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LIVE-BAIT FISHING FOR TUNA
IN THE CENTRAL PACIFIC

Marine Biological Laboratory

WOODS HOLE, MASS.

SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC REPORT: FISHERIES No. 107

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE

Explanatory Note

The series embodies results of investigations, usually of
restricted scope, intended to aid or direct management or utilization
practices and as guides for administrative or legislative action. It
is issued in limited quantities for the official use of Federal, State
or cooperating Agencies and in processed form for econorqy and to avoid
delay in publication.

United States Department of the Interiorj Douglas McKay-p Secretary-
Fish and Wildlife Service ^ John Lo Farleyp Director

LIVE-BAIT FISHING FOR TUNA IN THE CENTRAL PACIFIC

By

Isaac I„ Ikehara

Fishery Research Biologist

Pacific Oceanic Fishery Investigations

Special Scientific Reports Fisheries Nco 107

WASHINGTON? JULY 1953

CONTENTS

Page

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Locations of the more productive areas around the Line and

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ILLDSTRAIIONS
Figure Page

1 Hap of the central Pacific region showing the islands

and island groups referred to in this report ooooo 2

2 A sampan typical of the Hawaiian live-bait pole and

line fishery

tyooKoooooooooooooooeooeoooaaot

Size frequency distribution of samples of yellowfin
tuna taken by the live-bait method at the Line
and Fhoenijj islands during May and June of 1951
by the Hugh M^o Smith <.oo(.ooo..o.i>oo<i<.«ooo»ooo.o..o 15

Six-pole fishing at the Line Islands during Janusiry |j'
and February 1953 aboard the Tradewind , <, o „ » » . . .. » W

INTRODUCTION

Since its Inauguration in 1949 the Pacific Oceanic Fishery-
Investigations (POFI) of the Ua So Fish and Wildlife Service has
undertaken various research projects in order to explore and develop
the high-seas fishery resources of the various territories and pos-
sessions of the United States in the tropical amd subtropical Pacifie
Ocean, One project was to conduct exploratory live-=bait fishing in
the central Pacific (figo l)o

The vast area included in figure 1 at present supports
only one importaat live-bait pole-and-=line fishery -= that which is
carried on in the immediate vicinity of the Hawaiian IslandSo Before
the iiwestigations by POFI there were sporadic attempts to fish for
tunaii' by the live-bait method in this areao The attempts for which
information is available were by the seiner-draggerj, Oregon^ which
was converted into a live-bait boat and s^hich fished m the vicinity
of the Line Islands (Smith and Schaefer 1949) and the main and lee-
ward islands of the Hawaiian group (Eckles 1949) in 19489 the tuna
clippers Pioneer and Gal i star,, which did exploratory fishing in the
vicinity of the Line Islands during 1947 and 1949 respootivelyp and
the Hawaiian sampan^/ Tradewind, which fished for tuna at the Line
Islands during January and February of 1953o The POFI vessels Hugh
E° Smith Etnd Henry O'Malley-p both built along -(^erican west coa°st
tuna clipper lineS;, conducted exploratory live-bait fishing for
tuna in the vicinity of the Line^ PhoeniXp and Hawaiian islands
during 1949 p 1950j, and 1951 „ This report deals primarily with
the observations made on these two vessels o

_l/ Yellowf in tuna ( Ne othunnu s mac ro pteru s ) „ skipjack (Katsuwonus
pelamis)j, black skipjack~(E^'fchiy^nus yaito)g and bigeye~tuna~~~
(Parathunnus sibi ) o

2/ The sampans (figo 2) in use in the Hav^aiian live-=bait fishery
during 1950 ranged in size from 6 5 to 92 feet overall lengthy
the 92-footer having a gross tonnage of 77 tonso Typically
a sampan is a modified V-bottoraed vessel j, with a narrow beam
in relation to its length,, straight raking stem„ well developed
sheer, narrow entry ^ and overhanging sponsonso There is no
mast and boom and the vessel is generally powered by a 165
to 330 Ho Po diesel engine „ A pilot house with a flying bridge
is located amidshipSp and sleeping quarters are located forwardo
Fishing is done from the deck at the stern of the vessel » Sam-
pans carry no ref ;-igeration except for some ice which is used
to ice the fish down after capture. They have 2 to 6 bait
wellSp which have a series of screened holes on the bottom
to provide circulationo

170

FIG. I MAP OF THE CENTRAL PACIFIC REGION SHOWING THE ISLANDS AND ISLAND
GROUPS REFERRED TO IN THIS REPORT.

