一順翁2021-05-07 20:45:18

Cormorant fishing（鸕鷀捕魚） is a traditional Chinese skill， probably more than a thousand years old。 Cormorants are large， black birds， which are good at catching fish。 They can dive down 25 meters， and stay under water for up to two minutes。

A fisherman usually goes on a fishing trip on a bamboo boat with his birds。 When he reaches the right place， he stops。 A piece of grass is tied around the neck of each bird， so that the fish won’t go down into its stomach。 He pushes the birds into the water， and then bangs the water heavily with his bamboo pole（竹竿）。 The fish are frightened by this。 The cormorants swim very quickly to catch the fish。 Finally， the birds come up one after another to the fisherman。 The fisherman takes the fish out of the birds’ mouths and then throws them into a big basket。 Later some of the fish are sold， and the rest are divided between his family and the cormorants。 At night， a light is hung from the front of the boat。 This enables the fisherman see better， and also attracts the fish。