Maui Snorkeling Trips

Photo Courtesy Dr. Jack Randall

The blue trevally is a beautiful animal usually seen in small schools.  In ancient Hawaii, as said in a previous posting, the ulua of many species in the family were substituted for human sacrifice when humans were not available, according to Mary Pukui, the author of the Hawaiian Dictionary.

These fish are predators, eating small fish, crustaceans and mollusks they find in lagoons, near shore, off sandy shallows, and in deeper waters as well.  They can grow to 70 centimeters (27.5 inches) and weigh up to 8,000 g (17.5 pounds approx.).  This fish is, and always has been, an important food fish, but recently there have been reports of ciguatera, making the meat questionable.  For local fishermen, including the ones this author has interviewed, many carry ciguatera testing kits to use just to be safe.

Just what is ciguatera?  Since we’ve been asked to add this information in a posting, I will take the time now.  It has an interesting origin.  According to Wikipedia the illness was named and identified in the early 1800s in Cuba.  According to local folklore, an Englishman on the Isla de Piños caught and consumed a barracuda, after which he became very ill.  When asked about it he claimed he had “eaten a fish from the seawater”.  The word ‘ciguatera’ came from the translation of the word ’seawater’ in Spanish.  Captain Cook also mentions the illness when in New Caledonia.  In northern Australia where this illness frequently pops up, it is said that if you were to place a contaminated piece of fish out and flies won’t land on it, then you know.  Although this is interesting, there is no scientific research to back this claim.  After eating a contaminated fish research shows the patient will have flu-like symptoms of diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, headaches, hallucinations, and in some, a burning sensation when coming in contact with cold.  This illness can be transferred through breast milk to an infant.  The symptoms can last from weeks to over 20 years.  Even after getting better, experts say the symptoms can reoccur triggered by consuming nuts, alcohol, chicken, fish, eggs, or even by coming into contact with bleach.  According to science, currently there is no effective treatment, or cure, for ciguatera.  All doctors can do is help with treating the symptoms, such as vitamins for fatigue, saline for dehydration, and steroids have also been used.  

Ciguatera is reported from eating of tropical fish only, the Caribbean and Pacific oceans having the most reported cases.  Some researchers believe this stems from smaller reef fish eating chemically laden algae, thereby transferring these toxins to larger fish who preyed on the reef animals.  There is much research being done and perhaps we will have more conclusive answers in the near future.  If you are worried about consuming a toxic fish, please go to www.http://fishbase.org and look up the type of fish you enjoy most.  This website is wonderful and has up to date information.

Snorkeling in Hawaiian waters is a very enjoyable experience, and the chance of seeing blue trevallys is very good.  The smaller schools travel reefs frequently, scoping out their next dinner plan.  Ready?  Let’s go!  The water temperature around Hawaii right now is abou 76 - 78 degrees.  It’s a bathtub.  The biggest one on the planet!

Photo Courtesy Dr. Jack Randall

So the title of this posting probably grabbed your attention.  What?  Snakes in Hawaii?  We do not have sea snakes here, and there is a very small, blind ground snake that one rarely sees, but the beautiful snake eel does tend to get a visitor’s attention if seen by a snorkeler or diver.

The Hawaiians named this animal puhi pule, although many just say puhi, a name now used generically for eel.  Eels were considered ‘amaukua (family god) by many.

This little eel grows to a mere 101 centimeters (39.5 inches approx) and are bottom dwellers most of the time.  According to Dr. Randall, the teeth of this eel are conical and sharp, which means it is a fish, octopus, or other fleshy animal eater, but predators will take whatever presents itself available!

Will the average snorkeler see this cute eel that looks like a snake while out there?  Absolutely, if they are alert!  The experts say this eel is prevalent in Maui and O’ahu waters.  This author has seen them nearly completely buried with just a little head sticking up from the sandy or muddy sea floor.  They will quickly disappear if you approach too closely, though.  Remember, bring a camera, no sunscreen (tshirts/rashguards are better for the environment), try not to thrash around and put yourself into ’stealth’ mode.  Let’s go snorkel!

Photo Courtesy fishbase.org, Archambault, C.

