Fishing With Cormorant Birds

One of the most popular sights that tourists enjoy seeing is the fisherman fishing with their cormorant birds. This ancient way of fishing is still done today and when you see it you will know why. They catch a great deal of fish and not just little ones, but nice big 3 to 5 lb. ones too. The birds are often tethered by some light string and the fisherman actually orders them into and out of the water. They are his pets and they are fed well One thing interesting is that cormorants do not have oil in their feathers and often have to shake off the water sometimes holding up their wings to dry off. They jump into the water and actually swim down to catch the fish in their wide mouths while their throat has a small band around it in order that they do not swallow the fish. There are a few good places to see them and one easy place is in Guilin when you take the evening boat cruise on the 5 city lakes which are linked together. You get very close to them and can take good photographs. Another is the Li River cruise from Guilin to Yangshuo. I am sure there are other places in China but these are probably the best.