SOUTH PACIFIC COMMISSION 1

HAWAIIAN "OPELU" HOOP NET GEAR

by Ronald Powell, Fisheries Officer, Cook Islands

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S0uth Pacific Commission Noumea, New Caledonia April 1968 r~" This paper distributed as background material at the SPC " Technical Meeting on Fisheriest Koror, June 3-14, 1968 and for use at the FAD/SPC Regional Fisheries Training Course on , Koror, Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, June 3 to July 30, 19683^ CONTENTS

Pages

INTRODUCTION

HAWAIIAN OPELU

THE FISHING GEAR

THE HOOP

METHOD OF FISHING

BAIT5

STORING THE CATCH AND MARKETING

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS :

(1) Hawaiian Opelu Hoop Net

(2) Making the Net

(3) Opelu net chumming gear

(4) Glass Bottomed Water Box A HAWAIIAN OPELU

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(i) DECAPTERUS SANCTAE-HELENAE (CUVIER) INTRODUCTION

A recommendation (para. 71) of the Regional Fisheries Technical Meeting organised by the South Pacific Commission in 1962 was that a Handbook should be compiled dealing with fishing craft, gear and methods in use in the South Pacific Area. Because this would take considerable time, the Meeting asked that a circular be prepared giving a description, precise specifications and illustrations of, among other things,

Hawaiian "Opelu" Hoop Net Fishing Gear

This 5PC Fisheries Publication has been prepared by Mr Ronald Powell, former Fisheries Officer of the 5outh Pacific Commission, to comply with this request.

Acknowledgement is made of the generous assistance and advice of Vernon E. Brock, Michio Takata and the Fishermen of the Kona Coast of Hawaii; the Fisheries Service of French Polynesia for help with the photographs and Stephanie Dymock who drew the illustrations. • HAWAIIAN DPELU (Decapterus sanctae - helenae)

Opelu are a mackeral-like which are widely distributed around the world within the tropics. In the South Pacific, these fish generally weigh about half a pound (228 grms) and are found in small schools just outside the breakers, off coral reefs. Their name varies locally and the niature fish is known by some of the following names in the Pacific :

Hawaiian Islands OPELU Cook Islands KOPERU Niue ULIHENGA French Polynesia OPERU Northern Australia ROUND SCAD

The photograph overleaf shov,s a full-grown Opelu.

These fish have long been caught by subsistence fishing methods; in some islands, they can be speared with small sharp multipronged spears. In other places, they are cormnonly caught with small baited hooks. At unpredictable times they swim in vast shoals over the coral reefs and can often be caught in fish weirs that are a part of subsistence fishing methods in many islands.

The method of capture described here has been practiced in the Hawaiian islands since long before tha advent of the white man into the Pacific. The method is very efficient and is a great improvement on either hooking or spearing techniques. The specially designed net will frequently catch several hundred fish in one haul. The cost of this net can often be recovered in one or two days fishing, at the height of the season.

Opelu have definite seasons when the catch rate is likely to be high. It will be found they are scarce at other seasons. In fact, there are generally periods of up to six months when they are seen only in small schools. When the fish begin to spawn, they appear in vast schools and are plentiful for at least si:' months.

Local knowledge will be the only guide here. The season seems to coincide with the ripening of the Avocado pears ashore. This is fortunate, as avocado pears make; an excellent bait, although it is not indispensible,

The fishing gear used has the added advantage that it requires very little labour. In fact, there is one man in tha Hawaiian islands who can handle this gsar alone. Generally two men are needad and with three men, the work is light and easy. 3

The old Hawaiians used to make thess nets fr.nm a local fibrw, Olcna (Touchardia latifolia). the bark was stripped frcm wild saplings, soaked, scraped and the best fibres twisted into a cord, which was reported to be strdhger than hemp. They made the hoop from uhiuhi wood (Mezoneurum kauaiense, jiann. Hillebrand). Thera is an old net still in good condition in the "Bishop iiuseum in Honolulu which is made of these materials.

