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mems
10-04-2005, 11:50 PM
Aloha, moi are the fish reserved for kings. In ancient hawaii if you ate one and were a commoner you got your head smashed in. They are very sweet fish. I got one this evening down at Honolii river mouth. There is a school of nehu, minnows, and the predators come by in the evening to attack them. I got a moi, and a nice papio. It was good fun on the 8wt, and the surfers were impressed. I fried them up for dinner, and my boy loved it. Hope you guys like the pictures, Mems
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a371/mems15/100_1694.jpg
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a371/mems15/100_1693.jpg

jbird
10-05-2005, 07:24 PM
Nice Don! I love reading your reports from paradise. 8)

Jbird

Tony Buzolich
10-05-2005, 08:40 PM
So, how was it? I've never eaton Moi but I've had papio numerous times.

The "lilikoi" was just to get Darian going again on recipes. :P
TONY

David Lee
10-05-2005, 09:08 PM
Cool shots , Mems !

The Moi is the first photo ?? The second is a Papio ????

Nice fishes !!!!

David

Darian
10-05-2005, 10:17 PM
Recipe's.... Hmmmm,..... Haven't been able to find any Star Fruit, lately. Mems sent me some Li Hing Mui powder to try on the Star Fruit but..... :? :?

Li Hing Mui powder has a salty taste to it and I'm thinking it might just lend itself as an addition to fried Calamari served with an Eel sauce Aioli and cucumber sunomono as a side..... :?: :?: Maybe a little premium sake, served cold.... :D :D :D (....Where's the emoticon with a lamp shade on its head :?: )

Wadda ya thin :?: :?: :?:

Bill Kiene semi-retired
10-05-2005, 10:26 PM
Great info Mems.........my sister lived on the Big Island for a while but now she is on Oahou. He daughter has bought a lot on the Big Island and will be building a house there.

How long have you been over there?

Is a moi the same as a Goat Fish?

mems
10-06-2005, 02:18 AM
Aloha, I got another moi tonight. I sauteed it in virgin olive oil, maui onions, garlic, capers, a little cajun spice, lemon and soem chili pepper. It was to die for. Very moist white fish, delicate flavor, kinda like opakapaka but sweeter.
The first moi I pan fried with the papio fillets in seasoned bread crumps and Zataran's fish fry mixture. I love papio, but the moi was even better. The moi is not a goat fish, but a pacific threadfin. It has a translucent nose, and the mouth is under the chin. They have a series of wiskers under the chin for finding food in the sand. The pin raised moi they use for the resturants loose their wiskers from swimming around in the tanks. Their meat is not as tasty as they are fed fish pellets.
Moi is a fish that likes to school, if the first one breaks you off, he will take the school with them. In Hawaii they are the most prized in-shore species to eat. They are also great little fighters, they have a very large tail, and the 5lbs make great strong runs. I am pretty lucky to have eaten moi two nights in a row. I have been living like a king.
Tony, I heard they have great schools of Moi at midway island on the inside reefs. I hope that place gets open to fishing again, I will have to make a trip there at least once.
Darian, use the li hing mui with coconut milk and steam a nice snapper in it. That is a great recipe, throw in a little lemon grass for zing. Enjoy, Mems.

Darian
10-06-2005, 09:52 AM
MMMmmm,.... Snapper/coconut milk/lemon grass n' Li Hing Mui powder. A taste of Thai type cookin'. Can't wait to try this out.... 8) 8) 8)

Bill Kiene semi-retired
10-06-2005, 10:01 AM
Found this article on the web on "Pacific Threadfin:

Impact of hatchery releases on the recreational fishery for Pacific threadfin in Hawaii - Polydactylus sexfilis
Fishery Bulletin, Jan, 2003 by Alan M. Friedlander, David A. Ziemann


Abstract--The Pacific threadfin (Polydactylus sexfilis) is considered one of the premier Hawaiian food fishes but even with catch limits, seasonal closures, and size limits, catches have declined dramatically since the 1960s. It was identified as the top candidate species for stock enhancement in Hawaii, based on the decline in stocks, high market value, and importance of the fishery.

