Pre-European catches of snapper (Pagrus auratus) in northern New Zealand

Archaeological fish bones of the species Pagrus auratus (snapper) wee exami ned from five archaeological sites in northern New Zealand. Live fork lengt h was estimated with standard errors ranging from 9-18 mm, and live ungutte d weight with standard errors ranging from 120-344g, depending on anatomy m easured. Size-frequency diagrams were reconstructed, representing the origi nal fish catches. These were compared with data derived from modern and com mercial trawl catches from nearby marine environments. It was found that th e archaeological fish catches are dominated by much larger fish than modern catches, reflecting a combination of two processes: selective capturing me thods on the part of the pre-European Maori, which favoured large fish, and massive stock depletion in the post-European period. Several alternative m ethods of estimating fish weight are examined, each giving results within a bout 10% of correct mean values. It is suggested that if we are to verify h ypothesized human-induced changes in fish populations over archaeological t ime, we need higher quality collections than are normally available for stu dy.