The Fish Ball

Airman Adrian Cronauer Slurps a Fishball

   For many of us, when we think of a fish ball, we think of something swimming in an excessively spicy Asian soup...the broth that made Robin Williams gag when all he really wanted was to make time with the pretty Vietnamese girl in Saigon.   Here in Kailua this term is applied to a  large conglomeration of fish.  Frequently it is called a bait ball.  For the last month or more, we have been graced by a large, teeming mass of fish right in Kailua harbor.  On several occasions, I have had the opportunity to swim among this multitude.  A week ago, with our daughter Leslie, we had a chance to see something pretty amazing and get some photographs in clear water.

Four Ulua Hunting at Kailua Pier

    That day the mass of fish in question was fairly close in, only as far out as the second swim buoy.  In fact, we swam past it and were attracted back to it by four ulua swimming with purpose.  In Hawaii, the term ulua is applied to several large jacks.  Most commonly Blue Fin Trevally.  This is a handsome fish that is seen frequently, hunting singly or in pairs.  One never sees an ulua with out the sense that it is hunting.  Like a wolf.  (A couple times I have seen ulua that were three feet in length and wondered if they were considering me as a tasty morsel.)  One or two ulua may hunt with some other fish, like a Multibar Goatfish.  However, it is not common to see four hunting together.  So we followed them a few meters and they brought us to the ball of fish.

Blue Fin Trevally with Big Eye Scad

     As we approached the large mass of fish, we had an additional treat.  There were not four trevally hunting the scad, but at least ten.  I had never seen so many Blue Fin Trevally in one place.  I watched them for about fifteen minutes.  Although ulua always look like they are hunting, I have never seen them take a fish as prey.  On this day they swam through the school singly or in larger formations, apparently looking for a weaker fish that would be easy prey.  I was reminded of Richard Dreyfus in Never Cry Wolf explaining how the wolves keep the caribou strong.  These ulua were busy doing their part to keep the scad strong..On my watch, they did not find a weak individual and I still haven't seen a trevally take another fish.

Big Eye Scad, Kailua Kona November 2012

     We had seen this bait ball several times before, but always at least ten feet deep and always in cloudy water.  Today the multitude was swimming in clear water, frequently very near the surface.  These delightful conditions afforded us the opportunity to take a few good pictures.  These photos permit us to identify the fish as Big Eye Scad, another member of the jack family.

   We've been interacting with this group of fish for a while and you may recall that I've been calling them scad.  However, when I repaired to the field guides, I had to admit that the distinction between Big Eye Scad and Hawaiian Flagtail, at least for us amateurs who don't actually have the fish in a lab, is pretty darn subtle.   They are roughly the same size, relatively deep bodied and silvery.  The immature flagtail, a common tidepool fish, has a tail striped black and white.  There is no banner on the caudal fin of the adult.   After a lot of consideration, I have decided that the best field mark is a concavity of the snout  on the flagtail.  Additionally, the caudal fin of the scad is a little finer and more scissor-like, but this is a softer call and relies on judgement.

Big Eye Scad.  No concavity on the snout!

   Furthermore, behavior doesn't help very much.  Both form aggregations in calm shallow water by day and disperse at night to feed.  Both are apparently taken as food fish.  I wonder if the Hawaiians have trouble differentiating the akule from the aholehole?   And how do they taste?  Perhaps I should ask the ulua.

jeff

Today's blog is dedicated to my brother, Chuck Hill, on his big 6 0.  Chuck is a fantastic writer and the Kona Beach Blog was his idea.  He has been an invaluable source of advice and encouragement.  So Happy Birthday, Chuck!  This fish is for you!

jwh