Journal of The Pacific Society / October 1999 / No. 84 - 85 (Vo1. 22, No.

3 4) (13)
-80-

MARINE KNOWLEDGE AND SUBSISTENCE FISHING PRACTICES AT

FERAFALU VILLAGE, MAANA'OBA ISLAND,

MALAITA PROVINCE, SOLOMON ISLANDS

Norman Quinnl
Patrick Daudau
Biology Department
School of Pure and Applied Sciences
University of the South Pacific
Suva, Fiji

gratilla - white morph) represent 957c of the shellfish

ABSTRACT catch. The CPUE per trip increased as expected with
The marine resources near Ferafalu village, Malaita the number of fishermen from 3.3 kg per trip for solo
Island, Solomon lslands, support a subsistence fishery fishermen to 12.3 kg per trip for groups with more than
fbr approximately 220 inhabitants. About 30-40 men and [i ve.

l0-20 women fish regularly. Their fishing practices
commonly include the use of handlines (aoao la), diving
with iron rod (.susu'u la), spring loaded spear guns (stsaa
ana kwanga), spears with wrapped coconut bundle
(kwesu la), rope fishing (oko), baitfish fishing (ala'a),
The marine resources of isolated communities have
become increasingly important as a food source for the
developing urban population in Honiara as well as tbr
export. This has resulted in pressure to increase har-
vests liom these resources. However, traditional marine

and ilsh poisoning (afta). Less frequently used tradi- management groups, comprising local resource owners,

tional fishing practices such as sago palm kite fishing
(drugo), fish poisoning (uka), and the use of wrapped
coconut meat (kwesu /a) are likely to cease within this
generation. The recent use of small mesh gill nets,
explosives, nontraditional fish poisons, underwater
torches and "lockline" fishing have resulted in the
extirpation or severe depletion of several fish stocks.
Villagers are concemed about the threats posed by these
technologies and have begun to limit their use. The
recent introduction of new religious beliefs has also
altered the villager's utilization of marine resources.
Kurumusi (Siganus spinus), szrz (Lethrinidae), bubu
sidai (Rhinecanthus rectangulus), and bubu fahato
(Rhinecanthus verucosus) represent 90Vo of the finfish
caught. Ragotcti (Lambis truncata), binu kero
(Tripneustes gratilla - red morph), binu laungi (7.
strongly believe that they should be consulted before
any decision is made to develop their resourcd:s.
INTRODUCTION
Fishing is the most important protein source for
coastal villagers on Malaita and most of the Solomon
Islands (Miller, 1978; Skewes, 1990). The IVlalaita
Province is known fbr its high population densiry,4,214/
km2 in 1986 (lnstitute of Pacific Studies, 1989). This
high population density is probably related to the
abundance of food from the sea and the local people's
skill and knowledge about its sustainable exploitation.
Fishing practices are an integral part of Malaitp soci-
eties social and cultural values as well as being essen-
tial for the survival of the community. For example,
marine products are an important element in the barter

rPresent Address: Biology Department, University of Papua New Guinea, PO. Box 320

University, Papua New Cuinea. Email: norman_q@hotmail.com

 (r4) a+i++a;il
-79 - leee
cxchange relationship between coastal and "bush people"
who live in the interior without access to marine re-
sources.
Recognition of sea tenure and the value of local
fishing knowledge in ensuring sustainable flsheries has
only slowly gained acceptance. The early reports of
traditional fishing practices (e.9. Malinowski, 1918;
Landtman, 1927; Bell, 1947; Allen, 1957) were regarded
as curiosities (Cordell, 1988). Recently, descriptions
about the ways that Solomon lslands fishermen perceive,
define, delimit, utilize, and def-end their rights to in-
shore fishing grounds have emerged (Akimichi, 1978;
Ruddle and Akimichi, 1984; Hviding, l99l; 1992) and
the value of local marine knowledge and management
practices has gained more acceptance (Johannes, 1980;
Baines, 1985).
It is important to consider how the territorial con-
cepts of fishermen develop from culturally idiosyncratic
ways of appropriating, regulating and transmitting
marine property (Cordell, 1984). And it is necessary to
know who fishes, how to fish, and what customs and
ideas the ftishermen have. ln many societies the mul-
titude of customary restrictions surrounding traditional
fishing were primarily directed toward maintaining the
authority of the elders and the stability of the social
order rather than toward maintaining a stable balance
with nature.
Sea territories are not just vague areas, but areas
named, known, used, claimed and on occasion def'ended.
Places used are places named. A social group's famil-
iarity with an area creates a territory. A territory is a
social and cultural space as much as it is a resource
or subsistence space (Nietschmann, 1988). While the
harvesters cannot control the common property resources
themselves, they occasionally can control certain pro-
duction-related infbrmation that governs access to these
resources. Thus production-related knowledge, such as
the specific location of fish and the most ef-fective tactics
for catching them, becomes a scarce capital good. The
harvester cannot control the resource. but can control
knowledge about it. Given the intensive competition
among boats and the efTorts to guard one's own infor-
mation while trying to discover the information of
others, a social climate of secretiveness, lying, avoid-
ance and general suspicion is generated among many
western European tlshermen (Johnson, 1979). This is
f- / B'E (H22&ffi3 / 4E)
10 E ffi84
not the case of the fishermen of Feralalu Village where
the common good of the community is more important
than the success of a single individual and information
is generally shared among the fishing fraternity.
To maintain a harmonious fishing ecosystem, fish-
ing activities and the fishing grounds themselves must
be managed prudently. Consequently, island people de-
veloped a system of knowledge about the marine en-
vironment and fishing practices. Many conceptualized
local terms about marine environments (e.9. depth, tidal
current speed, tidal conditions, seasonal wind,) have
traditionally been used.
Detailed local marine knowledge studies are uncom-
mon in the Solomon lslands. However, work has been
done on customary resource management practices of
Marovo Lagoon people (Hviding, l99l ; 1992), the por-
poise fishery of Malaita (Takekawa, 1996a, b), the
lagoon lif'e ol the Langalanga (Goto, 1992, 1996), the
southern villages of the Lau lagoon marine usage
(Akimichi, 1978), and fishing practices of the resettled
Tikopian people in the Russell lslands (Quinn and
Mataki, 1999).
This study details aspects of the subsistence fishery,
its resources, fishing methods, equipment, knowledge
of marine resources, management, and conservation
practices, and the cultural fiamework of the fishery in
Ferafalu Village, Maana'oba lsland in Malaita Province
of Solomon lslands. Baines (1985) stated that inshore
fisheries development couldn't proceed effectively in the
absence of a more detailed knowledge and understand-
ing of traditional uses ol' marine resources.
METHODS
This paper is based on a field survey by both authors
on the island during January 1997. The second author
grew up in Ferafalu Village and his local knowledge
and associations with the village community have greatly
contributed to this study.
The village was subdivided into fbur main groups
of 8 - t of people who fish frequently. Upon
households
the return from a fishing trip the lishermen were
questioned about their fishing techniques, fishing loca-
tion, vemacular names of fish, and the catch was counted
and weights estimated. lt is customary fbr a fisherman
to count the number of individuals of the diff'erent
species of fish that were caught. This made quantifi-
 Journal of The Pacific Society / October 1999 / N0.84 85 (Vol.22, No.3 4) (15)
-
cation of the catch relatively easy. The catch weight villages around the Lau Lagoon along the
was estimated to the nearest kilogram. At other times, of Malaita and on artificial islands built in the s

