black-striped, schools the harbour walls
- Size
- Length: 30–45 cm, Weight: 1–2 kg
- Lifespan
- 15–20 years
- Diet
- Seaweed, algae and small invertebrates. Lives in shallow, rocky reefs, harbours and estuaries, often in murky, turbid water. A muddy reef resident, tough, adaptable and hard to catch.
- Habitat
- Shallow, rocky reefs, harbours and estuaries, often in murky, turbid water where other fish struggle to see. The fish of the brown water, tough, adaptable and hard to catch.
- Range
- Around the North Island and northern South Island in shallow, rocky reefs, harbours and estuaries. Most common in sheltered waters with murky, turbid conditions. Also found in Australia and the Pacific.
- Endemism
- Native
- Main Threats
- None significant. This species is common and adaptable with healthy populations throughout its range. Habitat loss from coastal development and pollution. Overfishing in some areas.
- Population
- Not Threatened. Common throughout the North Island and the northern South Island, especially in sheltered harbours and estuaries. Considered a pest by some anglers, but has a dedicated following among those who know how to cook them.
- Conservation Status
- Not Threatened
The grumpy old man of the rocky reef. It looks perpetually annoyed. Parore have a deep, compressed body. They possess a small blunt head and a mouth full of strong, incisor-like teeth. These click together when the fish is lifted from the water. The colour ranges from olive-green to silvery-grey. Faint vertical bars often mark the skin. Dark fins and a square, powerful tail complete the look. A fish that looks like it has seen too much and cares too little.
Vegetarian troublemakers with a serious attitude. Parore feed on seaweed, small crustaceans and anything else they can scrape off the rocks. They are notoriously hard to catch. Smart and suspicious, they will spit out a bait if they feel the slightest resistance. This has earned them a reputation as a trash fish among anglers who lack the patience to figure them out. A fish that makes anglers work.
Parore have a secret. They are delicious, if the right preparation is known. The flesh is dark and oily. It has a strong seaweed flavour that turns some people off. But bleed them immediately. Soak the fillets in salted water overnight. Grill them over a hot fire. They become a revelation. A fish that rewards effort.
To catch a parore is to catch the puzzle fish. It is the one that makes the angler work for dinner. It teaches patience and respect for the smart, stubborn residents of the brown water. It is the fish of the patient angler. The one who knows that the ugly, grumpy, weed-eating parore is worth the effort. This is true if the work is put in.
The rock is slippery. The parore watches, grumpy and suspicious. It eyes the bait. It does not bite. It waits. The angler waits. The parore wins, most of the time.
That is why it is still there.
In Māori tradition, the Parore was known as a fish of the sheltered harbours. It was often caught in nets set in the muddy shallows. Its name is onomatopoeic. It sounds like the clicking noise the fish makes with its teeth. Today it remains the fish of the patient angler. It is the one who knows that the ugly, grumpy, weed-eating parore is worth the effort. You must be willing to put in the work.