In the stock enhancement program for Pacific threadfin, over 430,000 fingerlings of various sizes were implanted with coded wire tags and released in nursery habitats along the windward coast of Oahu between 1993 and 1998. Because few Pacific threadfin were present in creel surveys conducted between 1994 and 1998, Oahu fishermen were offered a $10 reward for each threadfin that was caught (for both hatchery-reared and wild fish). A total of 1882 Pacific threadfin were recovered from the reward program between March 1998 and May 1999, including 163 hatchery-reared fish, an overall contribution of 8.7% to the fishery. Hatchery-reared fish accounted for as high as 71% of returns in the release areas. Hatchery-reared fish were recovered on average 11.5 km (SD=9.8 km) from the release site, although some had moved as far away as 42 km. Average age for recovered hatchery-reared fish was 495 days; the oldest was 1021 days.

Cultured Pacific threadfin juveniles survived and recruited successfully to the recreational fishery, accounting for 10% of fishermen's catches on the windward side of Oahu. Recruitment to the fishery was highest for the 1997 release year; few juveniles from earlier releases were observed. Presence of a few large, fully developed females in the recreational fishery suggested that hatchery-reared fish can survive, grow, and reproductively contribute to the population. Implementation of an enhancement program that is focused on juveniles and perhaps large females, as part of an integrated fishery management strategy, could speed the recovery of this fish population.

Declining marine fish stocks worldwide have led to an increased interest in marine fish stock enhancement (Blankenship and Leber, 1995; Schramm and Piper, 1995; Leber et al., 1996; Grimes, 1998; Howell et al., 1999). Stock enhancement of marine fishes has progressed since the late 1800s and several successful marine fish stock enhancement programs have been documented; however, nearly all have been directed toward temperate species such as chum salmon (Kaeriyama, 1996), Japanese flounder (Kitada et al., 1992), red sea bream (Imai et al., 1994; reviewed by Masuda and Tsukamoto, 1998), and red drum (McEachron and Daniels, 1995; McEachron et al., 1998). In one successful marine fish stock enhancement program in the tropics, hatchery-reared striped mullet (Mugil cephalus) successfully recruited to the fishery, accounting for 13% of the commercial mullet catch in Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii (Leber and Arce, 1996).

The Pacific threadfin (Polydactylus sexfilis), known locally as "moi," is the only representative of the threadfin family (Polynemidae) in Hawaii (Randall, 1996). The distribution of Pacific threadfin extends throughout the Indo-Pacific region from Madagascar (Bleeker, 1875) to the Ogasawara Islands of southern Japan, east to Hawaii and south to the Tuamotu Archipelago (Randall et al., 1990; Myers, 1991). In ancient Hawaiian culture, Pacific threadfin were reserved for the ruling chiefs and prohibited for consumption by commoners (Titcomb, 1972). Pacific threafin were formerly harvested commercially, but commercial catches have declined steadily since the 1950s and have essentially ceased since 1968 when the daily catch limit was restricted to 15 fish per person. This decline in abundance, particularly around the more populated areas of the state, is likely the cumulative result of years of chronic overfishing (Shomura (1)). Current regulations comprise the following: a catch limit of 15 fish per person per day; a minimum fish size of 7 inch. TL (ca. 14.5 cm FL) for caught fish; and a closed season from 1 June to 30 September.

Pacific threadfin are typically found over shallow sand fiats, along high wave-energy rocky shorelines, and in sandy beach wash zone habitats (Hosaka, 1990; Leber et al., 1998). They can also be found in turbid water near stream mouths and brackish mangrove estuaries (Randall et al., 1990; Myers, 1991). Local fishermen call areas where adult Pacific threadfin congregate "moi holes" (Hosaka, 1990); these usually occur in shoreline caves or sandy depressions and sand channels in the surf zone among boulders or reef areas.