more detailed discussions were held with fishermen lagoon by piling up coral stones (suka).The r were
regarding their specific knowledge of marine resources, constructed to escape the malaria of the m and
fishing methods and equipment used, strategies fbr (Parsonson, 1966). Linguistically, Lau speakers I-
resource management, and the implications of commer- tute a dialect of Cristobal-Malaitan. which with
cial lishing. Guadalcanal - Nggelic, fbrms a Southeast So lc
Women were not included in aspects of the study subgroup among Eastern Oceanic languages (Paw and
because of cultural considerations. It was not consid- Green, 1973).
ered proper for males to be seen talking with unrelated The people of Ferafalu are primarily aquatic
women. Ferafalu women are engaged mainly in glean- and call themselves wane i asi. "salt water ", and
ing for shellfish and other small animals on the inter- difTerentiate themselves from wane i tolo. or "bush
tidal flats. They venture out less frequently on boats people", who reside in the interior of Malaita y are
than men and usually remain close to shore. Their Melanesians with curly brown hair. Reddish and
marine knowledge and fishing patterns require a sepa- hair commonly occur naturally and are not the result
rate study. of a dietary deficiency as occasionally thought ( man,
Ruddle (1994) observed without explanation that pers. comm.).
there were conceptual and semantic problems associ-
Marine Organism Identification
ated with the use of the terms "local knowledge,"
Fish names were obtained by asking village
"indigenous knowledge," "traditional (ecological) knowl-
men for the vernacular names of recentlv fish.
edge," "indigenous skill," and "ethnoscience." We will
Fishermen were shown photos in marine anima iden-
use local knowledge throughout this paper, as it is broad
tification books and asked for the vemacular na , how
enough to include both traditional practices and their
they were caught and where. The books used re for
technological evolutionary forms.
fish identification were Munro (1967) and and
Myers (1994), while Colin and Ameson (1995) used
MAANA'OBA ISLAND GEOGRAPHY
to identify invertebrates. This process would occ
Ferafalu Village
ally result in lengthy conversations where the sher-
Feraf'alu village is located on the eastern, windward
men either tried to recall a seldom-used name re-
side of Maana'oba Island, about three km off Malaita
solve conflicts in the usage of the vernacular
Island in Solomon Islands (Lat. 8"10' S., Long. l6l" The Lau language divides objects into movi
02' E.) in the Lau Lagoon. There are two other major
ganisms (doe gelo) like fish, birds and pigs, a
lagoons around Malaita, the Are'are Lagoon (southwest-
jects that are immobile (doe to'ongado) like trees,
ern coast) and the Langalanga Lagoon (westem central
algae, and sand. Within the Lau language fish ( hold
coast). The village has a population of approximately
an important place and are divided into several
220 people(ll2 women; 86 men; 22 children >12 years
The term 1a does not conform to scientific no a-
old) and is about one third of the population of
ture as it can also refer to varieties of marine ls
Maana'oba lsland.
including porpoise (kirio), whale (gwahasu), a dug-
The climate is equatorial with heavy rainfalls and
ong (iatekwa) (Akimichi, 1978). The Lau caf-
high humidity. Two seasons are recognized according
egorize porpoises as a kind of fish, so the la
to prevailing wind direction. From April to October (ara)
sometimes means dolphin. For example, nfo la ts
the winds blow fiom thc southeast. During tabzra, No-
Iiterally "the teeth of fish", but to Lau speakers it
vember to March, the winds are unsettled, but north-
dolphin teeth (Fox, 1974).
west winds are common in January and February.
Another set of terms relates to large groups, fi ex-
There are twelve languages spoken on Malaita, in-
ample, rays fall), sharks (baekwa), and butterfl fish
cluding Lau (Keesing, 1982). People in Ferafalu speak
(bebe).These groups are the Lau taxonomic equi alent
the Lau language. Lau speakers live primarily in coastal
 (16)
-77 - t+-t++e#
of the scientific unit of family. ln the next vernacular
language taxonomic group an additional word is added
to apply to a specific species of fish. For example, bebe
fakatekwa refers to the long-snouted butterflyfish,
Forcipiger flavissimus Jordan & McGregor, bebe
goumatanga to the hunchbacked butterflyfish, Heniochus
varius (Cuvier), and so on.
Present language usage does not necessarily recog-
nize scientific species distinctions in morphologically
similar groups. For example, akwasimai refers to four
species of snapper: Lutjanus russelli (Bleeker), L.
fiilviflamma (Forskil), L. monostigma (Cuvier), and L.
rufolineatus (Valenciennes). This lack of linguistic
diff'erentiation between species may be indicative of the
loss of traditional knowledge or perhaps there was
insufficient behavioral and morphological dif'ferences,
or dift'erences in usage, between the species to separate
them by name (Akimichi, 1978).
As previously stated, vernacular names do not nec-
essarily relate to scientific classification. The shovel nose
ray, Rht,nchobatus djiddensis (Forskil) (taifasoro) is
bottom-f'eeding rayin its own Family Rhinobatidae
which is distinct from the sting rays in Family
Dasyatidae and from typical sharks in Family
Carcharhinidae. However, in the Lau language it is
classified as a baekwa (shark).
Where scientific taxonomy does not recognize the
diff'erent morphological features and behaviour of ju-
veniles, the Lau taxonomic systems occasionally does
(Table l). The large eyed bream Monotaxis grandoculis
(Forskfll) is known as maasulua as an adult and
aalauo as a juvenile. Similarly, the emperor, Lethrinus
xanthochilus Kulunzinger, is known as lnre ia and gufu
as an adult and juvenile, respectively. The prized bump
head parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatus (Cuvier
Valenciennes), is known as rarasi fou and gwaila in
its respective juvenile and adult stages. Similarly, the
prized emperor snapper, Lutjanus sebae (Cuvier), has
three names pertaining to progressive stages of devel-
opment, kokohale, malifu, and raualite. The color of
the fish is distinctively different in these stages. Juve-
niles are commonly pale pink with three dusky reddish
brown bands. Adults are a unitbrm salmon pink. The
classiflcarion system is phenetic and does not consider
reproductive possibilities.
We suspect that the Langalanga people of the
leee tr 10 E ffi84/BsE @22&ffi3/ 4tr)
Soloman Islands also had different names for various
life stages of certain fish, but that Goto (1996) either
did not know the names or did not recognize juvenile
flsh. For example, Coto (1996) lists ala'alauoa (similar
to the Lauan aalauo) for Monotaxis spp., but does not
indicate if the Langalanga people consider that a name
fbr the juveniles. There are differences in the marine
terms between speakers in the Lau Lagoon and
Langalanga Lagoon. In some cases the words are very
similar, e.g. bobola, for Lethrinus nebulosus
(Langalanga) and fotobala (Lau). In other cases they
are very different e.g. Lethrinus harak is asiasi-ole in
the Langalanga Lagoon while it is hate mela in the Lau
Lagoon. And in other cases the word is exactly the same
e.g. ume for the popular eating fish Naso unicornis.
While in some cases the same word has different
meanings e.g. moro is a Leiognathidae in Lau while
it is a Mugiloididae in the Langalanga Lagoon.
In addition to the hierarchical classification there are
terms which relate the behaviour of the fish. Deep-sea
a fish that are rarely caught are known as ia na matakwa
liu. Pelagic fish such as tuna (gela), skipjack (hau
ittitoo), barracudas (ntamalito), and marlin (diadia,
filufilu) are called ia i matakwa. Ia i narno are gen-
erally lagoonal tish, but includes dugong (iatekwa) and
sharks (baekwa), and rays (/a/i). Estuarine frsh such as
ponyfish (moro) (F. Leiognathidae), trumpeter perch
(uulumuu) fPelates quadrilineatus (Bloch)1, and the
archerfi sh ( re) fTbxotes jac ula,or (Pallas)l are
ng is uniko
known as ia la kafo. These distinctions represent the
as major ecological classifications around the Lau lagoon:
river, lagoon, and open sea.
There are other classification systems that we did
not explore but have been brief'ly reported by Miller
& (1978). For example, there are five categories of feed-
ing behaviour such as fish feeding otT sea algae in grassy
habitats. They are divided into daytime feeders as
opposed to night time feeders and whether they shelter
in deep or shallow water (Miller, 1978). And then there
is classification based on their rest areas, escape re-
sponses, spawning behaviour, and depths which they
swim in the sea (Miller, I978).
Invertebrates are also classitjed hierarchically. Bi-
valve and gastropod shells are known collectively as
karongo. The term kiki'i is a collective term for Tridacna
clams. Dolo ref'ers to Tridacna glgas is the largest clam
 Journal of The Pacific Society /October 1999/N0.84-85 (Yo1.22, No.3-4) (17)
- 6

