Ships or boats used to catch fish are generally referred to as fishing boats. These fishing boats are used in all kind of water bodies like seas, rivers and lakes. Fishing boats are used for both commercial as well as recreational purposes.
During the 1950s, fishing boats were primarily used in the form of rafts, canoes and coracles. But these fishing boat were not meant to be used for longer distances. The design of these fishing boat differed from one port and boatyard to the next. Different coastal areas all around the world have developed their own versions of fishing boats according to the local water conditions and the kind of work for which the fishing boat is required. For example, the northwest coast of England had its own version of fishing boats called the ‘nobbies’. Similarly, the North American East coast used fishing boats which were known as ‘dorries’.
Fishing boats were earlier made from wood. Modern fishing boats are now made from fibreglass and steel. With the high cost of wood and right kind of timber not being readily available, making fishing boats of wood, is not as common as it might have been once. Modern fishing boats are better designed and are usually developed for a specific purpose. For example, trawlers are fishing boats which are used to catch large volumes of fish. Countries like the United States and Canada use trawlers as fishing boats while Europe uses smaller fishing boats with high power.
Fishing boats weighing less than 100 tons use fibreglass as the base material. Fishing boats weighing more than 100 tons use steel for the frame and such boats usually measure more than 25 metres in length. There are about four million commercial fishing boats in use around the world and only 40,000 of these weigh more than 100 tons. Recreational fishing boats, on the other hand, vary considerably in size.
Recreational fishing boats are now available in different shapes and sizes. Kayaks have been popularly used as recreational fishing boats for some time now. The more recent addition to recreational fishing boats is the ‘pontoon’. A pontoon allows one or two fishermen to fish in rivers or lakes. These fishing boats are between 8 and 12 feet in length.
One more addition to recreational fishing boats is the ‘seines’. These fishing boats are made to accommodate large fishing nets. These fishing nets are attached vertically to the boat by using weights. Drifters are another type of fishing boat used to catch herrings. These are more popular along the British coast. A factory ship or a fish processing vessel is a large fishing boat that has fish freezing facilities on board.
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