olonggol (uy -) nhunga (nga'a -) |
in Uw Oykangand and Uw Olkola in Pakanh |
Northern saratoga, caught at Nakakoora, February 1996 [PH]
Northern saratoga, caught at Old Koolatah station, May 1994 [PH] |
The northern saratoga, Scleropages jardini (family Osteoglossidae), is a fish common in central Cape York Peninsula logoons. It is a silver-olive in colour with very large scales. It grows to 90 cm. Saratogas aren't the greatest to eat because they are boney, but they taste fine, especially when cooked in the capmari. Their boney tongue means they often break fishing lines, making them somewhat challenging to land.
In the avoidance language this fish is named after its habit of rising to the surface to look out of the water: uy el adniy in Oykangand fish eye up ("looking up fish") uy abar in Olkola fish eye ("eye-fish") nga'a me'e kani in Pakanh fish eye up ("looking up fish") |