and Abisifuu refers to the small clam shell T. maxima is partially exposed during low tide and does notirequire
which is firmly attached to coral outcrops. Kwalangi the use of a canoe. Other fish such as Ulaema lefroyi
baekwa (literally means swears at sharks) is the general (raemae), and M ulloidicht ht,s flavol i neat us ( ra laraga)
term fer lobster, whlle urafou refers to Panulirus ver- are common at high tide. Both men and wom[n fish
sicolor. in this habitat.
Habitat 2: Oleasi - This is the deepest part of the
Fishing Grounds
lagoon and has coral boulders scattered on | ,undy
The area around Ferafalu village is divided into
bottom. Several species of sponge sp.,
several categories. The simplest distinction is asi 'sea'
Diacarnus spp. (collectively known as kuikuil, $ea cu-
versus tolo'land' that distinctively brings out the habi-
cumbers (ramela), and sea grass (sara au) are
tat segregation between 'salt water people' and the 'bush
The many crevices in the rocks provide hid places
people' such as the Baegu, Baelela, and Fataleka (Ross,
for Siganus argenteus and S. sutor (Mu'u nt , Mu'u
1973). The lagoon is known as asi namo or sa'a i hrtra
(literally'sea land'). In fact, the lagoon is so shallow sio), Naso unicornis (ume), Rhinecanthus ve
(bubuu fahato), and R. rectangulus (bubuu sidai (Table
that people can walk out very far on the intertidal flats
2).
at low tide. The micro topographical features of the la-
Habitat 3: Fafobusu - This habitat is the ge of
goon are distinguished by depth, nature of the substrate,
the lagoon juxtaposed to the reef and is sed
and presence of organisms. The shallow water is called
nni by bare sand. Lethrinus kal.Lopterus (.sur ), L.
fafomai, intermediate depths, fafobu.sa, and deep
or
harak (hatemela), L. variegatus lgoufuu) and L.
waters, lobo. The deeper part of the lagoon is termed
(surugou) are commonly fbund searching for fotd here
mae matakwa. The barrier reef is called fafo ile and
(Table 2). Fishermen frequently catch them wh{n they
beyond the reef is the open ocean, asl matakwa. Beyond
try to hide in the sand. Also found infafobusu @re the
asi matakwa is the matakwa liu or deep sea. Grooves
in the reei are known mullet species Valamugil suheli (kalua) and Mugil
as fakali and the passes to the
cep halus (iliiliwalo).
open ocean are dari. Within the lagoon, canoes travel
Habitat 4: Fakana nata - This habitat begins at point
through a channel termed tafa'a. Shallow passes in the
where sand and corals meet and is exposed at low tides.
lagoon are referred to as fakana aba, while deeper passes
A large number of fish search fbr food and take shelter
between the ocean and lagoon are called rarabala.
here in the most stagnant seawater during low tide (Table
The fishing area owned by the Feratalu villagers is
2). This is the most dangerous habitat because of the
approximately 2 x 5 km and includes sand, sea grass
presence of the stingray, Dasyatis kuhlii (fali), and the
meadows, and coral reef habitats. This is an area that
scorpion fish, Scorpaena plumieri (qwiaqwi.a). Siganus
can be paddled in a canoe in approximately 2 hrs. The
virglatus (nanara kwao), Scarus ghobban (rnarq), and
fishing areas are divided into seven habitats named:
Chaetodon ephippiunt (bebee) are the main target
kusuu, oleasi, fafobusu, fakana nata, nata barafou, and
species.
fafoile based on their different physical features and
Habitat 5: Nata - This habitat has the highest
marine communities.
biodiversity and is dominated by coral with occ4sional
Habitat l: Kusuu - This habitat starts from the
open areas of sand. The fishermen consider thig to be
exposed sandy beach and is characterized by a muddy
the most productive habitat as it contains a lot of edible
/ silty substrate where the seagrass Thalassia sp. (.afuu)
species of fish (Table 2). Occasionally the crdwn of
grows. Afuu is a food source for many fish and a shel-
thorns starfish, Acanthaster planci (site), and tfre sea
ter and refuge for fish known as ntu'u ni furai (Siganus
urchin, Diadema savignyi (tala), are seen in thip area.
argenteus and S. sutor [collectively known as muu sio])
The villagers have reported that they haue nefer ob-
and S. spinus (kurumusi). Fish such as Rhinecanthus
served large numbers of A. planci on the rebf nor
verrucosus (bubuu fahato) and R. rectangulus (bubuu
observed the eff'ects on corals of large populatior{s. Nor
sidai), and Gerres cinereus (tereua) are always seen,
have they heard stories about large populations of the
even during low tides in this habitat (Table 2). Kusuu
starfish occurring within the Lau lagoon. Edible inver-
 (18) 7\+t+'?Aefi leee E 10 E
- 75
-
tebrates are commonly gleaned in this habitat and
include the spider conch Lambis scorpius (tafisikoko),
L. lantbis (trunkoko), and L. truncata (Ragotai), cush-
ion sea urchins, Tripneustes gratilla (binu kero) anrJ T.
gratilla (binu laungi).
Habitat 6: Barafou- This is the surl habitat on the
ocean side of the main reef and the fish fiom here are
known as ala'a {Table 2). These fish always swim in
mixed-species schools in search of tbod. The habitat
is only fished at low tide during the day when the coral
reef is exposed using either nets or spears.
Habitat 7: Fafoile- This habitat constitutes the outer
reef slope. Due to commonly rough seas, fishermen are
very reluctant to fish here. However, the trochus shell,
Trochus niloticus (sifalo / karongo) is collected here
during daytime low tides by divers using goggles. The
trochus meat is eaten and the shell is sold. Brave and
clever fishermen fish the habitat during night at low
tides using spear guns and "lock line" fishing techniques.
They intentionally try to catch the most expensive, and
valuable fish. such as the hump headed wrasse, CheiLinus
undulatus (gwaila) and others (Table 2) for sale in
Honiara,
CATCH STATISTICS
Fishermen observed in this study caught forty-three
species of fish (Table 2). Members of Family Ludanidae
were the most numerous and comprised about 367o of
the catch weight. Members of Family Siganidae com-
prised about lTVa of the catch weight, Family
Acanthuridae l5o/o and Family Epinephelidae 107o.
Single individuals (Table 3) did most of the fishing.
Occasionally two persons, usually related, fished to-
gether. Women were never seen fishing alone liom
canoes. The women always went out with a male.
usually their husband or husband and another relative.
The largest group observed was l5 people fishing in
Fakana nata for Lethrinus kallopterus (suruakwaro), L.
lnrak (hatemekt), L. variegatus (goufuu) and L. mahsena
(surugou).
The trip CPUE increased as expected with the
number of fishermen trom 3.3 kg fish per trip tbr solo
llshermen to 12.3 kg fish per trip fbr groups with more
than five fishermen (Table 3). While the number of
tlshers increases the catch per trip the CPUE per person
per trip declines fiom 3.3 kg fish per trip fbr solo fish-
ffi84/854 (ffi22&ffi3/4+)
ermen to 1.4 kg fish per trip fbr large groups. None
of the trips returned without some catch. We were told
that if a fisherman went to a distant site and caught
nothing, while returning home he would stop at sites
where he was assured of catching something, albeit
smaller individuals. The mean time spent day fishing
