Ko ngā ika ririki te ranga ika wai māori nunui o Aotearoa nō te whānau Galaxiidae. Toru tekau ngā momo ika ririki, pēnei i ngā inanga, i ngā kōkopu, i ngā kōaro me ngā waikaka.
Ko te ingoa ‘galaxiid’ i ahu mai i te tauira kāhui whetū kōura me te hiriwā e kitea na i te kiri unahi-kore o ngā ika nei – koinā hei huna i a rātou i roto i ngā kōawa ngahere e tere ai rātou. Kitea ai hoki ki ngā repo, ki ngā manga me ngā awa nui. He tau te nuinga o ngā ika ririki ki te piki, ā, mā ngā taratara kei ō rātou pakikau rātou e āwhina ki te piki hīrere.
He paerongo kei ngā upoko me ngā tinana o ngā ika ririki – te rārangi kaurapa – he wāhanga tēnei nō ngā pūnaha tairongo kite-kore o ngā ika katoa. Heoi anō, kua whanake ake te āheinga o te kōkopu ki te whakamahi i ngā paerongo kei ō rātou upoko ki te kite i ngā mea e taka ana ki te wai kia kai ai rātou i ngā ngārara ka taka iho i ngā tauwharenga otaota hei te pō.
Ko ngā hātaretare te kai matua a ngā ika ririki – ngā hātaretare nohowai me te maha o ngā hātaretare iti, me ērā ka taka ki te wai.
Ko te nuinga o ngā ika ririki kua tata korehāhā, kei te takiwā o te haurua kei te rārangi IUCN. Ko te ika ririki kauaeroa te ika tino onge o Aotearoa, ā, e kīia ana ‘kei te pari o te rua.’
He whakamānawa ki a Simon Elkington nō Te Papa Atawhai mō te whakaahua o ngā ika rikiriki (Galaxias prognathous). Creative Commons 4.0
