KUSHIRO, Hokkaido -- The Kushiro Zoo, endeavoring to protect injured red-crowned cranes, has begun an exhibition of the special national treasures fitted with artificial legs. "We hope these cranes will help people learn more about the increase in the number of injured red-crowned cranes and provide them with an opportunity to consider their symbiosis with nature," a zoo official said.
Since its inauguration in 1975, the zoo has treated and raised injured red-crowned cranes. These cranes would typically spend the rest of their lives in private enclosures due to the difficulty of returning them to the wild once taken into protection.
Believing these animals should be able to live as members of the zoo rather than living out their days in a secluded area, Hiroko Iima, 39, a veterinarian in charge of the birds, began making preparations to show them to the public. In March, the conversion of a side wall of the enclosure into a fence was completed, allowing zoo visitors to get a glimpse of the daily lives of the cranes, like they would any other animal.
In 2018, two male red-crowned cranes with artificial legs, now in public view, were found injured in the village of Tsurui and the town of Betsukai in Hokkaido, respectively. One was discovered entangled in a net set up to prevent deer from entering a field. According to the zoo, the two were ready to appear before visitors in early April.
The population of the red-crowned crane, a species once on the verge of extinction, has increased to more than 1,600 across the prefecture thanks to measures including hand-feeding. At the same time, their natural habitat began to overlap with humans' sphere of life, causing all sorts of problems for the birds, such as being hit by cars or entangled in fences. About 10 red-crowned cranes were either rescued after being injured or collected after their death annually in the 1970s. The number increased to a range of 20 to 30 in the 2000s, and exceeded 40 for the first time in 2019.
When one of the amputee red-crowned cranes was exhibited to the public in 2018 as an early trial, some visitors said they felt "sorry for it." But the zoo hopes to illuminate what is really happening. "We want to, by way of showing the lives that have been saved, reduce the number of red-crowned cranes involved in accidents, even if it's just one," Iima said.
The ways the zoo protects the red-crowned cranes can be seen on the zoo's Twitter page "Mainichi Tancho Rescue" (Everyday red-crowned crane rescue).
Read more from The Japan News at https://japannews.yomiuri.co.jp/