was 5.2 hr (S,D. = 2.35: n = 27) and'1 .2 hrs spent
night fishing (S.D. = 4.23; n =18). Nighttime catches
were higher,7.4 kg fish per trip versus 3.8 kg fish per
trip during the day.
OCEANOGRAPHIC NOMENCLATURE
The Lau language contains numerous terms lor dif-
ferent f'eatures of the sea. Terms for the substrate include
one'sand', fou'rock', and afu'algae'. There are three
divisions tbr sand: one kwao'white sand' found on the
reef, one bulu'grayish sand' (found near river mouths),
and one ,namago'blackish sand'fbund in the mangroves.
The surf habitat of the barrier reef is known as aen.t
walo while ile refers to sea just before the breakers in
the open sea. Inde refers to living coral and ladelade
to dead corals. Acroltora digitifera coral is known as
fou ni hata which is used to scrape a lruit call haia.
The scraped product is used to plug holes in canoes.
Several species of coral and bivalve shells are used by
women to make lime for betel nut mastication. There
was no evidence that the coral was over harvested in
this effort.
Freshwater from rivers is known as kafo and salt
water known as asi. The brackish water in estuaries is
either known as kafo asila (literally freshwater mixed
with seawater) or as asl kafola (literally sea water mixed
with freshwater).
There are terms for diff'erent states of the tide and
currents (afe). An incoming tide is called lua and oul
going tide mai. The lowest tide is nni langa and a rising
tide lua kariabulo. As the exposed reef is covered it
is called lua totonge and when it is completely covered
it is known as lua e dalafa. High tide is lua e hata
and receding tide gouna asi e mo'oi. As the rocks emerge
it is termed mai tarafafua and when they are completely
emerged it is called nni tetee'a.
FISHING GROUND MANAGEMENT
Kinship-related groups manage iishing grounds
throughout the Lau Lagoon. The fishing ground is
 Journal of The Pacific Society / October 199g
broken down into two categories: public and managed
fishing grounds (Table 4). This division restricts fishing
eftbrt. Some areas are reserved only for the chief and
certain privileged villagers. Other areas are reserved for
small groups from the chiefs clan or other clans. The
public fishing area may be used by anyone at any time
fiom the village. There is no restriction to group size.
Unpermitted use of managed fishing grounds is forbid-
den. They are reserved for fishing prior to major social
events such as feasts, during a mourning period, and
during other major social gatherings. The traditional
kinship management group must grant permission befbre
any fishing expedition in a managed lishing ground
begins.
The general consensus of the fishermen was that the
introduction of commercial exploitation of their sea
resources should only be initiated with the permission
of the traditional kinship management group. They felt
that a management system involving local stakeholders
who have in the common interest is preferred over
regulation imposed through external government agen-
cies. This is similar to the opinions expressed by fish-
ermen in the Russell Islands (Quinn and Maraki, 1999).
FISHING METHODS AND EQUIPMENT
The common individual and collective fishing prac-
tices used by Ferafalu villagers are described below.
These include hand lining (aoao), trolling (falita),
spearing (susuu and kwesu), neI \fitrai) and trap fishing
(a'ala'a and oko), sago palm leaf-kite fishing (kwaferao),
and fish poisoning (z,ta). Fishing is primarily men's
work, but mollusks, sea urchins, and small flsh are
fiequently gathered by women and children (Thble 5).
Most of the fishing equipment involves simple tech-
nology such as spears, lines, hand nets, bush vines and
wrapped dried coconut branches. Accessories for fish-
ing include goggles, iron rods, hooks, plastic bags,
knives, monofilament nets, and spear guns. The type
of fishing gear used by each sex difl'ers, reflecting rhe
type of l-ishing technique used. Most men are engaged
in fishing methods which require more sophisticated gear
and manual power, although equipment can be used by
either gender.
Hand lining is the most common fishing method and
is generally used by individual fishermen in the shal-
low lagoon. lt involves hooks of various sizes attached
/ No.B4 85 (Vol.22, No.3- 4) (19)
-
to a monofilament fishing line. No. t hooks baifs with
large insects or small fish scraps are used to catch
Caesio spp. while No. 5 hooks baited with hermi[ crabs
fDardanus megistos or D. guttatus (both termed
and fish scraps are used for Holocentridae fbl nighr
fishing. No. I hooks are baited ltermed mamu'11 with
larger pieces of frsh (mariko ia) to catch Sph spp.,
Lutjanus spp. and Pentapodus spp. No weights ar$ used
Another handline method is called fale This
technique is used for deep-sea fishing and uses larger
hooks and thicker lines and sinkers. The size bf the
hooks and thickness of the line varies according to the
size of the target fish and the fishing depthf Iron
reinforcing rods are most commonly used for
but lead weights are also used when they are avaflable.
Trolling,falita, is done both in the lagoon and lutside
the reef. Traditionally hooks made from bones and shells
and lines made fiom plant fiber were used. Bird f-eath-
ers were also used as lures. Today diff'erent
are used. For example. lures constructed using drinking
straws or unused blood bags, obtained from ho]pitals
or clinics, and metal hooks tied to monofilamenl tish-
ing lines are towed behind a paddled canoe o, 4loto.-
ized boat.
There are two spearfishing techniques. One tectfnique
uses a plain spear and the other uses wooden stqck to
hold the spear and rubber to propel it. When a spear
gun (kwanga) is used the technique is called susu'yt anct
kwanqa. At night the fishermen use a bundle of burn-
ing coconut branches rkwesu) to light their way during
low tide. Using a sharpened iron rod (susuu), a diver
wearing goggles searches fbr fish among the coral {uring
the dav-
Diving masks that allow lbr equalization qf the
middle ear are too expensive and inf-requently uspd. A
pair of goggles may be purchased in local shops on
Malaita for $52.50 ($S1.00 = $US0.45, January 1997).
While divers boasred that rhey could dive ro an esri-
mated depth of 20 m or more. they acknowledged tnat
there were plenty of fish in shallower waters. Only
occasionally did they endure the pain to fish fgr the
"large ones" at deeper depths. It appeared that spgaring
at deeper depths was done by young men to qrove
themselves rather then out of necessity. The easiesi way
to increase subsistence fishing productivity and inc[ease
the comfbrt and saf'ety of divers would be to prQvide
 Q0) -73 - t+t++a#
several masks to remote fishing villages. Being able
to equalize pressure would extend the depth the fish-
ermen could dive in comtbrt and safety and spear the
larger fish presently seeking refuge in deeper waters.
As it is, the lack of masks functions to conserve fish
stocks and prevent overfishing of the reef\.
The term "lockline" is used to describe a wooden
gun stock which supports an elastic rubber on one end
that is used to propel a spear. Many villagers refrain
fiom using "locklines" due to the belief that the con-
stant loading of the gun against the chest causes blood