FIG. 2. A SAMPAN TYPICAL OF THE HAWAIIAN LIVE -BAIT POLE AND LINE FISHERY.

ACKNOWLEDOffiNTS

Most of the data and information used in this report vrere
extracted from the logs of field observations kept by the scientist-
observerSj, officers;, and fishermen- crew members of the POFI research
vessel Sp Hugh Mo Smith and Henry OjJMalley^, and the commercial vessel,
TradewindT~^omparatrve data concerning €he Hawaiian fishery was pro=
vided by the Division of Fish and Game of the Territory of Hawaii,

SPECIES OF BAIT

The success of a tuna live-bait fishery depends in a
large part oft a constant and ample supply of small bait fisho In the
central Pacific many different species of fish have been used as
bait by the various exploratory vessels and the Hawaiian commercial
vessels. More complete descriptions and figures of the more impor-
tant bait fishes have been provided by June and Relntjes (1953)„
Some notes on the utility of these species as tuna bait are as
follows s

The Hawaiian anchovy (Stolephorus purpureus) is a small ,
delicate, translucent fish known in Hawaii as nehu^ The commercial
live-bait fishermen of Hawaii depend almost entirely on the nehu for ,
bait. For example^ during the year 1950 an estimated 42,000 buckets V
of bait, of vdiich approximately 96 percent was nehUg were used. These
fish are excellent tuna bait^, for when thrown into the water as chum,
they school or *ball up" and stay very close to the fishing vessel.
They are too delicate for long-distance transportation and are usually
used a day or two after capture. The nehu is caught during the day
with beach seines and during the night with lift-nets after the fish
have congregated under a submerged electric light (June 1950), To
date nehu have been caught only at the main Hawaiian Islands and at
none of' the other regions included in this reporto

The silverside (Atherina insularum) is a small fish charac-
terized by a silvery band on tTie~ide of its body. The iaop as it is
called in Hawaii j, is also an excellent tuna bait and is used irtien
availableo This species vriien thrown into the water as chum also balls
up and stays very close to the vessels The iao. is relatively hardy
and if handled properly can stand long-distance transportation. Smith
and Schaefer (1949) report catching iao at French Frigate Shoals,

3/ A "•bucket" of bait has been variously estimated to contain from
~ 5- 1/2 to 7 pounds of fish (nehu). These are estimates derived
from several attempts to ascertain the weight of aahu con-
tained in a typical bucket of bait by the Division of Fish euid
and Game, Territory of Hawaii, and by staff of the University
of Hawaii Marine Laboratory „

transporting them to the Line Island s, and returni. .;; to Honolulu
with the unused bait still in good condition,, Thus some of the iao
were kept in the bait well for approximately 20 days„ They concluded
that "This species is suitable for long=distanc6 transportation if
properly handled„'* Iao are caught primarily during the day by the use
of beach seines„ ThTs~is the second most important bait fish used in
the Hawaiian live-bait fisheryo It occurs in varying quantities
throughout the leeward Hawaiian IslandSo ^ few specimens have been
reported from Christmas Island in the Line Island groupo Another
species of silverside (Atherina. ovalaua) occurs in fair quantities at
Canton Island in the Phoenix GFoup„ It has been reported from Hull
Island alsoo

The small round herring ( Spratel 1 oide s d^eljj:^a.tulu s ) j called
piha in Hawaii g is a silvery fish which is very delicate and must be
handled very carefully if it is to survive in a bait tanko When
thrown overboard as chum they also school close to the vessel o In
factp quite often the vessel has to be moved forward to expose the
bait which have tsiken refuge under ito The piha is an excellent bait
fish but like the nehu must be used very soon after capturej, for it
does not survive long in a bait tanko It is caught during the night
by the use of a lift-net vihen. it is congregated under a submerged
lighto It is reported that the piha do not sound when surrounded by
a net in deep watero Because of'THTs behavior trait the fish may be
driven by swimmers into a night lift-net or into a seine during the
daylight hourso This fish occurs in fair quantities, at the leeward
Hawaiian Islands and also at Canton Island, It is utilized by the
Hawaiian live-bait fishermen but does not occur in important quan=
tities around the main Hawaiian IslandSo Only a few specimens have
been taien at the Line IslandSo

