Fish Catching Methods of the World

This book grew out of Professor Von Brandt's lifetime devotion to the study of fishing gears and catching methods from prehistoric times to the present. In it, he shows how the main components of early methods - netting, lines, hooks, floats and sinkers - are still in common use even though their efficiency has been improved. His extensive travels have enabled him to include examples from many eras and many different parts of the world, and his descriptions are enhanced by numerous illustrations. The author describes gears in logical sequence from the most primitive gathering methods to the possible use of fully-automated harvesting machines totally operated by computers. Also, it has developed a rational classification system for the multitude of fish devices and techniques. Although this has been done in a scholarly way, the text is enlivened by anecdotes. This book should be of interest to everyone concerned with commercial fisheries, as well as sport fishermen and all those with an interest in fish or its capture.