clots in the chest.
Net (furai) and trap (o&o) fishing are done by groups
of five or more people. When fish have been observed
f'eeding, a gill net (furai) is placed around the area from
a canoe. People in the canoe slap the water with long
poles (airada) to scare the fish towards the net. Then
divers with spears and goggles enter the enclosed area
and capture the fish. Similarly, in ala'a fishing (a
collective name for Cetoscarus bicolor (amera),
Lethrinus varieg4atus (goufuu), and Hipposcarus
longiceps (ntoua'a)) a gill net is placed around a fish
aggregation and large numbers of flsh are caught in the
net. ln oko fishing a net using bush rope or vines, known
as dilo. is used. The dilo is obtained by just cutting
the correct size vine in the jungle. Fishermen hold the
end of the vine and pull it through the water. This scares
the fish and tlshermen behind the rope spear the fish.
Fish poisoninE fuka) involves fish poisoning with
derris (Derrls sp.) roots and vines (Henderson and
Hancock, 1988). Derris (kwalo uka) is widely used on
the reef. The plant is so common that there is no need
to cultivate it. The vines and leaves are pounded to
release its toxic component, mixed with sand and applied
under in hollows or in small pools in the reef during
low tide. Fish caught are non-toxic to people who con-
sume them.
CULTURAL AND LOCAL MARINE KNOWL.
EDGE
Specialized knowledge and skills are pre-requisites
lbr a successful fishing expedition. Observations made
over many centuries about the relationship between the
abundance of fish and abiotic factors, such as weather
and tidal currents (a/e), increase the catches. For ex-
ample, fishermen know that many fish enter the lagoon
leee + 10 E ffi84/85+ (ffi22&ffi3/4F=)
on the rising tide and that catch rates increase. It is
also believed that turtles (fonu), stingrays (fali) and
dugong (iatekwa) are the last to enter and the flrst to
leave the lagoon.
Ferafaluan society imposes laws that regulate the ac-
tivities of fishermen and women. For example, in the
past women were forbidden fiom having physical
contact with their husbands prior to a fishing trip. Failure
to heed such customs would bring bad luck to the fishing
expedition. Just prior to fishing, the fishermen would
assemble at the village tambu place (manabeu), an area
where females were prohibited from entry, for consult-
ing and cont-ession with the animist priest (.araifua).
While the men were out fishing, mothers were obli-
gated to make sure that the children did not cry or talk
about the father. Failure to comply was believed to cause
a poor catch or a change in weather, signifying dis-
content of the spirits. There was also an administrative
chart ranking villagers and their areas of responsibility.
This identified which villagers were responsible for tasks
before, during and after the fishing trip. A highly
respected villager organizes the trip to avoid disagree-
ments with the spirits. The trip leader's duty also
included the supervision of the fair distribution of the
catch. This is consider important to ensure good catches
in future trips and tunctions to insure social harmony
and a cooperative spirit so important when at sea.
of fish behavior to
Fishermen use their knowledge
increase catch rates. Certain species such as
Rhinecanthus verrucost4s (bubu fahato) and R.
rectangulus (bubuu sidai) hide in coral rubble. To
capture these tish, the coral rubble is broken up. To
catch other species e.g. Gen'es cinereus (tereua), Siganus
spinus {kurumzsi), and Lethrinus ntahsena (surugou),
dead coral rocks are piled together and then removed
when it is suspected that fish are hiding inside. The
sand around the stones must be tiee so that the fish
may be dug out easily.
Ferafalu flshermen have traditionally associated fish-
ing activities with the gathering, cultivation or flow-
ering of fbod crops or other plants. Salt-tolerant littoral
plants are commonly used as indicators of seasons when
certain fish may be caught. For example, when
Terminalia catappa (alite) leaves change colors fiom
green to red (alite mena) it indicates that L. gibbus has
reached maturity as reflected by the presence of red-
 Journal of The Pacific Society / October 1999
dish color on it scales. This is the mating period, which
usually takes place especially near the reef passage at
night during high tide between November and Decem-
ber. The flowering of alite indicates the return of other
edible flsh.
MARINE TENURE, CUSTOMS, AND CON.
SERVATION
Reef access and management is determined by the
leading kinship group, who were usually the first settlers
to the area. The ownership and governing authority is
patriarchal. Ownership may be transf'erred to others
within and outside the village as a reward. In one case
some fishing grounds were given to a villager as a
reward for taking the skulls of villagers' forefathers at
Orukalia to Funaful lsland in the Lau Lagoon. Land-
marks, usually coconut plantations or human structures
identify the boundaries. As the villagers have seen the
monetary value of their marine resources increase there
has been an increase in the disputes about the own-
ership of specific fishing grounds.
Christianity has replaced traditional ancestor worship
or animism as the main religion today. Consequently
the Sabbath is considered a day of rest and fishing is
not allowed. This had the net eft-ect of reducing the total
fishing effbrt by one seventh. If the catch during the
week was not enough to provide fish fbr Sabbath the
people would either receive fish from other villagers
who were of a ditferent religion and observed the
Sabbath on a different day or get other foods. Many
villagers belong to the Seventh Day Adventist Church
and are prohibited from consuming marine flsh without
scales. This has the efl'ect of reducing shelliish con-
sumption by about l/3 of the community.
The villagers consider that it is vital to conserve the
marine communities by proper management of the
resources. On occasion when the low tide occurs in the
middle of the day, the villagers actively modify the
environment assisting in its conservation. The villagers
plant sea grass (ttfuu) during low tides. The sea grass
is planted in habitat one \kusuu) to protect juvenile
Tridacna gigas (doLo) fiom predation. Additionally, the
sea grassis recognized for it value in providing pro-
tection and food for fish such as Siganus spinus
(kurumusi), S. argenteus (muu ni furai), and S. sutor
(muu sio).
/ No.B4 - 85 (Vol.22, No.3 4) Qt) 7
Within Ferafalu society there is a strong de$ire to
properly manage and conserve the resources of their
reefs and it is passed orally through the gener{tions.
Ferafalu villagers are well known throughout L1u La-
goon fbr their traditions. One of the traditions strictly
enforced is the prohibition on eating sharks (barikwa).
Sharks are believed to be the fbrefathers of thb clan
and due respect must be given to them. Additiqnally,
it is forbidden to eat dugongs liatekwa), oJ,opu.
(kokola), and crocodiles lmatakorol. It is believ{d that
anyone failing to observe these customs will sodn die.
Consumption of turtles (fonu\ is restricted duri{g the
yam season (uni falisi) from November to April. This
coincides with the main turtle nesting ..uron. l, *u,
