Thames. Snapper occurs in all sites regardless of age or location. However blue cod, barracouta, kahawai, leather jacket and labrids are present in over half of the early sites but only kahawai and Elasmobranchs (sharks and rays) are present in more than one third of later sites. Under-represented species include flounder and eel. These species were mentioned repeatedly in Land Court cases at Kauaeranga and in the lower Waihou River area (for example, Hauraki MB 4:217-29 and Hauraki MB 58:123; Hauraki
MB 60:150).
There is little evidence for deep off-shore fishing. The bones of hapuku (one individual) have been recognised only in the Port Jackson site although hapuku holes are traditionally known in Hauraki. Whale meat was probably obtained from beach strandings. Sharks are known to be important historically (for meat and oil from the liver) but there is little evidence archaeologically. Large wooden hooks found in some Waihou sites were probably used to catch shark.
Small fishing camps were established through the Gulf area in summer. One such site at Galatea Bay on Ponui Island had many bones from the heads of snapper but few vertebrae, indicating the dried fish were taken elsewhere (Shawcross 1967). The Sunde site on Motutapu Island had similar evidence but small snapper were eaten on site and fish with an estimated length of more than 6o cm long had the heads cut off and were taken away from the site (Nichol 1988).
30