At the present time, most new nets are made from machine made nylon or synthetic welbing. The amount of webbing is not very great and the cost will vary considerably if the netting is bought from either England, Australia, U.S.A. or Japan.

Before the coming cf the white man, the old Polynesian people often faced shortages of fish but they were good conservationists. They actually fed th2se shoals of Opelu outside the reef in front of many villages. Even today, fishing rights over certain areas are still respected in many Polynesian Islands.

THE FISHING GEAR

The equipment consists of :

Two lengths of spring steel rod each 33 ft long x 5/16" diameter. Bamboo slivers to cover it as shown (Fig.2) Tarred marlin sufficient to serve the two rods .Material for Bridles - 6 Six fathoms of. main line of hemp or similar rope. Webbing to make the bulk of the net, 1 1/4" mesh stretched nylon size 210/6 Webbing to make the "Cod end" of the net 3/4" mash stretched nylon 210/9 40 Leads cut from sheet lead the size of a U.S.Dollar A ten fathom length of light fish line with an 16 inch square of denim and a piece of lead of about two pounds as illustratedFig.3 A water box with a glass bottom of about the dimensions shown Fig.4 It is,of course, a. great advantage to carry two lead lines and two or three water boxes in the boat. This savBs a wasted day's effort when one is damaged accidentally; 4

THE .HOOP

The unique piece of gear is the simple type of hoop , as illustrated in Figure 2. • The hoop has the distinction that it can be disjointed in two places and the rGds will spring back straight. They are assembled and disjointed each time the net is hauled. The actual joint is very simply made as the illustration will showCFig.2)The making of the two rods does offer some problems and it is possible that,as more people make these nets in other islands, some improvene nt on these rods illustrated (Fig.2) may result. The old Hawaiians made the hoop out of a number of short pieces of local hardwood which they seasoned by a laborious process in their taro patches. It is unlikely that many people will want to duplicate their methods. Japanese commercial fishermen in the Hawaiian islands improved this hoop by making it from two lengths of 5/16" diameter spring steel rod. This spring steel rod is available in coils from the Honolulu Iron Works, Hawaii*

The bamboo strips are added and the serving of tarred marlin completes the finished job. Other fishermen use these same spring steel rods served over with plastic insulation tape. I have used lawyer cane found in both the Solomon Islands and in the Cook Islands. Cane is useful but it becomes soft if it is soaked repeatedly and the net tends to go out of shape. The illustration of a typical commercial hoop can serve as an initial model.

The webbing for the net can be prepared in several ways. It can be made by any one willing to spend the time, from cotton or nylon twine, and the shape can be braided as the work proceeds. This makes an excellent net and is to be preferred. Braiding small twine into 1 1/4" meshes is a tedious job and most modern fishermen will prefer to buy machine made nylon webbing and cut- and sew it as illustrated,(Fig.1 ).

Tne cod end is made of heavier webbing to withstand the weight of a heavy catch being lifted aboard.

It will be noticed that small lead weights are attached to the webbing at intervals. Without these, the webbing sinks very slowly and when good schools of fish are around this has obvious consequences. The lead in the cod end assures that it will sink first and it is important that this is not too heavy or the net will close together into a narrow oone instead of opening in the bell shape which is very much to be preferred. The bridles illustrated in fig. 1 are better made of cotton hard laid twine as nylon has a bad habit of working undone unless all the knots are seized. Coloured bridles at both joints will facilitate finding the joints quickly as the net is brought aboard.

TRe main line for hauling and handling the net should be thick enough in order that it is comfortable to haul easily, thus avoiding the problems that thin hard line brings with cut hands. Soft laid hemp or nylon is satisfactory. 5

nETHQD GF FISHING jCJToice of Boat

The first problem which may arise will be thcs choice between a boat or a canoe for using this gear. In Hawaii, canoes have always been preferred. It is much easier to hold a canoe "head to wind" in deep water in a strong wind with paddles than will be found possible with a boat. A boat is never easy to paddle, and a boat with high freeboard is hard to keep stationary over deep water.

