Japan's usho keep alive the ancient art of fishing with cormorants

GIFU, Japan - In the pitch black night, fires burn alongside a river in Japan's Gifu as a handful of men prepare for a ritual that dates back more than 1,300 years: fishing with cormorants.

Dressed in traditional clothes, they look like they come from another time. They wield their cormorants, tied together with strings, like puppeteers.

Their profession, known as ukai in Japan, was once common in waterside villages and towns throughout Asia and other parts of the world.