The mountain bass (Kuhlia sandvicensis)^ usually known by
the Hawaiian name of aholehole„ is a bright silvery fish which attains
a maximum length of approximately 10 inches o At smaller sizes this
species is judged a good tuna bait because of its schooling behavior
when thrown, overboard as chum, its ready acceptance by the tunas^, and
its ability to survive long-distance transportationo A minor diffi-
culty with aholehole is that the spines frequently catch in the nets
and also tend to prick the hands of the chunanero It occurs at the
leeward Hawaiian Islands in large quantities « Only minor quantities
of mountain bass have been caught or seen at the other regions in-
cluded in this reporto It is caught during the day with beach
seines o

The smaller individuals of the m.ullet family (Mugilidae)
have been used as bait whenever available., Smith and Sch"aef6r (l949)
used mullet 6 inches long to chum schools of yellowfm off Fanning
Island and reported, "These mullet behaved well when used to chum up
the tunao" The POFI observers aboard the Tradewind also reported
that mullet caught and used in the Line Islands by the fishermen of

the Tradewind reacted favorably i^en thrown as chum except when weak
and injured mullet (which tended to swim away from the vessel) were
usedo The largo-mullet are not desirable as bait because they too
tend to swim away from the vessels This bait fish has been used suc-
cessfully to catch tuna on many occasions and is importsuit in the
vicinity of the Line and Phoenix islands because it occurs there in
fair to large quantities. Mo longimanus and Mo vaigiensis are the
most common species of mull'et caught at the LTne and Phoenix islands o
These species have not been reported from either the main or leeward
Hawaiian Islands, The most common species of mullet caught at the
main and leeward Hawaiian Islands are the Mo cephalus and N„ chaptaliio
Mullet are available at the leeward islandTj "Kit they are "of no impor-
tance there because of the greater availability of other more desirable
species of baito They are not used in the Hawaiian live-bait fishery
because of their high market value o The mullets are relatively hardy
and can stand long-distance transportation. They can be caught readily
by the use of beach seines during the daylight hours.

The smaller individuals of the goatfish family (Mullidae)^
especially of the genus TJu 1 1 o i d i c h thys ^ have been used as chum whenever
available. It is characteristically a shallow-water fish which feeds
on organic material that it stirs up from the bottom iwith its barbelSo
The weke, as the Hawaiians call it^ is usually bright in coloro At
times it occurs in fair quantities along the beaches of most of the
leeward Hawaiian Islands, and in the Line and Phoenix area. In Hawaii
the weke is not used as chum becausep like the mullets, it has a good
market value. The reports on the behavior of the weke when used as
chum in tuna fishing are conflicting. Some observers report that they
school properly on the surface around the vessel ^ while others report
that they sound. If sounding is the typical behavior of the wekCp
it will be of only limited use in live-bait fishing. This fish is
relatively hardy and can stand long-distance transportation. It is
caught during the day by the use of beach seines.

The top minnows (Mollienesia sp,) have been used as tuna
bait by the iiawaiian fishermen in times of shortage of the more
desirable bait fish such as the nehu and iaoo The top minnows (also
known as "mollies") are small fishes v*iich occur in fair quajitities
in the streams and estuaries of some of the main Hawaiian Islands^
where they are caught with seines. These fish were originally in^tro-
duced into Hawaii from the Americsm mainland to combat mosquitoes.
The mollies are not an ideal tuna bait because of their tendency to
sound when thrown into the water as chum,

THE BAIT RESOURCES

The bait resources of the main Hawaiian Islands appear to
be fully exploited by the present commercial fleet. In 1950, a
fairly typical year,, 27 live-bait pole-and~line sampans caught
approximately 42,000 buckets of bait. Probably more would have been

used if it were available^ for during most years d-^fficulty in obtaining
bait limits the tuna catchy particularly during the height of the seasoiio
POFI experience in the Hawaiian Islands,^ as detailed in table Ij, cannor.
be used as a measure of relative abundance because the most productive
baiting areas fished by the commercial fleet were generally avoided o

