FALLING GEAR
Falling Gear Fishing
Falling gear primarily refers to castnets. This is a traditional fishing gear, popular among small-scale fishermen living near the coasts and river banks. It is operated by a single fishermen in shallow waters with or without a banca or bamboo raft. It is mainly a municipal fishing gear where its major utilization is to catch fish for daily human consumption.
Prior to casting the net, the fisherman first scours the area for schools or individual fish. In wading depths, the fisherman just carry the net and cast into the fish. In deeper waters, the net is cast from a banca or bamboo raft by simultaneously releasing an extra length of the line for the net to reach the sea bottom. The net is retrieved by pulling the retrieving line. Target species are the sardines, scads, mackerels, mullet, shrimps, tilapia and other freshwater fish.
Cast nets are also used to cover stone aggregates in rivers. The stones are removed one by one until the fish are impounded by the net.
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