2 September 2024

In the Great Lakes region fishermen complain about double-crested cormorants competing with them for fish and demand that they be killed but in other countries fishermen work with cormorants to catch the biggest fish.

Cormorants naturally hunt and catch fish underwater. Those who fish with cormorants train them to bring large fish back to the boat by placing a loose snare around their necks that allows them to swallow small fish but not large ones. When they bring a large fish back they are fed small fish as a reward.

The origins of cormorant fishing are obscure but the practice is still used today in China, Japan, Peru and Greece, though mainly for the tourist industry. Only in southwestern China is it still employed commercially.

The species of cormorant used depends on what is native to the area. In China, the great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo). In Japan, the Japanese cormorant (Phalacrocorax capillatus). In Peru, the neotropic cormorant (Nannopterum brasilianum).

Watch cormorants at work in southwestern China.