One hand clinging to his boat's gunwale, Harun Muhammad submerges himself, eyes and ears wide open underwater as he "listens" for fish sounds emanating from the blue depths.
Harun is one of Malaysia's last "fish listeners," and he and his apprentice son Zuraini are believed to be the only active practitioners of this mysterious and dying local art.
"When you listen, it is like through a looking glass -- you can see mackerel, sardine," said Harun, 68, who has fished the Setiu lagoons on Malaysia's rural east coast his whole life.
"For us, we only look for gelama (a type of croaker). But in the schools of gelama, there will be other fish. The gelama is the king of fish."
Other fish listeners have passed away, retired or turned to modern fish-detection technology as the traditional practice has retreated in the face of dwindling catches and proliferating undersea noise.
Studies show Malaysian waters lost 92 percent of fishery resources between 1971 to 2007 due to overfishing.
"You can't copy our technique. You must gain the skill and learn the lay of the waters," said Harun.
"The wholesalers tell me, 'if you're gone, there will be no more gelama'," which fetches up to ten times the price of similarly sized fish.
- Sounds fishy -
"Pak Harun", as he is known locally -- "Pak" is a Malay honorific similar to "Uncle" -- finds it hard to describe exactly how fish sound, but likens it to pebbles being dropped into water.
"They have a voice. This sound is this fish, that sound is another. When someone is new, they can't tell one fish song from another."
Harun and his crew of a dozen can go nearly a week without hearing gelama -- which invites scepticism about the claimed fish-listening ability.
But experts in sonifery (fish sounds) say sailors have long heard sounds of whales and fish through boat hulls.
"Scuba divers often do not hear anything because their breathing and bubble exhaust makes so much noise. However free divers, or divers using quiet re-breathers, can hear much better," said US-based marine ecologist Rodney Rountree.
Former fish listeners describe a range of techniques. Some claim they can feel changes in water temperature.
For Harun, it is a multi-sensory experience requiring eyes wide open.
"After a while, it is as if you can see. Even though the fish is very far, you can sense it in that direction and you go there. Only when you get close, you can hear the fish clearly," he said.
Though he sports a slight paunch on his sun-darkened frame under a spiky white head of hair, Harun remains sprightly despite his years, deftly clambering in and out of his boat in search of fish sounds.
Once he pinpoints a school of gelama, his crew -- who have hung back with engines off -- motor forward, drop their nets and strike the sides of their boats to spook the fish into the mesh trap.
"You think it's just stupid fish but they can see you coming. When they hear the sound of the boat, they run. The fish cry or shout and then their friends swim away," he said.
- Listening in vain -
Landing a rich catch was easy when stocks were abundant, Harun said.
But after decades of overfishing, he now "listens" up to several dozen times under the scorching equatorial sun before catching a snippet of gelama song.
Modernisation, including sand dredging, aquaculture, factories and fishing trawlers have transformed the Setiu wetlands, a rich but threatened coastal ecosystem centering on a 14-kilometre (9 mile) long lagoon along the South China Sea.
The state of Terengganu is seeking to make it a protected park.
But Harun's catch is increasingly unpredictable, averaging about $2,000 per week gross, leaving little left over after all crew are paid, and fuel, maintenance, and other costs are deducted.
"Each year, the catch has reduced. But I'm not good at anything else, so I still have to do this," said his son and apprentice Zuraini.
Malaysia ranks among the top consumers of seafood in the world.
Intergovernmental industry researchers Infofish say Malaysians eat an average of 56.5 kilogrammes of seafood per person annually, more even than Japanese.
The global average is 20 kilos.
WWF-Malaysia chief Dionysius Sharma said overfishing threatens to leave Malaysian waters "vast and barren".
The organisation warns Malaysia's waters could run out of seafood by 2048.
Despite the long odds, Zuraini, 44, said someday he will train one of his own sons.
"I don't want to see this practice die off," he said.
AFP
Tue Aug 19 2014
In this picture taken on June 8, 2014, a 68 year-old fish listener Harun Muhammad clings onto his fishing boat at sea near Setiu lagoons. AFP
Sharul Aimy cipta sejarah, rangkul pingat sulung negara pada kejohanan Asia
Atlet berusia 22 tahun itu menyambar gangsa acara melombol dengan mencatatkan 14.466 mata di belakang Carlos Yulo dan Abdulaziz Mirvaliev.
KKDW peruntuk RM1.5 bil dalam RMK12 untuk pembangunan luar bandar Sarawak
Ia bagi memudahkan pelaksanaan pelbagai upaya bagi mencipta masyarakat luar bandar yang kompetitif dan meningkatkan kualiti hidup mereka.
Koperasi dinasihat jangan amal konsep Ali Baba - Saarani
Katanya, tindakan berkenaan bukan hanya merugikan, bahkan ia tidak memberi nilai tambah bagi kemajuan dan pembangunan koperasi tersebut.
Melaka bakal bina litar kereta kawalan jauh bertaraf antarabangsa
Melaka akan membina sebuah litar kereta kawalan jauh bertaraf antarabangsa di atas tapak berkeluasan sehektar berhampiran Pantai Tanjung Bidara di sini, bermula November depan.
RUU Keselamatan Dalam Talian dijangka dibentang hujung tahun ini
Rang Undang-Undang (RUU) Keselamatan Dalam Talian dijangka dibentangkan pada sidang Parlimen selewat-lewatnya hujung tahun ini, kata Timbalan Menteri Komunikasi Teo Nie Ching.
Melaka mohon KPKT bina tapak pelupusan sisa pepejal sektor ICI
Sebanyak 30-40 peratus daripada keseluruhan sisa pepejal yang dibuang ke Tapak Pelupusan Sisa Pepejal Sanitari Sungai Udang adalah sisa ICI.
Zii Jia antara rakan pencetus semangat untuk terus berjuang - Jin Wei
Pengikut media sosial pemain badminton perseorangan wanita profesional Goh Jin Wei mungkin menyedari keakrabannya dengan rakan senegara Lee Zii Jia, Soh Wooi Yik dan Lai Pei Jing.
Sambutan Hari Wesak medium tingkatkan pemahaman antara masyarakat berbilang kaum - Saraswathy
Selain dapat mengeratkan perpaduan ia juga menggalakkan masyarakat untuk lebih mengenali budaya agama lain.
Libatkan diri dalam keusahawanan satu bentuk patriotisme yang tinggi - Ewon
Menceburi bidang perniagaan dan koperasi merupakan satu bentuk patriotisme yang tinggi, menurut Menteri Pembangunan Usahawan dan Koperasi Datuk Ewon Benedick.
Kunjungan ke tiga negara di benua Asia Tengah jana potensi pelaburan, perdagangan lebih RM2.1 bilion - PM Anwar
Kunjungan ke Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan dan Uzbekistan berjaya menjana potensi pelaburan dan perdagangan sekurang-kurangnya berjumlah lebih RM2.1 bilion.