American Samoa

A Samoan woman paddles the canoe (paopao) as two companions tend a fish trap constructed of wire netting on the reefsnear Pago Pago, American Samoa. American Samoa SAMOA AND PAGO PAGO (pronounced F i sh eries Pango Pango) are perhaps best known from the short story by W. Somerset Maugham as the place where the notorious Sadie Thompson once plied her trade. Indeed, one may wonder why we have a chapter on the fisheries of American Samoa. Man) Americans are probaldy not aware that important fisheries are conducted from these romantic South Pacific islands. 310 The Samoa Islands are ethnically and rine features of the Samoa Islands are culturally allied but politically divided. like that of many other volcanic islands. The seven islands known as American Sa- Hardly any Continental Shelf exists moa became a territory of the United around the islands and water depth States in 1900 when leading Samoan plunges fairly rapidly away from shore. chiefs negotiated a deed of cession. Other Narrow coral reefs, irregularly interrupted islands in the Samoan grouplocated in places, encircle the high islands. The is- about 80 miles to the west-comprise lands are bathed by the waters of the Western Samoa, which is now an inde- warm, sluggish South Equatorial Current pendent nation. system. The temperature at the sea sur- American Samoa, with a population of face around the islands changes with sea- 27,000, includes Tutuila, where Pago sons from about 75' F. to 86" F. Pago is located; Aunu'u; the Manua group, which includes Ta'u, Olosega, and THE COASTAL REEF-FISH FAUNA of the Ofu; and Swains and Rose, both of which Samoa Islands is part of the vast marine are tiny coral atolls. The combined land zoogeographic fauna centered around the area of these islands is only 76.2 square East Indies. The shallow coastal waters miles, or about one-sixteenth the land in and around the coral reefs of Samoa area of our smallest state, Rhode Island. abound with many colorful fishes. More The main islands, which are of volcanic than 600 species of fish are known to in- origin, rise abruptly from the sea in a series habit these waters. Although the species of ridges. Tutuila, the largest, is a non- are numerous, only a few are of economic descript, irregularly shaped piece of land importance. about 18miles long and 6 miles across at Unlike temperate regions-where rela- its widrst point, located near latitude 14" tively few species are the basis of large S. and longitude 170" W. It is many hun- fisheries-in tropical Samoan waters the dreds of miles away from any familiar myriad of fish species support almost no points of reference, being about 2,300 local or indigenous commercial fisheries. miles southwest of Hawaii and 1,600miles The customs, mores, and traditions of the northeast of New Zealand. Samoan people probably precluded the The one exciting feature of Tutuila is need for commercial fishermen. The ex- a drowned valley on the southern side- tent to which the ancient traditions have Pago Pago Bay, which nearly bisects the been diluted is unknown but in Samoa a island. The bay is without doubt the custom exists where many material finest and most beautiful harbor in the goods-including necessities for subsist- South Pacific. It is large and deep enough ence, like farm produce and fish-are to accommodate vessels of any size, and is shared by the families in villages. now the home base for a fleet of com- The tradition of sharing is part of what mercial longline fishing boats. is known as the chief (matai) and family Though the ages of the Samoa Islands (aiga) system. Aiga (pronounced ainga) are not known, geologically the most re- has a broad definition and includes not cent is believed to be the westernmost, only the immediate family group of father, Savaii, in the Western Samoa group. The mother, and children, but all distant rela- oldest islands are the easternmost Manua tives. The aigas can assume huge propor- group of American Samoa. The subma- tions, for a typical Samoan family is 31 1 312 large even without including all relatives. Hawaii) expedition, described Samoan Apparently, at least at one time, certain fishing methods and implements in great kinds of work including house building detail. and fishing were traditionally done by Of interest is Buck’s account of members of guilds. Some of the fishing Samoa’s only “high-seas fishing” en- guilds were composed of members of royal deavor, “bonito” fishing as practiced in lineage. There were also village fishing those days. Bonito (atu) , as skipjack tuna guilds. The rights of membership in the is known locally, was fished from a bonito royal guilds were