New Zealand's most valuable commercial fish. It is a fish that was almost lost and then brought back. Its mild, white flesh is used in fish fillets, fish fingers and surimi. This is imitation crab meat. The fishery collapsed in the 1990s due to overfishing. But careful management has allowed populations to recover. Today it is one of the world's best-managed fisheries. The Māori name Hoki refers to its habit of returning to the same spawning grounds each year. Hoki means to return. A fish that comes home. The body is elongated and streamlined. It has a large head and a terminal mouth. The teeth are sharp. The colour is a silvery blue-grey on the back. This fades to white on the belly. The fins are dusky. The scales are small and smooth. A fish built for the deep. It is a deep-water predator. It hunts in mid-water for small fish, squid, and crustaceans. It migrates to spawning grounds each year. It returns to the same areas. This predictable behaviour makes it vulnerable to fishing. A fish that tells the fishermen where to find it. In the 1990s, the hoki fishery collapsed. Overfishing had reduced the population to a fraction of its former size. The fishery was closed. Strict quotas were put in place. Today, the population has recovered. The fishery is certified as sustainable. A success story. Rare, but real. It is processed into fish fillets, fish fingers, and surimi. It is exported around the world. The fish ends up in a freezer aisle. It is wrapped in plastic. It is no longer recognisable as a creature of the deep. To see one is to see a fish that was almost lost. It is a success story. A fishery that was overfished and then brought back. The trawler drags. The hoki come up, silver and abundant. The quotas are respected. The population holds. For now.