Cormorant Fishing Cruel

The birds' throats are constricted so that they cannot swallow the fish and the fisherman forces the cormorants to give up their catch by dragging them out of the water and getting them to drop their catch into a bucket.

Some have been known to dive as deep as 150ft [45m] and they swim very quickly, using their webbed feet to propel them and their wings to steer.

Cormorants' short wings make them incredibly agile swimmers, and cormorants actually use less energy swimming than when flying.

Cormorants are highly specialized to a feeding style that ornithologists call underwater pursuit. When they disappear beneath the surface, they actively chase after fish. The cormorant bio-design is created specifically for this lifestyle. The dense, heavy-set body minimizes buoyancy, making it easy to dive and swim underwater.

Short but powerful legs, situated very near to the tail, are perfect for generating a strong forward thrust. Wide webbed feet also enhance the swim kick, and the long neck and long, hooked bill enable the birds to reach out and snare a fleeing fish.

Described by Marco Polo and popularized in the children's story Ping, cormorant fishing is still practiced today in some parts of southern China and Japan, where it first evolved. The best time to view cormorant fishing is on a moonless night when the fish are attracted to lights or fires on the boats.

The cormorants go through a routine of diving, catching fish, surfacing and having the fish taken out of their mouth by the fishermen. A piece of string or twine, a metal ring, a grass string, or a hemp or leather collar is placed around their necks to prevent them from swallowing their fish.

The birds' throats are constricted so that they cannot swallow the fish and the fisherman forces the cormorants to give up their catch by dragging them out of the water and getting them to drop their catch into a bucket.

Some have been known to dive as deep as 150ft [45m] and they swim very quickly, using their webbed feet to propel them and their wings to steer. Cormorants' short wings make them incredibly agile swimmers, and cormorants actually use less energy swimming than when flying.

Cormorants are highly specialized to a feeding style that ornithologists call underwater pursuit. When they disappear beneath the surface, they actively chase after fish. The cormorant bio-design is created specifically for this lifestyle. The dense, heavy-set body minimizes buoyancy, making it easy to dive and swim underwater.

Short but powerful legs, situated very near to the tail, are perfect for generating a strong forward thrust. Wide webbed feet also enhance the swim kick, and the long neck and long, hooked bill enable the birds to reach out and snare a fleeing fish.

Described by Marco Polo and popularized in the children's story Ping, cormorant fishing is still practiced today in some parts of southern China and Japan, where it first evolved. The best time to view cormorant fishing is on a moonless night when the fish are attracted to lights or fires on the boats.

The cormorants go through a routine of diving, catching fish, surfacing and having the fish taken out of their mouth by the fishermen. A piece of string or twine, a metal ring, a grass string, or a hemp or leather collar is placed around their necks to prevent them from swallowing their fish. The birds often have their wings clipped so they don’t fly away and have looped strings attached to their legs that allow them to be retrieved with a pole by the fisherman.

Cormorant fishing boats can carry anywhere from one to 30 birds. On a good day a team of four cormorants can catch about 40 pounds of fish, which are often sold by the fisherman’s wife at the local market. The birds are usually given some fish from the day's catch after the day of fishing is over.

In China, cormorant fishing is done on Erhai Lake near Dali, Yunnan and near Guilin.

In Japan it is done at night, except after a heavy rain or during a full moon, from May 11th to October 15th on the Nagaragawa River [near Gifu] and the Oze River in Seki and from June through September on the Kiso River [near Inuyama]. It also done in Kyoto, Uji, Nagoya and a couple other places.

The practice of cormorant fishing is over 1000 years old. These days it is performed mostly for the benefit of tourists. The ritual begins when a fire is set or a light is turned on over the water.

This attracts swarms of trout-like fish called ayu. Tethered cormorants dive into the water and frantically swim around, gulping down fish.

Metal rings and placed around the bird's neck to keep them from swallowing the fish. When cormorants' gullets are full they are hauled aboard the boat, and the still-moving ayu are disgorged on to the deck. The birds are then given rewards of fish, and thrown back in the river to repeat the process.

Fishermen wear black so the birds can’t see them, cover their heads for protection against sparks and wear a straw skirt to repel water.

Pinewood is burned because it burns even on rainy days. On fishing days the cormorants are not fed all day so they are hungry at fishing time.

The birds are all caught in the wild and trained. Some can catch 60 fish an hour. After the fishing, the fish are squeezed out of the necks of the birds. Many visitors find this cruel but the fishermen point out that captive birds live to be between 15 and 20 while those that live in the world rarely live beyond five.

The birds often have their wings clipped so they don’t fly away and have looped strings attached to their legs that allow them to be retrieved with a pole by the fisherman.

Cormorant fishing boats can carry anywhere from one to 30 birds. On a good day a team of four cormorants can catch about 40 pounds of fish, which are often sold by the fisherman’s wife at the local market. The birds are usually given some fish from the day's catch after the day of fishing is over.

In China, cormorant fishing is done on Erhai Lake near Dali, Yunnan and near Guilin.

In Japan it is done at night, except after a heavy rain or during a full moon, from May 11th to October 15th on the Nagaragawa River [near Gifu] and the Oze River in Seki and from June through September on the Kiso River [near Inuyama]. It also done in Kyoto, Uji, Nagoya and a couple other places.

The practice of cormorant fishing is over 1000 years old. These days it is performed mostly for the benefit of tourists. The ritual begins when a fire is set or a light is turned on over the water. This attracts swarms of trout-like fish called ayu. Tethered cormorants dive into the water and frantically swim around, gulping down fish.

Metal rings and placed around the bird's neck to keep them from swallowing the fish. When cormorants' gullets are full they are hauled aboard the boat, and the still-moving ayu are disgorged on to the deck. The birds are then given rewards of fish, and thrown back in the river to repeat the process.

Fishermen wear black so the birds can’t see them, cover their heads for protection against sparks and wear a straw skirt to repel water. Pinewood is burned because it burns even on rainy days.

On fishing days the cormorants are not fed all day so they are hungry at fishing time. The birds are all caught in the wild and trained. Some can catch 60 fish an hour. After the fishing, the fish are squeezed out of the necks of the birds. Many visitors find this cruel but the fishermen point out that captive birds live to be between 15 and 20 while those that live in the world rarely live beyond five.

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