A study group was held to report on the survival of the nationally protected red-crowned crane in northern Hokkaido’s Soya region. The group was held on December 19 in Sarobetsu Wetland Center in Toyotomi Town. Three participants introduced cases to an audience of twenty attendees.
The meeting was organized by NPO Sarobetsu Eco Network. At the beginning, Mr. Hasebe from the Network lectured on the current breeding conditions in the Sarobetsu Wetland, Wakkanai, and Hamatonbetsu as gleaned from the results of surveys from drone surveillance, visual observation, and listening. He reported, “In the Sarobetsu region, this year we confirmed the existence of a total of 17 cranes, including baby and adult cranes,” and also introduced a case example in which a baby crane died from electrocution three years ago.
After this initial report, a round-table discussion was held by three members, Mr. Omata, Ms. Murayama, and Mr. Hasebe. Opinions were expressed, including ideas such as, “We should start providing environmental education to children about red-crowned crane breeding,” “It would be good if the next generation would continue the practice of observing cranes,” and, “It would be good if we could create some kind of space for information exchange about red-crowned cranes in the Soya region.”