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Why no birds in Japan? (1 Viewer)

amelia1730

Well-known member
My Mother-in-law has just returned from a 3 week trip to Japan. During this time she travelled around and visited many beautiful gardens and sights but says she didn't see any birds. Does anyone know why?
 
amelia1730 said:
My Mother-in-law has just returned from a 3 week trip to Japan. During this time she travelled around and visited many beautiful gardens and sights but says she didn't see any birds. Does anyone know why?

Probably because they eat anything that swims or flies.
 
I am no expert, but perhaps it is something to do with garden maintenence? Perhaps the insect repellant sprays they use on the trees discourages insects, and therefore discourage birds. Also, Jpanese gardens are not grown to keep wildlife happy, they are grown for ornamental purposes (not all of them, mind). So, they do not plant trees with birds in mind, so to speak.
On another note, Japan is a very interesting place to bird. My aunt went there two years ago and she thoroughly enjoyed it. I hope to bird there at some point myself!
 
JimMorris said:
Probably because they eat anything that swims or flies.

"They"? More than, say, who.........?

More rationally, the insecticide answer may well be correct.

It is remarkable how, in central Florida's bird-rich environment, passerines are generally infrequent at many theme parks, even though the habitat appears superb. The reason is that insecticide spraying is undertaken
very frequently.

No bugs, no bug-eaters.
 
What, that had pretty interesting premise - why did this thread stop with such a stupid remark? I notice that japan cities are very empty when it comes to birds compared to any other country and big cities (especially european)
 
What, that had pretty interesting premise - why did this thread stop with such a stupid remark? I notice that japan cities are very empty when it comes to birds compared to any other country and big cities (especially european)
I'm just going to jump in here and wish you a warm welcome to you from those of us on staff here at BirdForum (y)
We're glad you found us and please join in wherever you like ;)
 
Quite the zombie thread - 15 years!
Love it when this happens, as a birdforum old timer (since 2004?) it’s like stepping back in time.
On the thread topic, I think it is true that Japanese urban areas and many rural areas can be fairly bird free, interesting theory with the insecticides. However, there are many fantastic birding opportunities in Japan. The same is true of many other excellent birding destinations, i’ve also heard it said about e.g. Spain and Turkey that “there are no birds”
Cheers
James
 
Speaking as someone who has been to Japan in winter, there literally are no birds in many places. You can walk around a snowy landscape in Hokkaido and be greeted by total silence. I saw more birds in the middle of Tokyo than much of Hokkaido. So, I do suppose it depends where you go. The birds are there, and there are certainly hotspots, but you sometimes have to look for them; and there are some places where there are lots of birds.

Also, I hope the sort of nasty ignorant comment near the top of this thread isn't tolerated on BF anymore. I know of no place in Japan where the local birdlife is considered a delicacy.
 
"They"? More than, say, who.........?

More rationally, the insecticide answer may well be correct.

It is remarkable how, in central Florida's bird-rich environment, passerines are generally infrequent at many theme parks, even though the habitat appears superb. The reason is that insecticide spraying is undertaken
very frequently.

No bugs, no bug-eaters.
This may be a factor as well. Pesticides are used very frequently here in Australia in urban areas and have polished off the local frogs in many areas as well as many of the birds.
 
Speaking as someone who has been to Japan in winter, there literally are no birds in many places. You can walk around a snowy landscape in Hokkaido and be greeted by total silence. I saw more birds in the middle of Tokyo than much of Hokkaido. So, I do suppose it depends where you go. The birds are there, and there are certainly hotspots, but you sometimes have to look for them; and there are some places where there are lots of birds.

Also, I hope the sort of nasty ignorant comment near the top of this thread isn't tolerated on BF anymore. I know of no place in Japan where the local birdlife is considered a delicacy.
That contributor has an obvious difficulty in differentiating between China and Japan?
 
Speaking as someone who has been to Japan in winter, there literally are no birds in many places. You can walk around a snowy landscape in Hokkaido and be greeted by total silence. I saw more birds in the middle of Tokyo than much of Hokkaido. So, I do suppose it depends where you go. The birds are there, and there are certainly hotspots, but you sometimes have to look for them; and there are some places where there are lots of birds.

Also, I hope the sort of nasty ignorant comment near the top of this thread isn't tolerated on BF anymore. I know of no place in Japan where the local birdlife is considered a delicacy.
I think if you go anywhere with a cold, snowy winter climate you generally see few birds except the specialists able to tolerate such conditions - I've found this in the Alps and in Canada as well as Hokkaido - altitudinal as well as latitudinal migration takes care of the birdlife.
I didn't find Japanese parks especially empty of birds, although the quest for aesthetic perfection in the landscape doesn't leave a lot of natural habitat - in contrast in London there has clearly been a move towards tolerating a more natural landscape in places like Kensington Gardens in London, where there are areas of long grass and brambles, and lots of veteran trees and deadwood habitats.
 
Probably because they eat anything that swims or flies.
The Japanese, outside of a few small rural areas, eat very little terrestrial fauna. Their traditional diet has always been more sea and vegetarian based. This argument makes as much sense as someone saying the reason someone didn't see many birds in New York is because New Yorkers ate all the birds. "Asia" is pretty diverse.
 
Speaking as someone who has been to Japan in winter, there literally are no birds in many places. You can walk around a snowy landscape in Hokkaido and be greeted by total silence. I saw more birds in the middle of Tokyo than much of Hokkaido. So, I do suppose it depends where you go. The birds are there, and there are certainly hotspots, but you sometimes have to look for them; and there are some places where there are lots of birds.

Also, I hope the sort of nasty ignorant comment near the top of this thread isn't tolerated on BF anymore. I know of no place in Japan where the local birdlife is considered a delicacy.
Yeah this sounds like more of a "It's really frigging cold in Winter in Hokkaido" than anything else. IIRC, there are some Christmas bird counts in Alaska that regularly get just Ravens, and that's it
 
I lived in Tokyo for a summer, and didn't think the urban areas were especially bird free, at least anymore than comparable built up urban areas elsewhere. Saw plenty of Eurasian Tree Sparrows, Bulbuls, and a scattering of other bird species in the city. I did find that birds of prey, other than Black Kite, were pretty scarce compared to US cities
 

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