The leeward islands of the Hawaiian chain may contain sub-
stantial supplies of bait that are not presently utilizedo Baiting
operations by the POFI vessels Smith and O'Malley during 1949^ 1950j,
and 1951 indicate that the best'~EaTting mi^" be^expected at Midway
Island (table l)o French Frigate Shoal s2/ may also be a promising
baiting site,, for the Oregon fishing there during January (Smith and
and Schaefer L949) and August (Eckles 1949) of 1948 caught approximately
lj,315 scoopsui' of lao in about 15 days of baiting there „ POFI baiting
operations at Fren'cH~iFrigate Shoals (table 1) were not as successful
as those of the Qregonp

The results of baiting operations by POFI vessels at the
Line Islands have been only moderately successful (table 1)„ Both
the Oregon and the Calistar were unable to get any appreciable amount
of bait til ere either o The Calistar was reported to have obtained only
8 scoops of bait-size mullet at Palmyra and the Oregon only 30 scoops
of 6-inch mullet at Christmas Island, During the latter part of 1947
the Pioneer was reported to have caught 400 scoops of mullet at Palmyra
and another 200 scoops at Christmas Islands The sampan Tradewindj,
fishing in the vicinity of the Line Islands during January and February
of 1953„ caught bait- size mullet as follows" 242 buckets at Palmyra^
85 buckets at Fanning Island, and 19 buckets at Christmas Island,
Actually only a limited number of observations on the bait supply at
the Line Islands have been made, Christmas Island,, with a circum-
ference of 105 milesjis one of the largest atolls in the world and
the few observations and attempts at baiting made there have not ade-
quately sampled this site. One scouting expedition in June of 1951
to the lagoon at Fanning Island located only a few schools of aholeholej,
but during February 1953 the Trade wind was able to catch an adequate
supply of mullet without any troubleo Past experience has shown that
the catchable bait at Palmyra Island is usually exhausted after only
a few days of baitingo The other islands and reefs of the Line group
do not appear to be suitable baiting sites either because of an insuf-
ficient bait supply or because of the difficulty of landingo

4,/ Owing to bad weather during January and February of 1950, only 6
out of 18 days were such that any bait fishing or scouting could
be done,

5/ A scoop is estimated to contain about 10 pounds of fish (Smith
and Schaefer 1949),

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The only likely baiting site in the Phoenix Islands is
at Canton Island (table 1 ) ,, where a sizable fish population is found
in the lagoon„ Besides the mullet and weke which comprised the
major portions of the bait catch there, some piha and iao_ have been
caughto Good-sized schools of small mullet have been observed in
the shoal parts of the lagoon. Baiting in this lagoon is made haz-
ardous by the presence of coral headso These also form barriers in
places and prevent access into certain areas with a bait skiff and
bait receivero (This is generally true of most of the lagoons dis-
cussedo) There were no baiting operations except for a few sporadic
night light and scouting attempts conducted at the other islands of
the Phoenix group;, for very few fish of suitable size were observed
there, and also landing v/as very difficult except during low tide
and calm weather o

In general there appear to be at least moderate supplies of
unutilized bait m some of the Line^, leeward Hawaiian^ and Phoenix
islandso These supplies do not appear adequate for the West Coast
tuna clipper type of operationo They might supply a limited number
of small live-bait boats like those used in the Hawaiian fishery,
especially if techniques and gear were devised to capture bait in
the very shoal and hazardous areas of the lagoons, Furthermores
it should be realized that the bait resources of these areas (ex-
cluding Hawaii) are virtually not utilized at present and the effect
of exploitation on the stocks cannot be predicted,,

TUNA FISHING vVITH LIVE BAIT

The POFI program of live-bait fishing in the central
Pacific was designed primarily to provide a rough evaluation of the
surface tuna resources in the various regions of the central Pacific
and their amenability to harvest by this methodo POFI fishing in
the vicinity of the Hawaiian IslandSj where a coiimercial fishery^/
already exists, v/as primarily designed to test the feasibility of
the American west coast live-bait methods and gear in that area.

