humu­humu­nuku­nuku­āpua'a

My post this week is about the humu­humu­nuku­nuku­āpua'a. I hear about this fish all of the time and never have seen it up close and personal. After all, it is our state fish. . .So, I'm curious about. . .What type of fish is it? What does it eat? Where is it found?

This little fish has such a long name, that I shall refer to it as humuhumu.

The humuhumunukunukuapua’a is a reef, rectangualr, or wedge-tail triggerfish. It is also called a Picasso triggerfish. The Hawaiian name humuhumunukunukuapua’a, means “triggerfish with a snout like a pig”.

Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Tetraodontiformes
Family: Balistidae
Genus: Rhinecanthus
Species: R. rectangulus

Binomial name
Rhinecanthus rectangulusBloch & Schneider, 1801

The humuhumu's teeth are set close together inside its relatively small mouth, and it has a small second spine, which it can use to lock its first spine into an upright position. The triggerfish will wedge itself into small crevices and lock their spine to make it almost impossible to get them out. In addition, when fleeing predators, the triggerfish will sometimes make grunting noises, possibly to warn other nearby triggerfish of danger at hand. They hide in crevasses

They feed on alge and also mollusks and crabs.
The humuhumu are found in the salt water coasts of the indo-Pacific ocean. They are found promenently in the coral reefs in the Hawaiian Islands.

In 1990, the humuhumu’s time as the Hawaii state fish finished due to the expiration of a Hawaii state law. Then in 2006, a bill was passed that reinstated the humuhumu as our state fish once again!

Humuhumunukunukuapua’a is such a long name for a fish, but not the longest.
The longest fish name in Hawaiian is that of the butterflyfish (Forcipiger longirostris). Its name is lauwiliwilinukunuku’oi’oi meaning “long-snouted fish shaped like a wiliwili leaf".

Wasmannia auropunctata or Little Fire Ants

On the Big Island there is a new invasive specie. It is the little fire ant and it packs a stinging bite. These little ants are driving workers away from their farms.

So, who are these little fire ants? Where are the from? Why are they so painful?

“The little fire ant, a native of South America, has been spreading since it was first discovered in Hawaiian Paradise Park in 1999, state agriculture officials said.
The tiny light-brown ant is no bigger in length than the edge of a penny, but it can pack a painful punch -- fire ant stings cause immediate dime-size red welts on the skin that last at least several days, followed by intense itching.”

About the Little Fire Ant:
Description:
The little fire ant is very small, about 1/16 of an inch long.
Pale orange and slow moving.

Sting:At first, the sting may feel like being poked by a needle. It later becomes very itchy.


Where do you find little fire ants here?

They are often found in potted plants, flowers and ornamental foliage or on the ground. Colonies are small, numerous and not under ground They can be in virtually any protected spot such as under a single leaf.

To date, there are about 40 infestation sites in East Hawai`i.

According to Patrick Conant, entomologist with the State of Hawai`i’s Department of Agriculture, it is believed that the little fire ants have spread in East Hawai`i primarily via potted plants.

"We need to concentrate on controlling little fire ants in nurseries and landscapers so the ant is not spread around inadvertently," Conant said.

Where do little fire ants nest?

According to the University of Florida’s Department of Entomology and Nematology, the little fire ant nests under leaf debris, rotten tree limbs, rocks, and in trees or clumps of grass. Nests are frequently found behind the sheaths of palms. The little fire ant is highly adaptable, nesting in both open and shaded areas, seeming to thrive equally well under moist or dry conditions.

During heavy rains nests may be moved into buildings or trees.

What kind of foods attract little fire ants?

Food in homes, such as butter, peanut butter, and other oily materials are preferred by the ant.



What can be done to control the little fire ant?

Nurseries and landscapers with little fire ants should treat their plants with insecticides before transporting them. Doing this would go along way toward solving the problem of spreading infestation, according to entomologist Patrick Conant.

Meanwhile the Hawai`i Department of Agriculture also requires inspection of potted plants moving off the Big Island.

The Department of Agriculture has used Amdro ant bait to eliminate a few of the smaller infestations of little fire ants (of less than a few acres) on the Big Island. Larger infestations are extremely difficult to eradicate.

Amdro ant bait is readily available at local gardening supply and hardware stores. Be sure to read the label before purchase so you know where it is legal to use and what the hazards of using it are.

Checking for presence of the little fire ant

Please report any possible fire ant infestations by submitting specimens to the Hawai`i Department of Agriculture.

Here’s a homemade method of taking ant specimens. Chopsticks smeared with a thin coat of peanut butter works best. Put the chopstick in shady spots, at the bases of trees and shrubs, and leave it out for about an hour. Put the ant-laden chopstick in a Ziploc bag, label it with your name and phone number, and put in the freezer overnight.

Call Kyle Onuma or Patrick Conant at the Hawai`i Department of Agriculture at 974-4140 to arrange for the specimen delivery.


The little fire ant is blamed for reducing species diversity, reducing overall abundance of flying and tree-dwelling insects, and eliminating arachnid populations. It is also known for its painful stings. On the Galapagos, it eats the hatchlings of tortoises and attacks the eyes and cloacae of the adult tortoises. It is considered to be perhaps the greatest ant species threat in the Pacific.


