insights from frontier Japan

The green color of trees reflects on the surface of Lake Kussharo (Teshikaga Town in the Eastern Hokkaido Kushiro region), but the atmosphere of autumn has touched this area as well. At the lakeside, I encountered a crested kingfisher, a bird known for the crested plumage atop its head. The crested kingfisher is immensely cautious, so getting close to the bird is difficult. They establish territories at mountain streams and lakes and live there, but they rarely ever show themselves. They can be identified by a high-pitched chirping sound generated while flying, which can be heard over long distances. When it found a perching tree for hunting the fish it feeds on, I hid myself in a slightly removed spot so as not to stand out, and waited.

Lake Kussharo, which is located in the Akan-Mashu National Park (in the town of Teshikaga in the Kushiro region) and is the largest caldera lake in Japan, will reach a major turning point on October 1. In principle, the personal use of powered boats such as motorboats and jet skis will be prohibited on the whole of the lake, which has a circumference of 57 km. Unless specifically authorized, navigating the lake in such a manner will be punishable under the Natural Parks Act.

A sea of clouds blanketed Japan's largest caldera lake, Lake Kussharo (Teshikaga Town, east Hokkaido), and shone with light from the morning sun. The image was captured on October 10 from Bihoro Town's Michi-no-Eki (Roadside Rest Area) "Gurutto Panorama Bihoro Pass", which overlooks the lake.

In this series, the transformation of four seasons will be introduced through articles on wild animals that are active in the deep forests, marshes, and ocean as if they were being cradled by “Kamui,” which means deity in the Ainu language. The second installment in the series is the crested kingfisher of Lake Kussharo. (Text and photographs by Tadanobu Shigeru from Kushiro Branch News Section.)