The bigeye tuna called ‘ahi, by the Hawaiians, was a very important food source then, and is still.  On the IUCN list, several species are on the brink or being endangered or vulnerable.  The bigeye tuna is on the vulnerable list as of this year.  If you are interested, keep checking back on their website for updates. IUCN CLICK HERE

One of the amazing tidbits about tuna is its speed.  Researchers believe this fish is capable of going up to 60 mph!  Eaten by many ocean going animals gives researchers new meaning to the word ‘awe’ when realizing that the mako, barracuda, jacks and others have to be capable of great bursts of speed if they wish a meal of tuna.

When referring to this fish, one must be careful to not mix the words tuna, and ahi, the Hawaiian word for tuna.  It is either one or the other.  Snorkeling in Hawaiian waters, one could see juvenile tuna nearshore.  The young tuna were called kananâ, (the defiant one).  Getting into the subtropical waters of Hawaii is always an amazing experience and one not to be missed!

Photo Courtesy Dr. Jack Randall

Although Hawaii does not have the deadly stonefish, we do have this little endemic cutie, the turkeyfish.  Ancient Hawaiians called this one nohu pinao.  The word pinao means blurred vision, and nohu is the Tahitian name for the deadly stonefish.  It is possible the ancient travelers, not finding the stonefish here, used the same name for the others in the scorpion family.  Blurred vision could possibly be what one experiences as one of the side effects after having contact with this interesting predator.

The turkeyfish is not to be confused with the lionfish.  Although both are in the scorpionfish family, they are two distinctly different species.  The venom is in the dorsal and pectoral spines.  Turkeyfish are late afternoon, or nighttime predators.  Their favorite foods are crustaceans and smaller fish, which they ambush and take in with lightening speed.  The maximum size for these beautiful animals is 22 centimeters (8.5 inches approx.).  There are animals who eat these venomous fish.  Other scorpionfish have been observed taking them in and eels have also be seen dragging a scorpionfish around.  Tiger sharks have also been witnessed eating members of the scorpionfish family.

Divers are fully aware to be extremely cautious of hand placement on the reefs or rocky ledges, but scorpionfish can also inhabit lagoons and are ingenious at hiding and camoflague.

Snorkeling in Hawaii is truly amazing.  Interesting fish await around each coral community, and they do people watch!  Come and join us!

Photo Courtesy fishbase.org/Flescher, D

The ancient Hawaiians called the young of this fish aha aha, and the mature needlefish aha.  This author couldn’t find much on the importance of the needlefish, but surely it was eaten, and still is.

The flat needlefish is seen in worldwide tropical and temperate oceans including the east and west Atlantic oceans, Bermuda, north Gulf of Mexico, throughout the Indian Ocean, Japan Ocean, east and west Pacific and as far south as Brazil.  Wow, they get around, don’t they?  Interestingly, their meat is green tinted, so although they are seen in markets and sold frozen, salted, or smoked, the needlefish is not sold in mass quantities.  Their maximum recorded size is 140 cm, (55 inches) and weight of 4800 gm, (10.5 lbs.).  Needlefish can be seen in small schools or solitary and feed on small fish.  Although they are seen in river mouths or estuaries, they seem to prefer island waters.  These fish attach their eggs with filaments to other objects like corals, mooring lines, piers, etc.

Snorkeling while in Hawaii is most certainly a joy and small needlefish may swim closer and gently tap on the mask of a curious snorkeler.  We know fish like to people watch occasionally, but the needlefish can be especially fun!  Don’t forget your camera!!

Photo Courtesy B. Small/Birds.Cornell.edu

The ancient Hawaiians called this beautiful bird koa`e kea, (kea means white in Hawaiian).  The long tail tropicbird is breathtaking to watch in flight as it may plummet down to the ocean to retrieve a fish or squid at any time.

This bird was used for featherwork in ancient times, and the product of the featherwork was used to adorn the ali’i, or chiefs (chieftess) of the villages.

Watching this bird in flight is really amazing and this author has not heard the birds emit any sounds, but researchers say their call is a rasping scream.  They are usually seen as solitary travelers, but on Kaua’i there are many that live on the cliffs.  They are also seen off the Big Island soaring in Kilauea crater.  They lay a single egg in nests built in rock crevasses on cliff faces, which makes studying the mating habits there nearly impossible.  Breeding is from March to October.

Snorkeling in Hawaii allows marine life lovers to get out on the water and explore everything the Pacific has to offer, including sea birds.  When coming to Maui, please take time to get out there.  You won’t know what is awaiting you until you do!

Photo Courtesy Y. Hooker/fishbase.org

EEWWW!  Is it real?  That was the first question I received when showing this picture.  This animal has been saved for the very last in our Halloween Week Of Weird postings.  

