Three sea cormorants arrived at a farm in Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan, on May 9.

S/ Kakuhama Yoshiro, Cormorant fisherman / Its cries sound healthy.

Transported from Ibaraki Prefecture in eastern Japan, they joined 23 cormorants already at the farm.

The waterbirds will be used for cormorant fishing, a tradition that has continued in the city of Miyoshi for over 400 years.

The new ones were brought in as some of the cormorants at the farm are old or sick.

S/ Kakuhama Yoshiro, Cormorant fisherman / I hope they will do a good job. The more fish they catch, the happier I will be and so will be the spectators

The cormorant fishing season in Miyoshi begins on June 1.