handed down from gen- canoe (paopao) . During the season, a eration to generation. The Samoans are fleet of several canoes went out during able to trace the origin of the guilds to the hours of darkness in order to be on the the original senior fishermen, partly his- fishing grounds just beyond the reefs by torical and partly legendary. daybreak. Each canoe, with up to three The catches made by fishing guilds men, had a pole with a barbless hook- were shared by the aigas in the villages. fashioned from pearl shell-trailing in It is uncertain whether members of the the water. fishing guilds received any monetary pay- After locating a school of skipjack, by ment for their services, but it appears first sighting a bird flock or by noticing that members of builder guilds did re- ripples on the water surface, the steers- ceive food and monetary gratuities. It is man headed the canoe into the midst of certain that many customs and traditions the school. When a skipjack was hooked, are being altered or lost, especially in the the rod was lifted by the steersman, who more urbanized sections of American swung the fish into the canoe. “Atu-e” Samoa. One authority on Samoa, how- (“a skipjack”) was the cry that then rang ever, noted in his book published in 1962 out through the fleet. The fishermen con- that a number of fishing guilds still tinued furious paddling in order to keep existed. It is probably true that some pace with the rapidly moving schools. form of organized fishing is still practiced There were times when the canoes worked in outlying villages. all day without any luck. On occasions the canoe came home so loaded that the METHODS EMPLOYED BY AMERICAN fishermen had to guide their craft in SAMOANS TO CAPTURE FISH AND SHELL- through the reef by swimming alongside. FISH from coastal areas surrounding the This primitive type of skipjack fishing is islands have changed little over the years. still practiced by the Samoans, partic- Te Rangi Hiroa (Peter H. Buck), who ularly those on Manua. The canoes, how- visited American Samoa in 1927 on a ever, leave the confines of sheltered waters Bernice P. Bishop Museum (Honolulu, only during the calmest weather. AS in other parts of Oceania, Samoans comb the reefs for fish and shellfish in A Samoan woman cracks a piece of coral to various ways. They may simply grope be- extract a hidden sea urchin. Women and tween the rocks and coral with bare hands youngsters comb the reefs around American or use devices like spears, traps, nets, and Samoa for many kinds of shellfish for use as hooks. Raniboo pole fishing is a popular food and to make shell leis and trinkets that will be sold to tourists. Few Samoans have method of catching reef and inshore commercial fishing enterprises. fishes. It is a common sight to see 313 Samoans fishing off the piers surrounding their own commercial fishing enterprises. Pago Pago Bay at night, using the light A description of the fisheries of Ameri- of a gas lantern to attract the bigeye scad, can Samoa would not be complete with- a favorite food fish. During the night out mentioning palolo, although it is not Samoans may handline from canoes for even of potential commercial importance. bigeye scad and during the day for other Palolo are wormlike sacs of eggs and species like the barracuda and dogtooth sperm of a sea annelid. The sacs are freed tuna. by adults at predictable times either in Traps made of wire netting are con- October or November. Freed sacs swarm structed along the reefs, usually in or neax to the surface in wriggling masses. The a small channel. Long sections of wire net- sacs are about a sixteenth of an inch in ting are strung out in a V-shaped pattern, diameter and may be a foot or more in with a circular or rectangular enclosure length. Female palolo are filled with eggs about 5 to IO feet in diameter at the apex. which are green; male sacs are filled with The traps are used principally to capture reddish-brown sperm. such fish as mullet and jacks. Set nets and Palolo are greatly esteemed by Samoans, throw nets are used over the reefs and who look forward to the annual surface sand flats for mullet and other estuarine swarming with great anticipation. The species. Spears are used to capture fish appearance at the surface-usually once and octopus. a year and then only for a few hours in the Shellfish are collected both day and middle of the night-creates great excite- night along the edges of the reef for food ment as young and old alike, armed with and for making shell leis and trinkets, scoop nets, pails, and other simple imple- which are sold to tourists.

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