Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 263, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 November 1913 — Fishing With Cormorants [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Fishing With Cormorants

111 "i UST as hawks and falcons Jwere formerly used In Europe, not Only for sporting l" s'" r purposes, but to replenish J£ S their masters’ larders with Lr-“J furred and feathered game, so do the Chinese and Japanese still employ trained T#cormorants, but in their case " they are used solely for eco-

nomic purposes. This may at first .appear to be a somewhat primitive method of obtaining fish, yet it seems to be a very serviceable one, and has at least the merit of being exceedingly picturesque. The antiquity of this form of fishing is incontrovertible, and is conclusively proved by the existence of very early Japanese paintings, which, if we allow for a somewhat crude and Oriental treatment, otherwise faithfully depict the sport as it is practiced down to the pres•ent day. We have also documentary evidence to show that these birds were similarly utilized in China as far back as the sixteenth century. In many parts of the latter country cormorants are used on still-water lagoons or sluggislr'Tivers, where they are allowed to swim free; but in Yunnan and Japan, where they are fished In swift-running streams, the birds are invariably harnessed. I have not had the opportunity of eeeing them handled by the Chinese, 'but a few years ago, when on a visit to Japan, I made a point of going to Gifu to Btudy the methods adopted by the Japanese on the River Nagara. Here the season lasts from May to October, during which time the river is visited by a small migratory fish, locally called ai. This fish belongs to >the Salmonidae family, and is known to ichthyologists as Plecoglossus altivelis'T. and S. In size, it hardly ever exceeds u foot 1° length, and is more often only six or seven niches long; The Japanese epicures praise it very 'highly as a table delicacy, though it

must be admitted that the uneducated Occidental palate usually fails to detect its culinary merits; in fact, when I tasted it, I thought it compared rather unfavorably with the smelt, a fish it superficially resembles. The market value of the ai appears to be comparatively high, so that even if the season be a short One, the cormorant fishers are enabled to reap a sufficiently rich harvest, which more than compensates therti for their many months of enforced idleness. But even in midsummer, there are many nights when the meteorological conditions preclude all possibility of fishing. A heavy downpour of rain—and how frequent this is in a Japanese June! —speedily fills the river with a turbid flood that renders fishing wholly impracticable. Nor can the birds do any good on bright moonlight nights, for then, in the beautifully clear waters of this mountain stream, the fish can see their enemies approaching and, moreover,They are not attracted by the glare of the great, flaring braziers which are placed, in the form of an iron basket, on the bows of each of the vessels. On the Nagara the mods of fishing is for some six or seven boats to work in company. These drift slowly down stream for eighteen or twenty miles In the form of an open line that usually extends right across the river. As a rule, each boat possesses about fifteen or sixteen cormorants. These are controlled by means of reins attached to a small collar round the bird’s neck, which serves the additional purpose of preventing all but the tiniest fish being swallowed outright. The man standing in the bows, and therefore deriving full benefit from the light of the brazier, has some twelve birds in his charge, while the less experienced ojian posted amidships usually controls four -or five only. The dexterity of these fellows is really one of the most remarkable

features of the whole proceeding. It seemed inexplicable how one man could manipulate so many birds — swimming and diving as they were in all directions —without their reins becoming hopelessly entangled. Yet by sorting them with a lightning hand-over-hand movemeift, these leads were always kept clear, and never once did I see a man in real difficulties. When a cormorant has completely filled its gullet, it naturally takes no further interest in the proceedings, and will then swim idly upon the surface. When tbis is observed, the unfortunate creature is promptly hauled in board, and by a gentle but firm pressure of the hand it is foreed ignominously to disgorge its booty, whereupon it is thrown back to recommence its thankless task. In this way a single bird will account for a large number of fish during the night, and as the flock numbers upwards of a hundred individuals, the total catch is sometimes considerable. In the morning, when all is over, the cormorants are allowed to rest on the gunwale of the boat, each bird, known by name, having its allotted perch, which it defends with angry croaks and pecks should a neighbor dare to dispute its right. "The birds are absolutely fearless of their masters, and can be freely handled. There could hardly be a more interesting experience than to follow a flotilla of cormorant boats at work on a still midsummer night. Even the Japanese themselves appreciate the picturesqueness of the proceedings, ahdTTvery evening numerous boatloads of spectators may be seen on the river awaiting their arrival at Gifu. The fishing appears to be at its best in August, during which month the late Mikado used frequently to visit the scene.

The great braziers —huger crackling baskets of flame —cast a strange and lurid glare over the surroundings. In their dazzling light the brightly illuminated figures of the fishermen seem to stand out with almost unnatural sharpness against the velvety blackness of the night, while the men’s harsh cries of encouragement, the loud clatter of their oars, and the showers of hissing sparks falling upon the water all add to the weirdness of the scene.Cormorants are apparently not very difficult to train, and have been used in Europe for sporting purposes far more often than is generally supposed. Early in the seventeenth century James I. was enamored with the sport, and appointed someone “Master of Cormorants.” while he even went so far as to have ponds cut in a meawod-land near Westminster for the reception of various kinds of fish which were to be afterwards captured by his tame birds. Of recent years the well-known ‘falconer .Captain Salvin proved highly successful with his cormorants, and there are still some French sportsmen who keep these birds for their own entertainment.