reported that violators of this custom tbund dea$ yam
vines in their garden (falisi) and have had poor har-
vests of undersized yams (kai). These customs apply
even to women who marry into the village.
Additionally there are finfish that are fbrbid$en to
eat, e.g. K-vphosus cinerascens {leleko) and Rastrqlliger
kanagurta (rooma). It is believed that members pf the
Kwalo ai and Adagege villages on the man made iplands
in Lau Lagoon who eat these flsh will be killed by the
spirit of a villager who had previously died fiom pating
these fish. The flshes are not known to be toxic so the
belief functions to reduce the fishing pressure dn the
fish stocks leaving more fish fbr the other villages who
are not subject to this taboo.
The restricted entry custom known as otofafa,alata
is practiced at the Anaau Point and Lade fishing grounds.
This taboo prohibits fishing within the fishing gpound
when any member of the clan dies or when a large social
occasion such as a marriage or feast is to be held soon.
The taboo period usually lasts about 2 - 3 month$. The
area is marked by a upright pole with plaited cqconut
lronds attached to it. Fishing and the use of outpoard
motors are banned within these areas.
Another local conservation measure is rejection of
live undersized, dangerous, and poisonous fish. Fish-
ermen believe that by returning a fish to thp sea
demonstrates respect to spirits who will in turn plovide
a large catch. Other successful conservation strafegies
include authority exerted through elders, effectivg pen-
alties lbr violators, and fiequent monitoring overl fish-
lng grounds.
The villagers have recognized that the recent lrse of
 (22)
-71. - leee
^Fi++Affi
destructive fishing methods such as small mesh gill nets,
explosives, fish poisoning (a,ta), underwater torches and
"lockline" fishing have resulted in the extirpation or
severe depletion of several fish stocks. Villagers are con-
cerned about the threats posed by these technologies
and have begun to limit their use. The following spe-
cies are considered by the tishermen to be particularly
vulnerable: Lethrinus ntahsena (surugou), Kyphosus
cinerascens (leko), Lutjanus gibhus (hale), and Naso
unicornis (ume). It was reported that the catch volume
and average size of these fish have recently decreased.
In spite of the traditional conservation practices, the
species listed in Table 6 are now rare or possibly
extirpated, possibly due to selective overfishing or
natural modification of habitat.
Traditional fishing societies have a system of divi-
sion of labor between men and women (Whewell, 1994).
Consequently there is a gender specific system of
managing the marine resources, although women do not
control areas of the sea. Generally, the men do the
finfishing while the women glean the lagoons and reef
flats fbr mollusks, crustaceans and seaweed species.
None of the marine resources utilized by Ferafalu
women were reported as threatened.
PRESERVATION OF LOCAL KNOWLEDGE
AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Consequently, much of the traditional knowledge of
the construction of equipment, fishing methods and
skills, names and classification of animals and manage-
ment customs is not being passed on to the present gen-
eration of Feratalu youth. This knowledge is being lost
because of the implementation of a non-tradtional
education model that does not include local mare
knowledge in its curriculum (Daudau and Quinn, 1997).
Understandably, the education system cann not teach
what is not documented in books and thus it hastens
the demise of this largely undocumented body of aquatic
knowledge.
With local Science teachers using foreign examples
and material, interest wanes for both the students and
ln a country where there are many species un-
teachers.
known to science it is crucial that a local knowledge
in the natural history of the islands be nurtured and
expanded upon so that the Solomon Islanders can take
full advantage of their own natural resources fbr sus-
+ 10 E ffi84 /85tr (ffi22 ffi3 / 4+)
tainable economic development. Some of these resources
may contain natural chemicals that may be the poten-
tial cure for cancer, AIDS, and other diseases. We
believe it is necessary to stimulate more of the bright
young minds of the Solomon Islands' youth to study
not only western sciences, but to also study their own
local ecological knowledge so that they can devise and
implement a strategy for sustainable development and
benefit from the new discoveries to be made from their
reef systems.
Few Solomon lslands students privileged to attend
university seek to continue their science education. In
1996, of rhe 142 Solomon Island (Sl) students attend-
ing the University of the South Pacific, only 42 stu-
dents were studying Science. There were 30 SI students
studying Law. While there are scores of secondary
schools needing trained Science teachers there are only
a few positions vacant fbr lawyers in Solomon Islands
(Daudau and Quinn, 1997).
The traditional source of income fbr the 220 people
in the Ferafalu village has been from copra earning
people about $5600 per year ($S1.00 = $US0.45 Janu-
ary 1997). ln a new nation's developing economy it is
necessary to develop natural resources to pay for
improved infrastructure and better public services.
Consequently, the natural resources of an isolated is-
land community have become increasingly important as
a source of reef fish and other marine products to a
developing nation's economy. However, it is important
in the development of the resources of a nation that
village managers of the resources are included in any
development plans and that some of the benetits from
the development go directly to the village. To do this
efl'ectively and in an ecologically and culturally sen-
sitive manner, there is a critical need to train Solomon
Island scientists to understand both modern Science and
their own countries' local knowledge systems. One of
the most effective ways of doing this is to involve
students in enthnobiological studies and increase the
amount of local knowledge in print that can be used
in primary and secondary classrooms.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We are gratetul to the Feratalu villagers tbr their
hospitality and for sharing so freely their knowledge
about the sea. Appreciation is also extended to the
 Journal of The Pacific Society / October
Premier of Malaita, Honorable D. Oeta, fbr his hos-
pitality and cooperation. Funding came fiom the Uni-
versity ol the South Paciilc URC grant #6291-1311,
70766-15 and from Tropical Discoveries Fund. This
work was undertaken while N.J.Q. was a J. W. Fulbright
Fellow at the University of rhe Sourh Pacific. The
encouragement and support ol P. Newell is greatly
appreciated. P Newell, R. Thaman, B.L. Kojis and an
anonymous reviewer are gratefully acknowledged fbr
reviewing the manuscript and for their constructive
comments. C. Fidali from Lau Lagoon, checked the Lau
spelling. We are grateful to S. Appana who typed the
manuscript into the computer and helped with proof-
reading.
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Journal of The Pacific Society / October 1999 / No. 84 - Bb (yo1..22, No.3 - 4) (2b)
-

