Cantilevered shrimp nets line the shallows in the waters around Kochi on India’s Kerala coast. The skeletal structures made of teak planks, bamboo poles, and rope are said to have been introduced to the area by Chinese explorer Zheng He from the court of Kublai Khan, becoming an established fishery in the fifteenth century. They are still known locally as Cheenavala in Malayalam, or Chinese fishing nets. Fishermen typically fish at night, with bright lights hung on the structure to attract shrimp (above). The nets, which are about 65 feet wide, are counterbalanced with stones so that a fisherman can walk back and forth (right), using his weight on the seesaw-like contraption to lower the net into the water and then raise it with the catch. When these photographs were taken, a night of fishing brought about 500 rupees (US $7.00) of shrimp to be sold in the local market.
