| Copyright 2006 by The Haole Crab |
| Record uhu |
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| This is the story of my Hawaii state record and IUSA world record Redlip Parrotfish (Scarus rubroviolaceus). The previous record was a male, which in Hawaii is known as an uhu `ele`ele. Interestingly, the fish that I caught was a female, or uhu palukaluka. If it had lived long enough to turn into a male, who knows how big it would have gotten? On March 18, 2001 my father David McIntire, my friend Doug Jensen, and I met at the Maliko boat ramp. We were a little surprised to see that no one was there, since the weather was nice and we were getting in a little late. We put our boat the 'BOUT TIME into the water and headed up the coast towards Hana. The morning bumpiness made it difficult to go very fast, so we trolled all the way to Puka Maui, where we stopped and had something to eat. After a morning of slow buoy diving, we pulled into Uaoa Bay, which is a large bay that is usually protected from the surge. After anchoring, we each went our separate ways. I switched from my bluewater gun to my Riffe Island and headed towards the point, in the direction of Hana. I three-pronged an 8 pound red uhu and headed for deeper water. At the point there was a school of uhu hanging around. I saw a big female off in the distance, but she was shy. I dropped down to 50 feet and was lining up on a small female, when the big female rushed in, tryig to herd the smaller one. I got off a quick shot, and to my surprise, I hit her in the rear third of her body. She must have been farther away than I had thought! At the surface, I slowly worked her up, and when I finally grabbed her, I was amazed at how big she was. She was definitely the biggest uhu that I had ever seen. She was bleeding profusely, so I strung her up and reloaded. I drifted back towards the boat, picking up two `omilu (with one shot!) and an uku on the way. At the boat, everyone was amazed at the size of the uhu. I borrowed a certified scale from Maui Pineapple Company, Ltd. to weigh the fish. I zeroed the scale, wiped the fish dry, and put it on the scale. I knew that the then current Hawaii state record was 16 pounds, so I was hopeful that this fish would be close. My wife Sierra and I were both excited when it hit 18 pounds and 1 ounce! The fish was 27 1/2 inches long (flat), and its girth was 24 inches. I had the fish printed by Natural Impressions, and the print now graces my living room wall. If you ever catch a noteworthy fish, and having it mounted either does not appeal to you or is too costly, look into having a fish print made. The bonus is that you get to eat the fish too! Hawaii state record IUSA world record Home |