Register | Login


Stilt fishing is a method of fishing unique to the island country of Sri Lanka, located off the coast of India in the Indian Ocean. The fishermen sit on a cross bar called a petta tied to a vertical pole and driven into the sand a few meters offshore. From this high position, the fishermen casts his line, and waits until a fish comes along to be caught. Although the approach looks primitive and ancient, stilt fishing is actually a recent tradition.

The practice is believed to have started during World War II when food shortages and overcrowded fishing spots prompted some clever men to try fishing on the water. At first they started fishing from wrecks of capsized ships and downed aircraft, then some began erecting their stilts in coral reefs. The skills were then passed on to at least two generations of fishermen living along a 30 km stretch of southern shore between the towns of Unawatuna and Weligama.

stilt-fishermen-sri-lanka-10

Photo credit

Read more »
© Amusing Planet, 2014.


The Asbestos Ghost Town of Wittenoom
The Asbestos Ghost Town of Wittenoom
The Astronaut Beach House
The Astronaut Beach House
The Audacity of Peter Tordenskjold The Naval Captain Who Asked His Enemy For Ammo in The Middle of a Battle
The Audacity of Peter Tordenskjold The Naval Captain Who Asked His Enemy For Ammo in The Middle of a Battle
The Australian Floating Hotel That Ended Up in North Korea
The Australian Floating Hotel That Ended Up in North Korea
The Avalanche Protection Wall of Flateyri
The Avalanche Protection Wall of Flateyri
The Avian Honeyguides of Africa
The Avian Honeyguides of Africa
The Awkward Mud Bath at El Totumo Mud Volcano
The Awkward Mud Bath at El Totumo Mud Volcano
The Azaleas of Shiofune Kannon-ji Temple in Japan
The Azaleas of Shiofune Kannon-ji Temple in Japan