Table l: Changes in vernacular names of .iuvenile and adult fish.

Juvenile fish Adult fish Scientific name
Rarasi fou gwaila Bolbometopon muricatus
Arodo suru arodo Gnathodentex spp.
Unuunu tatnara Hemirhamphus spp.
Kwatoa uSwago Lethrinus spp.
Kokohale, malifu raualite Lutjanus sebae
Mumu mumu galau Plectorhvnchus spp.
Fafawai leto i matakwa Plectorlrynchus spp.
Kakarai muu sio Siganus spp.
Ono mamalito Sphyraena spp.

Table 2: List of fish caught in the habitats off Ferafalu Village.

HABITAT NUMBERS
Scientific name Vernacular name l2 3 4 -5 6 7
Acanthurus leucocheilus herreca Maeto
Acanthurus triostegus Bereqwasu
Caranx ignobilis Borabora
Caranx melampygus Edaeda
Cetoscarus bicolor Amera
Chaetodon ephippium Bebee
Cheilinus undulatus Cwaila
Choerodon anchorago Lifutange
C te noc haetus hawaiie ns is Bolo *
Epinephel us magniscuttis Ul"fu
Epinephelus merra Eeno
Epittephelus microdon Ulafu bero
EpinepheLus morrhua Ulafu haga
Gerres cinereus Tbreua
Hipposcarus longiceps Mouaa
Kyphosus cinerascens Leleko
Lethrinus harak Hatemela
Lethrinus elongatus Ugwango
Lethrinus kallopterus Suru akwaro
Lethrinus mahsema Suntgou
Lethrinus nebulosus Fotobala
Lethrinus ramak Suru gwagwaro
Lethrinus variegatus Goufuu
Lutjanus bohar Ulumaeo
Lutjanus fitlvus Hango
Lutjanus gibbus Hale
(26) t+r++A;fi leee + 10 E ffi84/85E (ffi22&H / 4E)

M ulloidic hthys flavoline atus Ragaraga

Mugil cephalus Iliiliwalo
Naso unicornis Ume
Plectorhinchus lineatus lzto
P s e udobal is te s flav imarginat us Babalu
Rhinecanthus rectangulus Bubuu sidai **
Rhinecanthus verrucosus Bubuu fahato **
Sargoce nt ron spinife rum. Alasaa
Scarus ghobban Mara
Siganus argenteus Mu'u ni furai
Siganus guttatus Falata ,t*
Siganus lineatus Falata **
Siganus spinus Kurwnusi *
Siganus sutor Mu'u sio *
Siganus virgatus Nanara kwao *
Ulaema lefroyi Raemae
Valamugil seheli Kalua

Table 3. Number of people fishing on each trip by gender and CPUE in January

No. of people No. of trios Male Female Mean CPUE / boat

(kg fish trip-r) (kg person-r
I 168 t68 0 J.J 3.3
243 60 26 5.2 2.6
3 l0 21 7 6.1 2.0
44 160 6.5 1.6
52 100 8.0 1.6
>53 400 12.3 1.4

Table 4: Names and uses of public and managed tishing grounds

Name of fishine grounds Individual Small group Communitv Manased

Alata baita * * Yes
Alata hafalia * * yes
Baro * x yes
Fou i rada * * Yes
Goufu * * Yes
Kwasi * * Yes
ladre * yes
Onetoli * * *No
Sulibusu * Yes
Journal of The Pacific Society /October 1999/No.B4 85 (Vo1.22, No.3- 4) (27)
-

Table 5: Users of fishing techniques

Technique / Vernacular Name Children Women Old Men Small Grp.