Previous to the POFI explorations se-^^eral attempts were
made to prospect for tuna in the central Pacific area. In 1948 the
Oregon, sent out by the Pacific Exploration Company , caught very few

6/ During 19 50, an average year, approximately 9,500,000 pounds of
~ skipjack were caught. The record postwar catch vvas made in 1951,
when approximately 12,926,000 pounds of skipjack were caught,
(A catch limitation was in effect during the last 3 weeks of the
1951 season,)

10

tuna at the Line Islands (Smith and Schaefer 1949) and only 186 tuna,
mostly skipjackp in the vicinity of the Hawaii^.n Islands (Eckles
1949 )« The commercial tuna clipper Calistar„/, fishing in the vicinity
of the Line Islands during February of l9i^7 caught approximately 50
tons of yellowfin at Fanning Island and another 15 tons of yellowfin
at Palmyra Island, The Pioneer., during the latter part of 1947 „ caught
7 tons of yellowfinj, mostly around Fanning and Christmas islands o
During January and February of 1953 the Tradgwind caught 7 tons of
yellowfin at Palmyra Island and another '6-1/2 tons at Fanning Island,

The results of live-bait fishing in the central PacifiCj, as
conducted by POFI (table 2)^ indicate that the most promising unex-
ploited area in the central Pacific is the Line Islands^ where less
time spent scouting and fishing for tuna resulted in the greatest
catch„ Furthermore J, practically all of the catch from the Line Islands
was the more desirable yellowfin tuna (see table 3)<, The Phoenix
Islands area, where the bulk of the catch is also yellowfin, appears
less promisingo The Hawaiian Islands catch is almost all skipjackj,
with only a very small amount of yellowfin caught. There are not
enough data available to evaluate the leeward Hawaiian Islands,

There are other factors besides the total tuna catch which
indicate that the Line Islands is the most promising area for future
expansion, A greater percentage of the fish schools sighted there
exhibited behavior that permitted the vessel to get into a chumming
position. Furthermore p nearly 50 percent of the schools chummed at
the Line Islands yielded fishj, as compared with 23 percent and 32
percent for the Phoenix and Hawaiian islands respectively (table 2),
Consistently greater catches of tuna were made from each individual
school at the Line Islands, On the other hand, there were more schools
of fish seen per unit time of fishing and scouting at the Phoenix
Islands than at the other two areas, but only a relatively small pro-
portion of these could be fished. Another factor favoring the Line
Islands area is its relative proximity to the Hawaiian Islands,
Palmyra Island is approximately 960 miles from Honolulu,

LOCATING SCHOOLS

The majority of the tuna schools were located through
their association with flocks of birds. Only on rare occasions
were the schools sighted by POFI vessels located by "breezing** or

7/ The Calistar baited up with li,800 scoops of anchovetas from
~~ Magdalena Bay, Lower California^ before going to the Line
Islands,

11

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Table 3o-=Weight (in tons) of the tuna caught with live-bait
by species and areas »

Locality

Yellowfin

Skipjack

Total tuna

Line ISo

29„31

0ol4

29o45

Phoenix Is„

5„06

Ool5

5o21

Main Hawaiian ISo

Oo02

0o59

O06I

Leeward Hawaiia.n Is,

0

0

OoO

Table 4,— The distribution of tuna schools fished with live-
bait by POFI vessels at the Line and Phoenix
islands in relation to the distance from land and
the prevailing direction of the wind,,

Locality

Distance from reef
or shore

Line Islands

Kingman Reef

Within 1/2 mile

Kingman Reef

Between 1=3 miles

Palmyra I„

Between 1-3 miles

Washington I„

Within 1/2 mil©

Fanning lo

Within 1/2 mile

Fanning lo

Between 1-3 miles

Fanning lo

4 miles

Christmas lo

7-1/2 miles

Christmas 1„

11 miles

Jarvis I„

Within 1/2 mile

Total s

Phoenix Islands

Canton I„

Between 1-3 miles

Canton I,

3-1/2 miles

Enderbury lo

Within 1/2 mile

Hull I„

Within 1/2 mile

Birnie I„

Within 1/2 mile

Birnie lo

Between 1=3 miles

Total ;

Amount of tuna caught (tons'
Leeward Side Windward Side

13

"jumping" fisl^/, or by the presence of porpoise with the schools.
At the Line and phoenix islands a number of schools were located by
trolling. Vfhen a strike occurred, bait was broadcast to bring the
school up to the vessel. This method was used extensively by the
Tradewind and Calistar during their exploratory cruises to the Line
Islands,

