Fisheries and Marine Resources of Hawaii and the U.S.-associated Pacific Islands: An Introduction

The fisheries of Hawaii and other u.S.-associated islands in the Pacific Ocean are characterized by high diversity, both in the species exploited and the human cultures that exploit them. The commercial sector has undergone rapid growth in recent years, but recreational and subsistence sectors remain important. Information on these fisheries is generally not available in published form. This pa­ per presents an overview and introduction to a volume ofpapers describing fisheries in the region, with the goal of making the information available to scientists and the general public. A great deal remains to be learned about the dynamics of these fish­ eries as well as the associated issues in biological research, fisheries management, and environmental protection. 55(2), 1993 GEORGE W. BOEHLERT the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) surrounding the island areas is immense, covering over 2 million square miles. Over this broad geo­ graphic expanse, a variety of cultural differences affect fishing practices, and even those practices present today are significantly different from the native approaches to fishing methods in Ha­ waii (Smith, 1993) and Guam (Hensley and Sherwood, 1993). Finally, varia­ tions in the population size and in the fishing pressure on the nearshore eco­ system are marked among islands, from the highly populated island of Oahu in Hawaii to sparsely populated islands elsewhere to the mostly uninhabited islands of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (NWHI) and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). The objective of this volume is to describe our current knowledge on the varied fisheries of Hawaii and the U.S.­ associated islands of the Pacific. This introductory paper provides some gen­ eral background on fisheries in the region. Diversity of Fisheries In the U.S. insular Pacific, the com­ bination of highly complex habitats, high species diversity, and both native and newly introduced cultural practices leads to a diversity of fisheries unpar­ alleled in most other parts of the U.S. Many fisheries are unique to certain localities, such as that for palolo worm in American Samoa (Craig et. aI., 1993), seasonal juvenile fisheries for rabbitfish in Guam (Hensley and Sherwood, 1993), and limpet, or opihi fisheries in Hawaii (Smith, 1993). Oth­ ers are common to all islands, such as the seasonal fisheries for juvenile big­ eye scad in all areas. The adults of these coastal pelagics, known as akule in Hawaii or atule in American Samoa, represent the largest volume fishery in nearshore waters but are poorly known in terms of their resource potential. Nearshore reef resources are often overexploited in populated areas, a problem perhaps characteristic oftropi­ cal reef fisheries in general (Ferry and Kohler, 1987). Evolution of Fisheries With increasing population, chang­ ing cultural composition, and advanc­ ing technology, island fisheries have changed in many ways. Prior to west­ ern colonization, indigenous peoples of the islands depended on the marine environment and had developed a unique knowledge of marine resources and varied approaches to conservation and management. The cultural impacts of colonization of the islands by non­ indigenous peoples had marked effects and typically led to the decline of tra­ ditional conservation measures (Jo­ hannes, 1978); a concise description of how this happened in Belau, in the Western Caroline Islands, is provided by Johannes (1981). In Guam, Spanish persecution of Charnmorros led to the demise of the traditional fishing meth­ ods in the mid-1500's (Hensley and Sherwood, 1993). Similarly, in Hawaii, it led to the decline of the traditional management regime of the native Ha­ waiians that had long protected near­ shore resources (Smith, 1993). Trends in the fisheries of Hawaii are perhaps the most pertinent to examine, for the greatest changes have occurred there and these may serve as a warning of what may come in the other island areas as populations increase there as well.