The taxonomy of the Little Fire Ant:

Kingdom: Animalia Linnaeus, 1758 - animals
Subkingdom: Bilateria (Hatschek, 1888) Cavalier-Smith, 1983 - bilaterians, triploblastic animals
Branch: Protostomia Grobben, 1908 - protostomes
Infrakingdom: Ecdysozoa Aguinaldo et al., 1997 ex Cavalier-Smith, 1998 - ecdysozoans
Phylum: Arthropoda Latreille, 1829 - arthropods
Class: Insecta Linnaeus, 1758 - insects
Order: Hymenoptera Linnaeus, 1758 - ants, bees, wasps
Family: Formicidae
Genus: Wasmannia
Species: auropunctata Species Authority: (Roger, 1863)

Coqui Frogs

Last year the coqui frogs invaded our neighbors back yard. Every night since then I hear them. I have seen two outside our back door, heard some in our garage, and one somehow got into our shower. Crazy! So my question is, “What can we do to control (help stop)the spreading of coqui frogs?”




Here is a link about empowering homeowners to control coqui frogs.




Homeowners want to know how to deal with the frogs in their backyards. They may not be able
to stop the coqui in our valleys but they may be able to stop them where it counts for them: on
their properties. The most important elements in fighting the frogs are environment
modification and good sanitation.

Eliminate Frog Habitat
Get rid of places where frogs can hide, and allow air and sunshine to dry up moisture.
Coincidentally, the same kind of environment favorable to the frog seems to also harbor African
snails and slugs.

Plant selection and sanitation
Coqui frogs seem to favor certain plants, such as heliconia, bananas, false stag horn fern (uluhe),
wild orchid, ginger, wedelia (small yellow daisy-like flower), and tall grasses. Old banana and
heliconia leaves should be removed because they create shade and collect moisture. Frogs prefer
to perch where the leaves connect to the trunk.
Trees do not pose as great a problem as the accompanying underbrush does. Start with getting rid of ALL undergrowth and ground cover. Merely cutting them back will still leave sufficient
material to provide shade, moisture and lots of hiding spaces. It may take several consecutive
cuttings or applications of a weed killer to remove this undergrowth completely.
Trees, such as mangos, avocado and lichee, should be pruned to allow sunshine and air to
eliminate moist hiding places. Trim smaller trees or large shrubs to remove the lower branches.
Remove the young shoots growing from areca palms to eliminate another favored hiding spot.
Pruning will also facilitate spraying at ground level.
Making the coqui frog unwelcome by constant interruption can also work. A neighbor has a
mango tree that always has a thick layer of leaves under it. By throwing out a heavy layer of
feed, the birds and chickens will totally turn the area upside down and I’ve seen the chickens
catch and eat the coqui. But first the chickens must be introduced to this food source. You may
have to catch a couple of coqui (make sure you kill them) and add them to your chicken’s feed.
Once familiar with the coqui, the chickens will eat it should they scratch one up. Better yet, rake
and remove fallen leaves.

Inspect your potted plants
Pots and trays should be individually examined. A frog can easily get into the middle of a stack
and lay its eggs. This is especially important if the pots or trays are on the ground, but empty
pots on a bench are not exempt. They, too, should have at least an initial inspection. Cement
blocks also provide cool, moist refuge sites. Inspect any building material stacked in the same
place for an extended period.
Instead of placing potted plants directly on the ground, lay down a weed barrier cloth. It will
make it easier to clean up the debris from your plants by hosing or sweeping. Occasionally, pick
up each pot and give a quick spray of citric acid under it. This is especially effective for the very
tiny greenhouse frog.
Using something like insecticidal soap on a regular basis can help to chase a frog from your
potted plants. It doesn’t kill the frog but seems to irritate it enough to cause it to jump out into
the open for capture or spraying.

Yards, lawns and green waste
Areas containing rocks that are an inch or bigger should be filled in with fine cinder to eliminate
areas the frogs can burrow into.
Keep your lawn trimmed on a regular basis. Better yet if your mower is also a mulcher. It is
legal to have a firebreak between your property and a vacant lot. If the lot is frog-infested, and if you can afford it, hire a bulldozer to cut a line, otherwise consider hand clearing. It will give you
a buffer area between your property and the frogs. You will have to maintain the firebreak area
and not allow the thick, high growth back.
After trimming vegetation, you may find you have a large pile of green waste to deal with. If left
untreated, it will attract African snails, slugs and possibly coqui. If you are unable to take it to a
transfer station, put it in a pile and apply hydrated lime to the top of the pile. You may have to
reapply from time to time when all traces of the lime is gone, especially after rain or when you
turn it over and see slugs or snails. This will facilitate breakdown of the green waste into very
good compost. Coqui-infested green waste should never be dumped on vacant lots or roadways,
and should be mulched before transporting to the rubbish dump.




Here is a link to the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources with more information about the coqui frogs.



Some methods that the CTAHR suggest for the control of coqui frogs are

Hand capture
Citric Acid
Spray hydrate lime as foliar or soil drench
How water shower
Set PVC pipe or bamboo traps
Eliminate frog friendly habitats

*These suggestions are given in further detail in the college of tropical ag. link.*