A long canoe in which one man at each end works a paddle while one man in the centre operates the net is the most convenient arrangement. The man watching the bait and net with a water glass can easily signal to those operating the paddles.

Boats can be used successfully and a sculling oar over the stern makes handling easier than a pair of oars amidships.

It is possible to use an outboard motor but it will often be more of a nuisance than it is worth while actually fishing. Getting to and from the grounds is another matter. Once the net is lowered, the outboard motor has to be run very slowly and under such conditions, it often stops and has to be restarted with the consequential noise and inter­ ruption to fishing. Experience will soon decide this question.

The Place and Time

The best fishing times will be found early in the morning when the light is just sufficient to see the Opelu a few fathoms below the surface. In the evening, fishing stops as the light fades and the fish vanish in the dark water. During the hours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., they can sometimes be caught but very few fish seem tu feed well at midday in the tropics.

Certain areas off a reef always seem to have sbhools of these fish while in other places they are seldom sighted. Only local knowledge will direct the fishermen to likely places. A certain amount of searching with a waterglass from a canoe or boat is gensrally needed. A pair of diving goggles or face mask make the quest easy. Once located, it is generally possible to keep the school together, as will be described later. Sometimes, fish move into water too shallow to make use of this net. Some temporary modifications to the net can be made under these conditions.

Light offshore breezes are preferable and fishing becomes difficult in a strong wind and rough water. W^en the island is small an outboard motor will often make it possible to run down the coast where a protecting headland will offer same shelter and fish can be found under easier working conditions. 6

Repeated fishing in one place where ample ground bait is used brings the fish to this placa. The fishermen will soon learn to pick out places where fish appear every day in the season by using certain cross bearings ashore.

Chumiiiinq Gear

Once a likely place is found and fish can be seen in a school below, it is the time to take up the chumming gear. This is simply a piece of denim cloth about 18" square. A piece of lead of about two pounds is attached to une corner and about ten fathoms of strong fish line is attached to the diagonally apposite corner.

This piece of denim is then laic flat on any convenient surface and a handful of ground vegetable paste or avocado pear paste is added to the centre of the cloth. If ground fish is also available, another handful of ground fish is added to the vegetable paste and the two are mixed together.

Now, the cloth is folded, the diagonal corners are wrapped over the bait to hold it in place, and the whole piece of material is rolled up, as shown in figure 3.

The fish line is pulled out clear, and then wrapped about six times around the small roll of denim. By holding the denim roll in the left hand and gripping the fish line with one's teeth about six inches from the cloth, it is now possible to pass ths line round the roll in the reverse direction and finish up with a loop. This loop is then in turn passed under the main line and a simple hitch is achieved. This hitch is pulled just tight enough that it will hold the cloth in a roll as it is lowered, yet will be freed when the main line is jerked.

This description may sound a little complicated, but it is exactly the same procedure that a tuna fisherman uses to hold hooks, bait and ground bait on tu a stone when handlining.

Waterglass

It is convenient if the waterglass floats alongside the man in the centre of the canoe, so that it can be reached when needed. If the two men paddling the canoe, each have a good waterglass, it will often assist them when attempting to carry out orders from the man handling the net. These extra waterglasses are not essential but thay certainly do help at,times. The roll of denim containing the bait is lowered about five fathoms and if fish are still to be seen in the area, it is jerked, the bait drifts clear of the denim and the denim is hauled quickly to the surface. Generally, when fish are plentiful, a school of fish will swim rapidly into the area where the bait is released and begin to feed ravenous­ ly on it. Once this is achieved, the net can be prepared for fishing. 7

The Net

The first thing to do is to tie the end of the mainline to the canoe. ..any eager fisharmen have paid out mainline in the excitement until the end of the line runs through their hands and the net is lost.

