Kite Lines - Vol.1 No. 3 - KiteLife

fisherman from a canoe, but it can alsobe accomplished while wading alongthe edge of the coral reefs if the prevailingwinds are suitable . Accordingto Patris, a good fisherman can oftencatch up to twenty or thirty needlefishwithin several hours .During fishing the breadfruit leafkite is flown at different heights dependingupon the strength of the wind .In light winds they are flown as low assixty feet above the water but in strongwinds they may be flown as high asthree hundred feet . Both light-windand strong-wind kites are made thathave a short adjustable bridle for settingthe angle of attack . They can alsobe made to fly to the left or to the rightby trimming or altering the kite on oneside . These techniques are quite simplebut very effective .In launching the kite from a canoe,the fishing line, which also acts as thekite's tail, is let out first, followed byletting out the sennet kite line to keepthe kite aloft while closely observingits behavior. Since the breadfruit leafwill in time become worn or damaged,frequent bridle adjustments are necessary.After letting out the flyingline it is either tied onto the canoeor held between the fisherman's teeth,thus allowing him to handle his canoeand line at the same time . The canoeslowly follows the kite while the spiderweb lure is made to skip and dancealong the surface of the water .Apparently the lure resembles a smallfish jumping or frantically trying toelude some pursuing predator. Thisaction entices the fast-swimmingneedlefish to strike the lure . When itdoes, its large, numerous teeth becomesecurely entangled in the strong spiderweb filaments . Then the kite with theneedlefish firmly "hooked" by thelure is pulled in and the fish removed .The kite is launched again withinseveral minutes to catch another fish .There is considerable speculationregarding why this method is sosuccessful for capturing these large,timid predators . Modern rod andreel methods are often used withsuccess but their effectiveness doesnot approach that of the ancient breadfruitleaf kite and spider web lure .Some observers believe that fishingwith a kite allowed the fishermen tomaneuver the lure close to their timidprey without startling it . Some areconvinced that it's strictly the motionof the lure playing upon the surfaceof the water. Others believe that thefishing kites tended to attract needlefishto the lure because the movingkite looked like some seabird feedingupon small fishes .Unfortunately, lack of free timeprevented me from going fishing withPatricio in his canoe . The centuriesoldtechniques he used were describedto me in considerable detail by Patris,and they closely agree with observationsmade by other individuals andwith reports printed in scientificjournals . However, good fortuneplaced several clear 35mm color slidesin my hands that showed Patricioactually fishing with one of his kitesin the Western Caroline Islands . Theseexcellent photographs were kindlymade available to me by Dr. BobJohannes, an associate also interestedin kite fishing and fishing lore of thePacific islanders .Since these rare and valuable fishingkites may become quite brittle withage or damaged from frequenthandling, I donated both, along withthe photographs, to the Bernice P .Bishop Museum in Honolulu, HI, sothat in the years to come othersmay enjoy and perhaps study them .