Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 9, Number 3, 1 March 1992 — Naturally Hawaiian [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Naturally Hawaiian

by Patrick Ching artist/environmentalist ::xx:.x-x:x:.x:xx:x:xx:x^

Guardians of the deep — getting to know sharks

Today most of the publicity about sharks is centered around attacks on humans. Though these attacks are rare they provide great fuel for media sensationalism. Many people see sharks

only as ferocious killers and do not appreciate them as being important members of the marine ecosystem. I feel fortunate that I have had the opportunity to see sharks in a different light. While growing up on O'ahu my regular surf spot was at Kewalo basin. No shortage of sharks there! Those of us who surfed there regularly had grown accustomed to seeing sharks and didn't panie when one appeared in the waves. We would silently applaud when those less eomfortable around sharks headed for shore as it made the surf spot less crowded. The way we saw it — wh?never you are in the oeean you accepted that there are certain risks. Shark attacks are one of them. (Though you're mueh

more likely to get hit by a bus.) While doing monk seal research in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands I often observed sharks as they congregated close to shore. While snorkeling or bathing it was not uneommon to be circled by grey reef sharks sometimes by the dozens. Tiger sharks would eome into shallow water during the summer months to eat albatross chicks that landed on water. (We usually gave tiger sharks lots of space.) After a few months of seeing sharks on a regular basis it became easy for me to appreciate them as the beautiful and graceful creatures that they are. There are many species of shark that inhabit Hawaiian waters. The word mano is used to refer to sharks in general. The white tipped reef shark, known as mano lalakea, is eommon in shallow reef areas and is generally harmless to humans, while the niuhi, or man-eating shark, were considered ferocious killers. It is said that the eyes of these sharks would glow in the dark. The catching of niuhi was a sport reserved for kings and favored people. Most literature refer to the niuhi as the great white

shark whieh is actually quite rare in Hawaiian waters. There are those who believe however, that the term niuhi was used to describe mako or tiger sharks as well. Sharks have always played a prominent role in Hawaiian culture. Stories about sharks are numerous and varied. Many Hawaiian families revere sharks as family guardians or 'aumakua. Such families are said to have relatives who were either born as sharks or who have died and then transformed into sharks. Such sharks are known as mano kanaka and should be distinguished from the mano i'a or edible sharks. Guardian sharks were cared for and petted by devoted relatives known as kahu. In return, these sharks would protect their kahu from any danger they might encounter while in the oeean. The bodies of sharks were used by many eultures throughout the world. In Hawai'i, the flesh was consumed by those allowed to eat sharks, the skin was used as sandpaper or stretched over drums and the teeth were used for cutting tools, weapons and and decorative ornaments.