Tie this line first, not after you start fishing, or the inevitable will happen. The webbing of the net can be either laced on to the two rods as in the illustration, or it can be slipped over the rods by a series of grormnets as shown in the sketch. Which ever method is used the net must be stretched along the rods and made fast so that it will keep in place. Assuming this is done the cod end of the net is tied securely with whatever knot the fisherman knows is a "lucky" cod end knot. I will not elaborate this point. All fishermen know that tieing the cod end is no' casual undertaking, but is a ritual of fishing that is all important.

The cod end is thrown overboard, and the webbing cleared as the cod end sinks until all the webbing is in the water. The bridles are now cleared and the men in the end of the canoe now bend the two rods into a circle. The joints are slipped together as in the illustration and the hoop is lowered away.

As the hoop is lowered, the bridles are paid out until the mainline is reached. The net sinks away slowly and soon the hoop will be about five fathoms below the surface. By this time, the first school of fish may already have scattered and it is now a simple matter to repeat the chumming procedure with the denim cloth as before.

If all goes well the school of fish will soon return and begin feeding again in the newly baited area. This finely ground bait should float out in the water in a clearly visible cloud that can be easily seen with the waterbox.

As soon as the fish start to feed more ground bait is lowered and the canoe is manoeuvred so that the schbol of fish and the bait are right over the net.

This is not difficult with a canoe in fine weather, but it can become difficult when a tide is running against the wind, or when the wind is strong.

When a good school of fish is feeding over the net, the next cloth full of chum is lowered down a little deeper into the mouth of the net. As the fish move in to feed the net is raised a little and once the fish are well within the mouth of the net, the net can be hauled smartly upwards. Marking the bridles which lead to the joints facilitates unhitching the two rods. As this is done, the rods straighten out, the net is hauled B

aboard and the fish are lifted into the canoe. Tne cod end is unbent and the fish slither out into a box at hand. It is not a difficult operation.

The same procedure is repeated until about ten o'clock in the morning or if started at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, fishing can continue until it becomes too dark to see the echool feeding around the bait. Problems do arise in practice of course. Sometimes, fish tend to stay away from the not, and it is difficult tc get them to feed over it.

There are other kinds of fish, which are about the same size as opelu, for instance the Pterocaesio (Uriuri which swim in the Cook Islands) very quickly and these often swim over the net and then dart back out again before the net can be hauled. Experience shows however that if one knocks the canoe with a paddle just as these fish have swum in over the net, they take fright and dive straight downwards inside it.

These fish occur in many islands of the Pacific where they are always difficult to catch with hooks and bait. When this net is used, thsy are very easy to catch if one merely attracts them with bait and then frightens thems into diving straight downwards, iiany other kinds of fish will no doubt be caught with this net when it is in widespread use in other islands. Several species of reef fish can be attracted with ground fish bait in the manner described. If the quest is not for Opelu alone, this net may well prove an efficient piece of fishing gear for a variety of fish even though it is not designed for other species of fish.

Large fish can damage the fine webbing and some repair twine and netting needles need to be carried aboard the canoe with the other gear.

BAITS

In the Hawaiian Islands, there is jne district where the use of ground fish for chum has been prohibited by law. The argument raised by the Hawaiian fishermen is that when people use ground fish, it attracta not only the Opelu but also other large predatory fish which break up the schools of Opelu. This is quite true.

There is the other valid objection that Opelu caught with fish bait deteriorate quicker than Opelu caught with vegetable matter. The fishermen who want large quantities of Opelu for long-line bait have to work hard and long to get their bait quota. It is probable that ground.fish will generally be found to attract Opelu quicker than anything else. But, if ground fish is used, it is still preferable to add it to one of the common vegetable baits. These consist of ripe avocado pears that.are skinned and mashed to a thick paste. These make excellent bait when they are available. Baits next in importance are Taro, breadfruit, pumpkin, 9 potatoes and even bread. In atolls where these vegetables are not readily available it is common to use finely scraped soft coconut. The hard mature nut is not very satisfactory but soft coconut makes an excellent bait particularly if it is mixed with some ground fish. When grinding fish it is better to skin the fish first and remove all hard bones and gristle that will not grind-up to a fine paste in a meat grinder. If the meat grinder does not grind all the fish into a fine paste, the odd pieces of skin are liable to stick in the webbing of the net. When this happens, Dpelu are attracted to the net from the outside and it is difficult to get them to rise over the mouth of the net where they can be caught. Hawaiian fishermen go to a lot of trouble to grind or scrape the tare- and pumpkin when raw and then cook it to a fine paste that disperses easily in the sea. If hard lumps of bait are present, the fish tend to feed until they are no longer hungry in which case they are difficult to coax over the net. The art of getting fish excited without them becoming satisfied is all important.

