Fishing is a Sport in Ibiza
One of the major benefits of living on a small island in the middle of the sea is the daily availability of fresh fish. To emphasize that freshness Ibiza has a tradition of fishing that still includes the blowing of the conch to announce the daily arrival of the day's catch in a few of the island villages. In Santa Eulalia this ceremony used to take place under a tree known as the 'Fishermen's Tree' opposite the Bar Cosmi on the Paseo. The hotels in San Juan it still takes place on the road alongside the church on a daily basis. A part of the tradition that made the islands self sufficient since time immemorial. Nowadays the islands' fishing fleet have sadly been made largely obsolete by 'modern' methods which have largely raped the natural resource of our surrounding seas. Drastic action to preserve the balance of nature is being discussed in all of the sea areas around most of Europe, as fishing technology has improved to the point of taking species, such as cod, to the point of extinction in the North Sea . Closer to home, the French fishing industry has received much negative press for fishing for the Blue Fin Tuna, close to Figueretas accomodation, using aircraft to guide their fleets' nets to the biggest shoals, innocently using their historical migratory routes. However, there is a third category of fishermen - almost as rare as the cod nowadays. Sports fishermen are an elite club of nature lovers who maintain their own set of rules of engagement, which are pretty much set in stone. There are probably no more than 200 members of this sport, the world's second most expensive sport/hobby (behind polo), but these few view their prey as potential gladiators and treat them with incredible respect.