Pacific threadfin are protandric hermaphrodites, initially maturing as males after a year at about 20-25 cm; they then undergo a sex reversal, passing through a hermaphroditic stage and becoming functional females between 30 and 40 cm FL at about three years of age (Santerre and May, 1977; Santerre et al., 1979; Szyper et al., 1991). Spawning occurs inshore and eggs are dispersed and hatched offshore (Lowell, 1971). Larvae and juveniles are pelagic up to about 6 cm FL, at which size they enter inshore habitats including surf zones, reefs, and stream entrances (Santerre and May, 1977; Santerre et al., 1979). Newly settled young Pacific threadfin, locally called "moi-lii" (Lowell, 1971; Tinker, 1982), appear in shallow waters in summer and fall where they are the dominant member of the nearshore surf zone fish assemblage (Ziemann et al. (2)).

Pacific threadfin is a popular and much sought-after sport fish that also supports a small subsistence fishery in Hawaii (Santerre et al., 1979; Leber et al., 1998). It is presently an important species in the Hawaii recreational fishery because of its reputation as one of the best tasting fishes in Hawaii (Hosaka, 1990) and its high market value (wholesale market price over US$3.00 per kilogram). A species prioritization study conducted early in the stock enhancement research program in Hawaii identified Pacific threadfin as the top candidate for stock enhancement, based partly on the decline of its stocks, its high market value, and importance in the recreational fishery (Oceanic Institute (3)). As part of the Stock Enhancement of Marine Fish in the State of Hawaii (SEMFISH) program funded by the National Marine Fisheries Service, juvenile Pacific threadfin were released in nursery habitats along the windward coast of Oahu between 1993 and 1997 to evaluate the contribution of hatchery-reared fish to the local fishery. Leber et al. (1998) demonstrated site-specific potential success in stocking programs for juveniles in 1993-94. The purpose of this article is to provide long-term tracking of catches to determine the contribution of hatchery-produced fish versus wild stocks in the recreational fishery on the windward side of Oahu.

Methods

The culture of Pacific threadfin at the Oceanic Institute (OI) is described by Ostrowski et al. (1996). Most fish were released into coastal waters between day 60 for small juveniles (70-85 mm FL) and day 90 for larger juveniles (130-150 mm FL).

During each of five release years, 10,000 to 100,000 juveniles (per release site) were sorted by size and released in multiple lots over 3-5 months; the total number released per release site usually varied between years (Table 1, Fig. 1). Over the five release years, a total of 430,994 Pacific threadfin fingerlings were released. Before release, all fish received coded wire tags (Northwest Marine Technology, Inc., Shaw Island, WA: Jefferts et al., 1963) in the snout area to identify release lots by release size, date, and location. Approximately 5% of each release lot was retained in culture at OI to determine tag retention rates. Fish were examined monthly from 1 to 6 months until tag loss rates stabilized (i.e. when the number lost had not increased since the previous month). Tag retention rates varied from 93% to 99%. All calculations of tag recovery rates were based on coded--wire-tag data adjusted for tag retention rates.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

We conducted a roving creel survey, encompassing all release areas, intermittently from 1994 to 1998 on the windward side of Oahu 1) to determine if released Pacific threadfin were surviving and being caught in the fishery, 2) to estimate Pacific threadfin CPUE in the recreational fishery, and 3) to inform fishermen about the Pacific threadfin enhancement program. Fishermen were interviewed at boat docks and along the coastline to collect information about their catch and effort (species, lengths, number of hours fished per gear type). All Pacific threadfin in the catches were scanned for coded wire tags with a hand-held Northwest Marine Technologies cwt sensor ("wand").

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FDG/is_1_101/ai_97483547

mems
10-06-2005, 03:56 PM
Aloha Bill, thanks for the report. Yeah they are trying to raise moi and release them. I don't know how well the pen raised ones do with out the wiskers. They use them to find food. The ones I caught were wild fish. I do like the name, polydactylus sexfilis. Sounds like something I was trying to do during my college years. It is also cool that they grow up to become women. I will need to tell my wife that. She often acts more mature than I do.
I hope they make a come back. They are just so good to eat, that it will be tough! Maybe we need a slot limit on the females, that might help to have more, and makes sense. Thanks again, Don.
P.S. I have lived in Hawaii for over 20 years. The Big Island is great.