Japanese sweet fish 'Aiyu'

Every year in the peak of the summer heat, and located in the beautiful mountain town of  Horado, in central Japan, fishermen and ordinary folk alike come to the river to catch Japanese sweet fish called 'Aiyu'.

At the designated time of 12.30pm, a loud whistle sounds marking the start of the official aiyu catching period.

Many people flock to the river to enjoy eating and drinking and the chance to catch Aiyu by methods normally prohibited. It is only between August 12th and August 20th that people are allowed to catch Aiyu using gill nets. People line up along the river bank and prepare their own piece of the river in anticipation of catching Aiyu.

Aiyu are a small fish growing to about 7 cm in length. They are a sweet smelling fish and  regarded as a delicacy and can be found in the crystal clear fresh water creeks and rivers throughout Japan.

At this spot on the river on a hot summers day many people with all kinds and lengths of net have gathered.

Once the signal has been sounded, people put out their nets. Some are short whilst others are long, stretching across the whole width of the river. With the abundance of Aiyu in the river it is not long before they are trapped in the small mesh of the gill nets.

People then proceed to collect the fish during the course of the day. Some are easy to get out and even young children join in the activity. Some fish get well and truly tangled in the mesh and require an experienced hand to untangle them and put them in the fish buckets.

Fortunately this part of the river is quite shallow and poses no threat to children and adults alike. The crystal clear water also makes it easy to spot netted fish.  

With this length of net, adults and children alike walk back and forth across the river collecting the fish from the net and putting them into fish buckets that keep them alive and fresh in the summer heat.

Owning this type of net requires a license from the local council and can only be used in the river at this designated time of year.

This type of gill net is held together by a rope at the bottom with lead weights attached to it to keep it on the bottom and a rope at the top with floats attached to keep it on the surface.

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