Fish Poison - aka *{<

Hand lining - aoao Ia

Palm leaf kite fishing - kwaferao
Net - furai
Spearing - susuu
- kuesu
Spear gun fishing - kwanga
Trap - a'ala'a
- oko
Trolling - falila

Table 6: Locally rare or extirpated fish species in order of extirpation

Ye0aeular-&&9 Scientific name English name

Menamena Acanthurus dussumieri Eyestripe surgeonfish
Hakwa Chanos chanos Milkfish
Isiofu Fistularia tabacaria Bluespotted cornetfish
Fotobala Lethrinus nebulosus Spangled emperor
Hale Lutjanus gibbus Paddletail snapper
Takwalao Naso lituratus Orangespine unicornfish
Unte Naso unicornis Bluespine unicornfish
Babalu P s e udobali s te s flav imarg inat us Yellowmargin triggerfish
Foloabe Platax teira Longfin spadefish
Foloabe Platax orbicularis Circular spadefish
Foloabe Platax pinnatus Pinnate spadefish
Falata Siganus gattatus Golden rabbitfish
Falata Siganus lineatus Lined rabbitfish
Ooa Symp ho rus nematopho rus Chinamanfish
(28) A+7++A# ffi84/85E (ffi22&ffi3 /4E)
- 65
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APPENDIX

Appendix l: Vernaculan scientific and English names of fish species caught.

Vernacular name Scientific name English name

Menamena Acant hurus duss ume i ri (Valenciennes) Eyestrip surgeonfish
Beregwasu Acanthurus trioste gus (Linnaeus) Convict surgeonfish
Bubu bulu Balistapus undulatus (Mungo Park) Orangestripped triggerfish
Gwaila Bolbometopon muricatum (Bloch) Bumbhead parrotfish
Amera & Makedea Cetoscarus bicolor (Linneaus) Bicolor parrotlish
Bebee Chaetodon ephippium (Cuvier) Shaddled butterflyfish
Hakwa Chanos chanos (Linneaus) Milkfish
Unudolo CheiLinus undulatus (Ruppell) Bumphead wrasse fish
Lifolange Choerodon anchorago (Bloch) Yellow-cheek tuskfish
Ulafu Epinephelus magniscuttis Bleeker Giant grouper
Eeno Epinephelus merra (Bloch) Honeycomb rockrod
Ulafu bero Epinephelus microdon (Bleeker) Bluetail grouper
Ulafu haga Epinephe lus morrhua (ForskAl) Brownstrip grouper
Isiofu F istularia tabacaria (ForskAl) Bluespotted cornetfish
Tereua Gerres cinereus (Bleeker) Yellowfin mojarra
Moua Hipposcarus longiceps (Valenciennes) Pacific longnose parrotfish
Ugn,ango Lethrinus elongatus (ForskAl) Longface emperor
Hate ntela Le thrinus harak (Bleeker) Thumbprint emperor
Suru akwaro Lethrinus kallopterus (Bleeker) Yellow-spot emperor
Surugou Lethrinus mahsena (Forskil) Yellowtail emperor
Fotobala Lethrinus nebulosus (ForskAl) Spangled emperor
Surugwagwaro Le thrinus ramak (Linnaeus) Stripped emperor
Gouf, Lethrinus variegatus (Valenciennes) Variegated emperor
Rido Lutjanus argentimaculalus (Forsk6l) River snapper
Ulumaeo Lutjanus har (Forskii)
bo Two-spot red snapper
Haango Lutjanus /zlvas (Forskil) Redtail snapper
Hale Lutjanus gibbas (Forskil) Paddletail snapper
Maasulua Monota.ris granoculis (Forskil) Large eye bream
Iliili w'alo Mugil cephalus (Linnaeus) Sea mullet
Takwaloo Naso lituratus (Schneider) Orangespine unicornfish
Ume Naso unicornis (ForskAl) Bluespine unicornfish
Foloabe Platax orbicularis (Forskil) Circular spadefish
Platax pinnatrzs (Forskil) Pinnate spadefish
Platax teira (Forskil) Longfin spadefish
Leto Pl ectorhync hus lineatus (Cuvier) Lined sweetlips
Bilau Plec trctpomus leopardus (ForskAl) Coral trout
Babalu Pse ud oba li s te s flav imarginatus (Ruppell) Yellow margin triggerfish
Rooma Ras t re I li ge r kanagurta (Cuvier) Indian mackerel
Bubu sidai Rhinecanthus eclnrpe (Anon.) Wedge-tailed picassofish
Journal of The Pacific Society /October 1999/No.B4-Bb (yo1.22, No.3-4) (2D _

Bubu fahato R hinecanthus ve rrucos us (Linnaeus) Blackbelly picassofish

Alasa Sargocentron spinift rum (Forsk6l) Long-sawed squirrelfi sh
Mara Scarus ghobban (Forskil) Bluebarred parrotfish
Muu ni furai Siganus argenteus (Quoy & Gaimard) Forktail rabbitfish
Falata Siganus guttatus (Bloch) Golden rabbitfish
Siganus lineatus (Bloch) Lined rabbirfish
Narabulu Siganus punctatissimus Flower & Beam Peppered rabbitfish
Kurumusu Siganus splnas (Linnaeus) Spinefoot rabbitfish
Muu sio Siganus slrror (Bleeker) Afiican whitespottedfi sh
Narakwao Siganus virgatus (Linneaus) Virgate rabbitfish
Ooa S -vmpho rus nematophorus (Bleeker) Chinamanfish
Raemae U laema lefroyi (Forskti) Mottled mo.jarra
Kaltn ValamugiL selzell (Forskil) Bluetail mullet
Faero Variola Louti (Forskil) Lunar-tail rockrod

Appendix 2. vernacular, scientific and English names of edible invertebrates.

Ycrnacu.lar-la!09 name
Scientific English name
Gwarasuka Atrina pectinika Shell
Ilo Atrina vexillum Shell
Kome Conus imperialis Cone shell
Abubuli Hippopus hippopus Clam shell
Tafisikoko Lambis scorpius Spider shell
Ragotai lnmbis truncata Spider shell
Kwalangi baekaw Parribacus antacticus lobster
Urafou Palinurela weinecki lobster
Umari Pinctada maxima File shell
Aususu'u Pleuroploca rapezium Trumpet shell
Weree Strombus sp. Stromb shell
Abisifou Tridacna crocea Tridacna shell
Takelade Tridacna deresa Tridacna shell
DoLo Tridacna gigas Tridacna shell
Unu Tridacna maxima Tridacna shell
Siftila Trochus niloticus Trochus shell
Binu laungi Tripneustes gratilla (red and white color morph) sea urchin
Binu kero Tripneustes gratilla (red color morph) sea urchin