertese at times develop a craving for 
animal fats. These sought-after species include 
Lutianus bohar, Lethrinus variegatus, Acan- 
thurus xanthopterus, Epinephelus fuscoguttatus, 
Cephalopholis mineatus, Myripristis spp., Chanos 
chanos, and Muraenidae spp. The larger these 
fish, the more tasty they are considered to be. 
Some of these species have been found to be 
toxic, even dangerously so, in certain areas in 
the Gilberts. But even if a species is known to 
be toxic, there comes a time when the Gilbert- 
ese find it impossible to resist the temptation 
of a good fatty meal. This craving for animal 
fats is not restricted to the Gilbertese. Harry 
(1953) relates that the islanders of Raroia Atoll, 
in the Tuamotus, were unable to resist eating 
certain species of fat fish even when they knew 
that these species were toxic, and that as a result 
there were frequent cases of poisoning. Popula- 
tion pressure, together with particular food 
preferences, forces the Gilbertese to continue 
sampling a known toxic area. On account of 
this, a fairly accurate picture of the evolution 
of toxicity in an area may be obtained. 
Considerable information was collected from 
Gilbertese visiting Tarawa, from assistant med- 
ical officers (graduates of the Fiji School of 
Medicine), and from officers and crews of the 
various ships operating in the colony. This in- 
formation was later checked by the author, who 
was able to visit all the "toxic islands” with the 
exception of Tabiteuea and Arunuka, and by her 
husband, whose duties took him to all the Gil- 
bert Islands. A special visit was made by the 
author to Marakei to obtain a more detailed pic- 
ture of a toxic area than was possible when 
surveying the group as a whole. 
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 
It is impossible to list by name all the very 
many people who have helped me and given me 
the information contained in this paper, but I 
should like to express my thanks to all of them. 
In particular I should like to thank the staff of 
the Colony Medical Department; Captain E. V. 
Ward, acting marine superintendent, for infor- 