STORING THE CATCH AND MARKETING .

In many islands of the Pacific, fish are not sold for cnoh. As long as fish are distributed without any cash transections it is unlikely that the recipient will ever complain about the qu'lity of any fish he receives. As a community slowly changes from a subsistence to n monetary economy, quits different problems arise. The simplest marketing methods are where a fisherman strings his catch on a piece Gf wire or bark and the customer buys them for cash on the beach,

As soon as o money transaction occurs specified needsappcor. Gnce a customer pays cash he tends to expect good fresh fish for his money. Weights and measures soon becom"; nn important part of n cash transaction. As long as the fishermen can find a ready market for their catch and they experience no competition from other fishermen in selling their catch, it is possible to sell poor quality fish. In a competitive market the only fishermen who will survive are those who pay some attention to quality.

Fish deteriorate rapidly in the tropics. Immediately fish are caught, attention must be paid to preserving their quality, until they are sold. Fish caught early in the evening are often seriously deteriorated by the following morning. Some concern for preservation must begin the moment the fish are off the hook. For example, fish thrown into warm bilge water and left there all night are not likely to be sold once cash customers demand a better product.

In Hawaii, concern for fish quality is such that fishermen handle the fish as carefully as possible. Many boats are equipped with live wells where the catch can be kept alive for a reasonable period and the fish are eventually marketed clean and fresh from the sea. Other boats use ice, to advantage, when it is available at a reasonable cost. It is common now to 10

see small vessels which carry a few blocks or a sack or more of crushed or flake ice to sea with them in the evening. This ice is added to a clean fish well together with a limited amount of clean seawater. The seawater ice mixture hardens and brightens the dead fish and if they are then packed carefully into containers, the catch has a much better appearance than the fish which have been either dried out or worse still left in warm dirty hilge water.

It does not cost much time or effort to look after the catch. Good fish will sell before poor quality fish and in times of glut the men who will survive as commercial fishermen will be those who pay attention to this aspect of marketing. Marketing methods can become quite complicated and eventually the highest price is only realized by clean well preserved fish that are packaged into consumer size packs that fit into the family shopping plan.

Pishing is a hard, and at times, dangerous trade. It is of little value to suggest that the price of fish is insufficient, while better marketing could raise the price to a more profitable level. So don't neglect this important part of the night's work.

Original Text : English (i) HAWAIIAN OPELU HOOP NET

FILET ROND HAWAIEN POUR LA PECHE A L'OPEHU

Heavy line, five fathoms. Eight bridle lines, two heavier Ligne renf orce'e far easy identification 5 brasses Ligne a 8 branches dont 2 renforcees pour faciliter leur identification

Hoop, two 33 ft. steel rods Cerceau forme de 2 tiges d'acier de 36 loops to 331 attach net to hoop 36 cosses pour fixer le filet au cerceau

Headline, selvage optional Haut du filet Body of net Lisiere facultative 210/6 nylon 1" ox 1 Leads Plombs cousus aux mailies stretched 10'6" down from top du filet a partir de mesh. 4 10'6" up from bottom, 10'6" du haut et a partir Corps du filet stitched to the webbing de 10'6" du bas NYLON 210/6 1" ou 1 maille etiree

Cod end, 210/9 stretched mesh Cul du filet 210/9 mailles etirees

• = pied ou 0,3048m Lead 3-4 lb. " = pouce ou 0,0254m Plomb: 3-4 livres (2) MAKING THE HIT

