Hawaii Fish Ban Update

[UncommonSense]

it would have to be for something you can't just buy

I did nearly get a male ribbon eel on my last night…

 

[Biokabe]

I did nearly get a male ribbon eel on my last night…

Alas, nearly is only good in horseshoes.

 

[Macropharyngodon]

Yeah. The only reason it interested me is because of my target species.
M. geoffroyi is a little bit of a pain to get your hands on. And it is easily my dream species. No other leopard comes close in my opinion. But the question is more - Do I spend the cost on flights, lodging, permitting, gas, containment etc. OR, do I just wait a decade or two until they become CBs :)

Because a group of researchers got them past the most difficult stage of Wrasse development, so it is fair to assume that the captive breeding project will advance. Albeit slowly.

Here's the link if anyone is interested.
https://www.frankbaensch.com/marine-aquarium-fish-culture/my-research/shortnose-wrasse-culture/

 

[Macropharyngodon]

Alas, nearly is only good in horseshoes.

And hand grenades

 

[Macropharyngodon]

I did nearly get a male ribbon eel on my last night…

That's so cool. I have been to the islands a few times, and the only eels I saw were zebra, yellow edged, and dragons. I didn't even know they had ribbon eels.

 

[UncommonSense]

That's so cool. I have been to the islands a few times, and the only eels I saw were zebra, yellow edged, and dragons. I didn't even know they had ribbon eels.

I saw a TON of zebras, closer than I’d like on a few occasions… they get massive!

I didn’t realize they did, either! I suppose I was going after it at 1am with a dying headlamp, so my ID could be off… but, it definitely looked like a ribbon eel, and was just neon primary colors all over!

 

[Biokabe]

And hand grenades

Thanks, I'd forgotten the second part of the quip.

 

[Macropharyngodon]

I saw a TON of zebras, closer than I’d like on a few occasions… they get massive!

I didn’t realize they did, either! I suppose I was going after it at 1am with a dying headlamp, so my ID could be off… but, it definitely looked like a ribbon eel, and was just neon primary colors all over!

yeah, the surf was a little strong one day I went out without fins, but then I almost ran into a white mouth

 

[Mellotang]

Are Kole tangs able to be collected?

 

[BloopFish]

Yeah. They are small and sort of deep dwellers (relatively). It's kind of a lot of hoops to jump through but it's worth it I think.

They honestly aren't that deep at all. Good luck finding anyone to tell you where to find one though.

 

[BloopFish]

There are two other avenues for “legal” yellow tangs; a few come out of Japan. Then, the personal collection allowance is being used as a loophole where people collect for personal use, carry them back to the continent and resell them.

To clarify, this is not a loophole at all. A loophole implies it is legal, but somehow tricking the system. If you are reselling it, it is no longer personal use and therefore against the law.

 

[BloopFish]

That's so cool. I have been to the islands a few times, and the only eels I saw were zebra, yellow edged, and dragons. I didn't even know they had ribbon eels.

No offense to the other guy, but ribbon eels do not exist in Hawaii...

 

[BloopFish]

Are Kole tangs able to be collected?

It is not in the approved list.

 

[BloopFish]

My mistake “arriving this week” not today specifically (if the FB screenshot is not allowed, please remove)

Unless this is a rehomed fish or Biota captive bred fish, these are either not Hawaiian or not legal. Collection has not resumed yet.

 

[Jasonak]

As someone who’s actually gone through the Hawaii recreational aquarium harvest permit process around a a decade ago, then collected and transported my catch home, I can confidently say that you’ll be very hard pressed to catch any tang using permitted methods!

— I did manage to catch a few dwarf puffers, and even a trigger while snorkeling with fins and a net… but pretty much anything faster than you can swim will give you a wide berth!

— best bet here was tide-pooling at night, following the tide tables to go out at all hours of night with a flashlight to collect… though I never saw any tangs besides convicts using the tide pooling method…

Im similiar as you did the permit thing over a decade ago. I actually saw a moorish idol in a pool once.
And agree, I always saw tons of convict tangs in the tidals.Maybe its the time of year we were always over there.In november, that's normally our go to so we can skip.Thanksgiving. Were going over in April tjis time. Maui I never see the yellow tangs, big islands theres thousands, waves of yellow. Maybe if you went out at night. I spend allot of time searching pools to pass the time at the beach and next to snorkeling, one of my favorite things to do over there. So much cool stuff in the tidal pools.

 

[Jasonak]

Yeah. The only reason it interested me is because of my target species.
M. geoffroyi is a little bit of a pain to get your hands on. And it is easily my dream species. No other leopard comes close in my opinion. But the question is more - Do I spend the cost on flights, lodging, permitting, gas, containment etc. OR, do I just wait a decade or two until they become CBs :)

Because a group of researchers got them past the most difficult stage of Wrasse development, so it is fair to assume that the captive breeding project will advance. Albeit slowly.

Here's the link if anyone is interested.
https://www.frankbaensch.com/marine-aquarium-fish-culture/my-research/shortnose-wrasse-culture/

Just plan a vacation and think if it has a bonus to your trip, if you get one.

 

[Macropharyngodon]

They honestly aren't that deep at all. Good luck finding anyone to tell you where to find one though.

Welp. I get to go this summer, so maybe I can map out some spots and do some local research. I don't have a tank setup rn to try unfortunately.

 

[TangerineSpeedo]

Np, I was not trying to be vague. I ran into a similar issue collecting natural sea water in California during our drought. I received a lot of different replies from the various agencies with few willing to help :(

Why would you ever think collecting NSW could be an issue? You can buy it from Catalina water or get it free from Scripps pier, etc. Just asking an ? not trying to be insulting.

 

[Jay Hemdal Verified Community Expert]

To clarify, this is not a loophole at all. A loophole implies it is legal, but somehow tricking the system. If you are reselling it, it is no longer personal use and therefore against the law.

There is zero tracking or oversight outside the state of Hawaii. You can legally leave the state with the fish you collected. Once outside the state, their jurisdiction ends and you can legally dispose of the fish as you wish....but that is not in the spirit of the original statute, so it is gaming the system.....

 

[areefer01]

Why would you ever think collecting NSW could be an issue? You can buy it from Catalina water or get it free from Scripps pier, etc. Just asking an ? not trying to be insulting.

You are not insulting, we are good. And I get the question. We live in Ca, is why.

I am aware of Scripps but I am up north and do not believe we have a similar option in say San Fran. Then again not sure I would use that water anyway due to the pollution. As far as Catalina water goes, I am sure they have some sort of permit to pull water on that scale - but I am assuming.

Never the less I felt it was better to be safe, than sorry. I do not need to put LEO or Park Rangers in an odd situation - or me. So I went through fish and game, got passed around water resource control board, and finally got a somewhat neutral answer that said for home use, it is fine. Just do not pull from marine reserves or parks.

I am still not sure I got an actual answer but I at least kept that in my truck in case I was asked. In the end I just treated the day as I would a normal dive trip. Check the water condition report, pick a dive site, go about the day. At the end collect some water and be done.