There is very little information available on this member of the anglerfish family.  Researchers know this fish may travel from 613 - 1000 meters (2011 - 3280 feet).  Anglerfishes are predators, eating most anything they can entice to come close enough using the attached lure on top of their heads.  We could not find any information on what maximum size is for this specie.  Deep sea fishermen have found this fish around waters of Oahu.

Snorkeling in Hawaii is an amazing thing to do and a must when in the island chain.  Although none of these deep water species mentioned (except for Megamouth) are found in shallow waters, we will share many one can look for in future postings.  Come have adventures with us! 

Photo Courtesy pbs.com/Tom Haight

Megamouth is our feature today keeping with our countdown for Halloween.  What a face!  This shark is known in many oceans, although not much is known about the animal.  This shark has been found in the Pacific Ocean, Japan, Indonesia, Philippines, Hawaii, and California, USA.  They have been found also in waters off Brazil, Atlantic Ocean and Senegal.

Fortunately for the Megamouth they are not hunted much for food and are really of no interest to any country (so far).  This slow moving fish has a strange bright white band on the snout just above the upper jaw, which researchers feel may play a very important role in attracting plankton, euphausiid shrimps, jellyfish and they may consume small mid water fish, but this band may also play an important role in recognition of individuals.  COOL!  These sharks are known to go to 1,000 meters (3,280 feet), but have also been seen in only 5 meters (16.4 feet)!  Unlike many other types of sharks, the Megamouth’s eyes have no nictitating membrane.  They are live bearers with the babies feeding on a yolk sac before emerging, but we could not find any information on how long incubation is.  This specie of shark sure looks prehistoric! They are preyed upon by the parasidic cookie cutter shark, which is known to prey on all kinds of fish and even marine mammals.   In future postings we will discuss the cookie cutter shark further.  We have not been able to find any divers or snorkelers who have seen this elusive predator to Megamouth and others.

If you want to watch a video of Megamouth in shallow water, please click on this link, sit back, and enjoy!  It appears the gentle shark is a little curious of the photographer.  Very interesting, indeed!

Happy viewing and Happy Halloween everyone!

Photo Courtesy Gloerfelt-Tarp/fishbase.org

What the heck is that?  That was the first reaction this author had when seeing this picture.  Next question that came to mind was “where is the mouth?”

Researchers named this unusual fish the Coffinfish.  It is in the Seatoad Family and the Order of Anglerfish.  What a cutely bizarre fish and a highly unusual name!  Researchers tell us they grow to about 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) in length.  There is no information on what they eat, but one very interesting piece of information is they are seen around the new island forming underwater SE of the Big Island of Hawaii.  The little seamount, courtesy of Madam Pele, the fire-goddess of creation, is called Loihi.  Volcanologists predict this active volcano will break through the surface of the ocean in about 1,000 years, give or take a few hundred, in the very warm water and in depths of 500 meters (1640 feet) to a whopping 1985 meters (6512 feet)!   The Coffinfish is known to be in deep waters of Indo-West Pacific:  Japan to Kyushu-Palau Ridge, Australia and Indonesia; Chesterfield Islands.  What a perfect name for a little fish with Frankenstein stitching decorations!  

Snorkeling in Hawaii is full of amazement, even if we do not get to see deep water species.  There are anglerfish in shallower waters we can look for and we will discuss these in future postings.  Keep checking back and Happy Halloween!

Photo Courtesy Costa/Patzner/fishbase.org

This week we’re talking ghouls and goblins of the deep and the Viperfish (Sloan’s) of the Dragonfish Family is a perfect subject.  Look at those teeth!  Their bodies are iridescent silver.

According to Dr. Randall, this species is seen in depths greater than 15,000 feet!  They are in warm and temperate parts of all oceans, but there are distributional gaps such as Southern Central Atlantic, Northern Indian and Eastern Pacific Oceans.  

So what do these ghoulish fish eat, and where?  Researchers believe they may migrate to the near-surface at night and travel back to the depths before morning.  Their favorite meals consist of mid-water fish and crustaceans.

How big do they get?  According to the experts they grow to nearly 14 inches.  I suppose you would have to be a night snorkeler or diver to try and catch a glimpse of this interesting fish.  Yikes!

How very fitting that this fish, with the face that only a mother viperfish would love, prefers the dark and deep oceans of the world.  Until next time!