Ukai: A Traditional Japanese Way of Fishing

Ukai or cormorant fishing is a traditional fishing method using trained cormorants (from the family of Phalacrocoracidae consisting of about 40 kinds of species of aquatic birds) to fish in rivers. Fishermen tie a snare by the base of the bird’s throat, preventing them from swallowing the bigger fish they catch. The smaller fish can still be swallowed and eaten by the cormorants. Once a bird catches a fish, the fisherman brings it back to the boat and has it spit out the fish. Ukai was once a thriving industry. Though it is not as popular today, it is still being practiced and is a part of the unique Japanese culture and tradition.Ukai has been around for about 1,300 years in Japan, predominantly along the Nagarawa River in Gifu City where master fishermen have official patronage from the emperor of Japan himself. History tells us that cormorant fishing has been practiced in China and Japan since 960 CE and even as far back as 636 CE according to the Book of Sui, the official history of the Sui Dynasty of China where it states that ukai was the fishing method used by ancient Japanese.

Cormorant fishing in Japan is practiced by master fishermen in long wooden boats with each fisherman leading about a dozen birds on leashes. The cormorants swim alongside the boat and dive underwater to catch fish by swallowing them whole. Cormorants have special pouches in their throats that can store the fish which can be easily retrieved by the fishermen. For night fishing, each boat has a large fire that is suspended from its bow to enable the fishermen and birds to see better.

Today, ukai takes place in the summer months in about a dozen rivers across Japan. The type of cormorants used in fishing depends on where the fishermen intend to fish. In China, Chinese fishermen often use great cormorants or black shag, Phalacrocorax carbo. And in Gifu, Japan, fishermen use the Japanese cormorant or Temminck’s cormorant, Phalacrocorax capillatus.

Some of the more popular locations include:

• Nagaragawa River, Gifu City, May 11 to October 15
• Hozu River, Arashiyama, Kyoto City, July to mid September (2015: 7/1 to 9/15)
• Uji River, Uji City, mid June to late September (2015: 6/13 to 9/23)