LOCATIONS OF THE MORE PRODUCTIVE AREAS AROUND

THE LINE AND PHOENIX ISLANDS

In the vicinity of the Line and Phoenix islands 91 percent
and 82 percent by weight respectively of the tuna taken by POFI
live-bait vessels were caught on the lee.vard side of the islands.
Furthermore, 63 percent ajid 81 percent by weight of the tuna caught
with live-bait in the Line and Phoenix islands respectively have
been caught within 3 miles of the reef or shore» These percentages
may be slightly biased because there was a tendency to work the in-
shore and the lee waters of the islands longer and more often since
generally more fish schools were seen £ind caught there, and the
weather was more favorable » POFI trolling results also indicate that
yellowfin tuna in the Line Islands are more abundant on the lee side
of the islands than on their windward sides (see Bates 1950),

SIZE OF FISH

Most of the yellowfin caught by the live-bait method at the
Line and Phoenix islands consist of fish weighing between 20 to 30
pounds (fig, 3). These are normally caught on a one-pole rig.
Generally, these smaller one-pole fish are the first to take the
hooks ^ and later the larger, deeper- swimning ones will come to the
surface and begin biting (fig, 4), These mixed-size schools occur
very commonly in the close proximity of the islands of the Line
and Phoenix areas „ The non-uniformity in size of the yellowfin
makes the fishing difficult and hazardous, and often prevents a good
catch from being made,

SEASONAL VARIATIONS

Seasonal variation in the abundance of tuna in the Line
and Phoenix islands may exist, but our fishing data at present are

%/ "Breezing" occurs when the school swims close to the surface and
causes the water to have the appearance of a tide rip or wind
disturbance. "Jumping schools" are characterized by occasional
fish jumping out of the water,

14

CD

57 62 67 72 77 82 87 92 97 102 107 112 117 122 127 132 137 142 147 152 157 162 167

CENTIMETER

FIG 3. SIZE FREQUENCY DISTRIBUTION OF SAMPLES OF YELLOWFIN TUNA TAKEN BY
THE LIVE-BAIT METHOD AT THE LINE AND PHOENIX ISLANDS DURING MAY
AND JUNE OF 1951 BY THE HUGH M SMITH.

X'\

FIG 4. SIX -POLE FISHING AT THE LINE ISLANDS DURING JANUARY AND FEBRUARY
1953 ABOARD THE TRADEWIND.

15

neither numerous enough nor well enough distributed throughout the
year to permit formulation of conclusions concerning seasonalityo
In the Hawaiian area the skipjack exhibit marked seasonal fluctu-
ations, with the bulk of the catch made during the summer months
(Matsumoto 1952 )« Fishing by the Oregon, CalistaTj and Trade wind
indicates that at least moderate supplies of yellowfin are available
at the Line Islands during the Hawaiian off-season (northern winter )o
Fishing by the Smith and C'Malley at the Line Islemds during the
Hawaiian season (northern summer) indicate that the yellowfin are also
available during that periodo

THE SHARK PROBLEM

In the vicinity of the Line Islands the working of 10 of
the 36 schools for v/hich we have records was hampered by sharks. In
most instances the tuna were beginning to take chum and were being
caught and brought aboard the vessel when the sharks moved in^,
causing the tuna to become wary. This either forced a cessation of
fishing or reduced the catch„ ' There is little doubt that the tuna
catch from this area can be increased if means can be found to
eliminate or discourage interference by the sharkSo

Possibly related to the shark problem is the belief of some
fishennen that the tuna shy away from the vessel after a few fish
have been hooked and their blood has washed into the water. It may
be that the tuna blood is a repellent or more likely that the tuna
associate bloody water with sharkSo Cleaver and Shimada (1950)
report that the Japanese live-bait fishermen stop the deck scuppers
**oo«oooo with rags and waste to prevent blood from dripping into the
water and discouraging fish from biting,"

DISCUSSION

The limited number of observations on hand at the present
time indicate that live-bait fishing at the Line Islands is fairly
good but not as highly productive as off the American west coast.
The Smith and O'Malley fishing at the Line Islands during May, June,
and August were able to catch tuna at the rate of 29,45 tons to 64,3
hours of scouting and fishing. At this rate, it would take approxi-
mately 43 days of scouting and fishing to catch a 200- ton load. This
does not include the time spent baiting or the time spent traveling
to and from the Line Islands, By v/ay of comparison, in the West Coast
live-bait tuna fishery it takes approximately 7 to 8 weeks (Ck)dsil
1938) for the clippers to come back to their home port with a load of
tuna^Z, This total time includes the time spent baiting, traveling to

