WAHOO (ONO)

Scientific Name: Acanthocybium solandri

Hawaiian Name: Ono Malani

Japanese Name: Kamasu-sawara

Ono is a Hawaiian word meaning “good to eat.” It is commonly known as wahoo and is a close relative of the king mackerel.



Built like a torpedo, they are fast swimmers. Ono rarely school, but groups are often found around fish aggregation buoys. Surface catches indicate that ono associate with banks, pinnacles and flotsam. However, longline catches suggest that this species is also widely distributed in the open ocean. 



Ono may grow to more than 100 pounds in weight, but the usual size of the fish caught in Hawaii is 8 to 30 pounds. Among sport fishermen, it’s a popular light-tackle gamefish. Ono in Hawaii are caught by trollers and longliners. 



European explorers who first mapped the Hawaiian Islands found ono to be plentiful off the island of Oahu. Maps of the time indicate that a very common spelling of the word “Oahu” was “Wahoo,” and this is believed to be the origin of the fish’s other name.