Fishing is an activity focused on capturing fish, which can be found in natural environments or stocked bodies of water. It encompasses various techniques such as hand-gathering, spearing, netting, angling, shooting, and trapping. While fishing primarily involves catching fish, it can also extend to other aquatic animals like crustaceans, shellfish, cephalopods, and echinoderms. However, it does not typically include fish farming or the hunting of aquatic mammals.
Throughout history, fishing has played a significant role in human culture, persisting from ancient times to the modern age. It has withstood the test of time, surviving the transition from hunter-gatherer societies to the Neolithic Revolution and subsequent Industrial Revolutions. Fishing serves not only as a means of obtaining food but also as a recreational pursuit. Fishing tournaments are held, and some caught fish are preserved or kept as living trophies. During bioblitzes, fish are often caught, identified, and released.
According to the United Nations FAO statistics, fishing industries and aquaculture provide employment opportunities to over 500 million people in developing countries. The total number of commercial fishers and fish farmers is estimated to be 38 million worldwide. In terms of consumption, the average per capita consumption of fish captured from wild fisheries was 14.4 kilograms (32 lb), with an additional 7.4 kilograms (16 lb) harvested from fish farms in 2005.
Fishing encompasses a wide range of techniques and tactics for catching fish and other aquatic creatures, including molluscs and edible marine invertebrates. These methods include hand gathering, spearfishing, netting, angling, and trapping. Different fishing groups, such as recreational, commercial, and artisanal fishers, employ distinct techniques, although there may be some overlap. Recreational fishers typically engage in fishing for pleasure, sport, or personal food supply, while commercial fishers do so for profit. Artisanal fishers rely on traditional, low-tech methods for survival in developing countries or as a cultural heritage in other regions. In recent times, the use of drones for fishing assistance has emerged as a modern development.
Understanding why a fish bites a baited hook or lure involves factors related to the fish’s sensory physiology, behavior, feeding habits, and biology, as well as the characteristics of the bait, hook, or lure and the environment. Successful fishing often relies on a deep understanding of the targeted fish species, including their migration patterns, foraging behavior, and preferred habitats. Some fishers also follow fishing folklore, believing that fish feeding patterns are influenced by the position of the sun and the moon.
Fishing tackle refers to the equipment used by fishers when engaging in fishing activities. It encompasses a wide range of tools and gear used for fishing, with angling gears being the most commonly associated. Examples of fishing tackle include hooks, lines, sinkers, floats, rods, reels, baits, lures, spears, nets, gaffs, traps, waders, and tackle boxes. Fishing techniques revolve around the application and utilization of this tackle when fishing.
The terminal tackles are the components attached to the end of a fishing line. They include hooks, sinkers, floats, leader lines, swivels, split rings, and additional items such as wires, snaps, beads, spoons, blades, spinners, and clevises used to attach spinner blades to fishing lures. Another common practice involves using dead or live bait fish as an additional form of bait.