9/ A load is estimated as approximately 200 tons. This is a rough
~ estimate derived from figures quoted in the Pacific Fisherman
during the fall of 1951,

16

and from the fishing grounds, and fishing„ The best catch experienced
by POFI vessels in a single day's fishing at the Line Islands was approxi-
mately 10»46 tonSj mosxly yellowfin, caught off Christmas Island by the
1^1 gh Mo Smith in June 1951, whereas in the West Coast fishery^ Godsil
(1938"J writes, "On an average trip, a crew will count upon two or three
'good' days of fishing with a daily catch of 20 to 50 tons.," However,
he further states that, "It is far more common to get a ton or two from
the first attack into a fresh school, with returns dwindling upon each
successive tryo "

A comparison of the catch rates of the Hawaiian commercial
fishery with the Line Island rates made by the Smith, 0' Mai ley, and
Tradewind indicates that on the average live^bait fishing for tuna is
better in the Line Islands, although higher catch rates are recorded
on occasion at Hawaii^ During the 1950 Hawaiian skipjack season, the
sampans caught on the average 2ol tons of skipjack per boat per fish-
ing dayo The tuna clippers Smith and O'Malley fishing in the Line
Islands during the summer months of 1950 and 1951 were able to catch
approximately 4„58 tons, mostly of yellowfin tuna, per 10 hours of
actual scouting and fishing. The 4c. 58 tons average surpasses the aver-
age catch per boat per day even during the peak month of the 1950
Hawaiian seasono (The average catch per boat per day during the peak
month was 3o7 tons„ ) During the 1950 Hawaiian skipjack season the best
catch made by a single boat in one day was approximately 18o5 tons and
that of the 1951 season (a very good season) was approximately 25oO tonSo
The best day's catch experienced in the Line Islands was 10„46 tonSo

The catch rate of the sampan Tradewind during January and
February 1953 was not as good as those of the Smith and O'Malley „ There
are factors such as seasonality which may have caused this difference
in the catch rateso The Tradewind caught 13=1/2 tons of yellowfin in
71o9 hours of actual fishing and scouting. This amounts to approxi-
mately lo9 tons of tuna per 10 hours, a figure which, made during the
Hawaiian off-season, compares well with the 2,, 1-ton average per boat
per day of the 1950 Hawaiian season.

The results of the explorations by the Smith , O'Malley, Pioneer,
and Calistar have shown that the tuna in the central Pacific can be
caught by tuna clippers » Although fair catches were made, most observers
question whether the clipper is the most efficient vessel to use in
harvesting these tuna. The moderately rough seas which occur quite
frequently in this area make fishing from the side racks of a tuna
clipper very difficult. Furthermore, the rapid and erratic actions
of the fish indicate that a faster and more highly maneuverable vessel
than the 100= or 128-foot clippers used in these investigations would
be more desirable. Bait is also not available in the central Pacific
area in the quantity that a tuna-clipper fleet requires.

The sampan type of vessel appears to be the best suited
for this area, although it also has some shortcomingSo In the

17

Hawaiian live-bait fishery the sampan i3 used almost exclusively.
Fishing on these vessels can be done in moderately rough seas without
difficulty„ These sampans are small compared to the tuna clippers
and stay out for only a few days at the mo3t„ They have the speed
and maneuverability to cope with the "wild" central Pacific tuna,
but because of their small carrying capacity and limited cruising
range, they are suitable only when operating near their home baseo
If fishing is to be done in such distant areas as the Phoenix or
Line islands, problems of fueling and carrying a paying load of fish
have to be solvedo This may be accomplished either by building
boats with the performance characteristics of sampans but self-
contained logistically , or through the use of motherships or bases
on the islands,

