Friday, July 10, 2015
Cormorant fishing
Cormorant fishing is a
technique of catching fish without doing the actual work. It is a traditional
art of fishing handed down from ancient times. As it is named, this method is
carried out with the skill of cormorants. And the fishing is mainly done in
lakes and rivers. In the old days cormorant fishing could be lucrative, but it
is a dying business which is being maintained by the remaining experts of the
traditional cormorant fishermen for the tourism industry.
In China today, there are regular
cormorant fishing shows in Guilin and Yangshuo along the Li River. These are
the very scenic and picturesque cynosure which attract tourists by the millions
each year, and they are referred to as one of the Top 10 Watery Wonders.
Cormorant fishing is usually at night, but for tourism purpose day shows are
more regular.
The stars of the shows are the
Double-crested Cormorants; these are large birds about 50 cm in length and 90
cm in wingspan. They are skillful fish catchers, capable of diving very deep,
and coming up with a fish weighing a kilogram gripped by its beak is a sight to
awe anyone.
A cormorant fisherman setting out
for business is like a man going for a stroll with his two pet birds. The two
cormorants rest at the ends of a firm long pole pivoted on his shoulder as he
walks to his boat. His boat is actually a raft made of five or six bulky bamboo
poles fastened abreast into a flat platform. This raft is about six meters long
with both ends arched above the water over which it floats, it is very stable
and buoyantly navigable with the pole. His other accessories are a large wicker
basket and a short vertical pole attached to the raft for hanging the pressure
lamp. An additional item is the loop-net fixed to a short handle.
Being a nocturnal activity, the
fisherman usually wears a loose coarse covering over his upper body. The lit
lamp attracts the fish and the birds would know their duty, diving in and
catching the fish. The fisherman would then lower the pole into the water for
the bird to perch on it, and then haul it up with its catch. It is a
symbiotic relationship of man and bird; and having a pair of capable cormorants
is like having a well-established business.
However,
this cordial relationship is not as it casually meets the eye. A keen observer
would notice that the birds are not really free in their employment. There is a
short length of string tied to one of its legs, and
another one collaring its neck. These are the bonds by which the birds are
slaves to the man, the master. When it is a big fish, the bird is carried
and positioned over the basket where it would
drop the fish. When the fish is small the man would let the bird swallow it, up
to the collar but no further; after which the man helps the bird to remove it,
by digging it out with his fingers. It is probably this act that seals the
symbiotic bond between the man and the bird. The man takes care of the
bird and the bird duly does what it does best. The man carries the bird from home
to work and back, helps it to clear its throat and feeds it. When at work the
bird cannot swallow its catch, when at home it is tethered. What choice does it
have ? Birds do have a brain, bird-brain.
# posted by chunmu @ 7:41 PM 
