Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 10, Number 6, 1 June 1993 — Ke ao nani [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Ke ao nani

Naturally Hawanan

by Patrick Ching artist/environmentalist

"Squidding, " Hawaiian-style

Fishing for octopus, or "squidding," as it is commonly called, is a popular pastime of many Hawaiians. Modern-day fishermen often eall octopus "squid," but, true squid live in open water

and have long, cone-shaped bodies with 10 tentacles compared to the octopus' eight. The Hawaiian name for the true squid is mūhe'e. There are two types of octopi that are commonly caught for food.

Both are known as he'e. The he'e pūloa is reddish brown with distinctive light-col-ored spots. It spends the day hiding in holes in the reef and is most active at night. This behavior has earned it the eommon name "night squid."

The he'e mauli or "day squid" is tan or dark brown. It ean often be seen during the day when it leaves its burrow to search for prey. Its meals consist largely of mollusks, crabs and shrimp. The

he'e mauli may grow to be mueh larger than the he'e pūloa. It is also considered better tasting. He'e are caught by several techniques, from grabbing them by hand to spearing them. Another method,

known as lūhe'e, is to use a lure made of a cowry shell attached to a hook, weight and line. The lure is placed next to a hole where an octopus is known to be. When the octopus wraps itself around the cowry shell, the line is pulled in and the octopus eap-

tured. To subdue a squirming octopus the fisherman may bite it between the eyes. By the same token he must be careful not to get bit himself. Octopus have strong beaks and a bite from one ean be very painful. Octopi are most abundant on shallow reefs between August and December. An old Hawaiian adage says that "When the sugar eane flowers, the he'e are abundant." He'e may be prepared in a number of ways. The meat is tough and is usually pounded to make it more tender. It may then be cooked, dried or eaten raw. "Raw squid" is often mixed with limu, roasted kukui nut and its own ink sack ('ala'ala he'e). The ink sack ean also be used to prepare fish ehum or "palu." Some Hawaiians worshipped the he'e and mūhe'e as family