CONCLUSIONS

lo Observations on the reactions, characteristics, and availability
of the different species of bait fish indicate that the best all-
around baits are the iao (silverside) and the aholehole (mountain
bas3)o They are both available at the leeward Hawaiian Islands
in fair to large quantities, behave favorably when used as chum,
and can stand long-distance transportationo Small mullet are
also valuable bait fish. They can stand long-distance trans-
portation, attract tuna when they are in good condition, and are
one of the most common fish in the Line and Phoenix islands.
The nehu (Hawaiian anchovy) and piha (small round herring),
which are very good tuna bait, are both too delicate to endure
long-distance transportation, and to date have not been found in
sufficient quantities either at the Line or Phoenix islands.
The goatfish and mollies both were observed to behave in a man-
ner not conducive to good live-=bait fishing,

2, The present results indicate that the best baiting ground in the
central Pacific is at the main Hawaiian Islands, where the com-
mercial fleet appears to be utilizing the bait stocks nearly to
the limit. The best area for future expansion of the baiting
grounds appears to be the leeward islands of the Hawaiian group,
especially Midway Island, French Frigate Shoals may be another
good baiting site, but to date bait has been caught there only
in erratically varying quantities. The Phoenix eind Line islands,
the area showing the most promise with regard to the yellowfin
catch, have less bait than the leeward Hawaiian Islands, Possibly
with the development of gear and techniques for baiting in very
shallow water and with complete surveys of the various lagoons,
particularly those of Christmas and Fanning islands, ample sup-'
plies of bait vd.ll be found for a limited fleet of small vessel So
It must be realized that the leeward Hawaiian, Line, and Phoenix
areas are as yet relatively unexploited and the amount of fishing
pressure that the bait stocks can stand is not known,

18

Yellowfin tuna may be caught by the live-bait method at the Line
Islands throughout most of the year;, although the fishing to date
has not been as productive as that of the American west coasto
Nevertheless, fishing at the Line Islands during the winter is good
compared to that of Hawaiij, ifl^ich usually comes almost to a stand-
still at this time of the yearo The fishing during the summer at
the Line Islsinds appears to be better than that at the Hawaiian
Islands during the skipjack season. Fishing at the Line and Phoenix
islands seems to be best within 3 miles of the reefs and shore and
in the lee of the islandso

The live-bait catch at the Line and Phoenix islands is predomi-
nantly yellowfin tuna and that of the Hawaiian Islands is skipjacko

Because of the wild and erratic actions of the central Pacific
tuna, the necessity of fishing in moderate to rough seas, and the
lack of sufficient bait for clipper- type operations, the tuna
clipper does not appear to be the most efficient vessel to use
in that region„ What is required is a vessel that is fast and
highly maneuverable but suitable for fishing in fairly rough
seaso The sampans used in the Hawaiian fishery are capable of
coping with the above conditions^ but their short cruising range
and small carrying capacity prevent them from going far from their
bases.

19

LITEPATUHE CITED

Bates, Donald Ho Jr,

1950. Tuna trolling in the Linelslands in the late spring of
1950. Uo S, Fish and Wildlive Servo, Fish, Leaf. 351 „,
pp, l-31o

Cleaver > Fo Co and B, M, Shimada

I95O0 Japanese skipjack (Katsuwonus pelamis) fishing nethodSo
U. S. Fish and Wildlife Serv„, Commo Fish, Rev., volo
12, No. 11, pp, l-27o

Eckles, Howard H.

1949. Fishery exploration in the Hawaiian Islands. U« S, Fish
and Wildlife Serv,, Conrnio ■''ish. Rev., vol. 11, No. 6,
pp. 1-9.

Godsil, H. C,

1938. The high seas tuna fishery of California, Calif. Fish
and Game Report. Bureau of Marine Fish. Bull. No. 51,
pp. 1-41.

June , F . C o

1950. The tuna industry in Hawaii. Pan-American Fish,, volo
4, No. 10, p. 19.

June, F, C, and J. W. Reintjes

1953, Common tuna-bait fishes of the central Pacific. U. S.
^'ish and Wildlife Serv,, Research 34 (in press).

Matsumoto, Walter M.

1952. Experimental surface gill net fishing for skipjack in
Hawaiian waters. U. S. Fish and Wildlife Serv., Spec,
Sci. Rep, - Fisheries No. 90.

Smith, 0. R. and M. B. Schaefer

1949. Fishery exploration in the western Pacific. U. S. Fish
and i,Yildlife Serv., Comm. Fish. Rev., vol. 11, No, 3,
pp. 1-18,

20

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