FABRICATIOI DO PTUET

Tarred Marlin Tarred marlin or fish line covering Cordage Cordage goudronne ou gaine de f il a peche goudronne Bamboo sections Bamboo Sections Segments de baabou Segments de baabou 5/16" diameter Spring steel rod available in coils from Honolulu Iron Works, Honolulu, Hawaii. Cross section of the Hoop 0 5/16" - Tige d'acier a ressort Coupe de oeroeau fournie en rouleaux par Sideways section "Iron Works", Honolulu, Hawa£ of the rod Profil d'une section Tiro steel rods each 33' long, 5/16" diameter de la tige Deux tiges de fer: longueur 33 pied* 0 5/16 de pouee (m* Two loose fitting groamets of strong rope twine Stops, so that grosmet will Deux cosses non ajustees slide but not slip off rod en cordage solide Crans d'arret pour eaatemer cosses de sortir de la tige

rommet fixed to Headline to slip over rods, 36 all round Cosses fixeee sur le haut de filet et enfilees sur les tiges - 36 en tout

Headline 3/8" diameter Haut de filet - 0 3/8 de pouce

Selvage meshes at the top of the net are optional, they save some smaller mesh, and they can be doubled for extra strength, down about 1*6" at the top. Les mailles de lisiere en haut du filet sont facultatives mais elles permettent d'economiser sur les plus petites mailles. On peut les doubler pour les renforcer a 1 *6 du haut,

Leads - to help sink webbing, 40 leads 1-&* diameter cut from sheet lead and punched with holes to stitch to the webbing. They are placed 10'6" down from the top of the net, 2 feet apart, and 10*6" up from the bottom

Plombs pour faciliter 1' immersion du filet - 40 plomba de H pouce de i> decoupes dans une feuilla de plomb et perfores pour fixation sur filet, places a 10'6" du haut et du bas du filet, a 2 pieds d'ecart. ' - pied ou 0,3048m " « pouce ou 0,0254m * * * * (3) OPELU NET CHUMMING GEAR FILET A OPBRU - HATERIEL D'APPATAGE ET MODE D'EMPLOI

(a) (c)

,10 fathoms strong line 10 brasses de fil renforce

Tuck lead inside and roll up the Cupful of bait, whole piece ground vegetable Wrap diagonal of material paste corners over bait fientrer le plomb Poignet d'appats: Replier lee coins a l'interieur et 2 lb Lead legumes moulus en en diagonal sur rouler le morceau Ploab de 2 lb. pate l'appat de cotonnade

(e) (f) (g)

Pass loop under the main line to achieve a simple hitch, pull hitch tight enough to hold cloth in roll as lowered but loose enough to free itself when the line is jerked Hold denim roll in Tenir le rouleau de tissu , Pull line clear the left hand, grip dans la main gauche, tenir Passer la bouele sous la ligne and wrap round the line with teeth le fil entre les dents a principale pour l'amarrer. Serrer denim six times 5" from cloth and 5" du tissu et enrouler le suffisamment pour tenir le tissu en Tirer la ligne et pass line around roll fil sur le rouleau en sens rouleau au moment de 1'immersion, l'enrouler six fois in opposite direction inverse en terminant par mais pas trop serre pour pouvoir le autour du carrtkde to finish up with a une bouele liberer facilement en tirant sur la cotonnade loop ligne

1 = pied ou 0,3048m » =_ pouce ou 0,0254B U) GLASS BOTTOMED WATER BOX

'F7T71 Cut four pieces from a plank as shown, the proportions can be varied to suit glass and lumber available. Make a groove with a circular saw or a hand gouge about 1" to 1-i" up from the wide end of each piece. Pit together with brass screws, bed glass in paint/varnish and putty - allow putty to harden a little before use. Fit all the joints carefully and paint or varnish thoroughly when finished; joints can be stuck together with paint or varnish as well as screws. Paint the inside matt black. The finished box should float upright in use; tall boxes fall over and fill and shallow boxes swamp in rough weather.

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