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AUTHORS: Hiromasa Igota, Department of Environmental and Symbiotic Science, Rakuno Gakuen University
ABSTRACT: Overabundant sika deer (Cervus nippon) cause serious agricultural damages and huge impacts to natural vegetation in the whole Japan. The number of recreational hunter has decreased from over 500 thousands in 1970’s to around100 thousands in 2010’s. The Japanese Government pays rewards to local hunters to kill around 400 thousand deer as pests per year, except around 200 thousand harvest in recreational hunting. Consumption of game meat was not popular in Japan. Most of carcasses are abandoned not consumed as food. I discuss perspectives of community-based deer management referring to two areas. A local NPO has set a special hunting area in Nishiokoppe village, 308 km2, Hokkaido, and managed deer as natural resources based on the hunting and wildlife law since 2004[1]. Guest hunters must follow local guides to shoot deer in order not to make deer smart. The proportion of encounters possible to fire in guided hunting did not decrease between 30 and 40%, while the proportion of encounters resulting in escape slightly increased from 10% to 30%. Around two hundred deer are culled through 160 hunter-days annually. It contributed to employment of a few local hunters and lodging in the local hotel. Three deer were introduced by a local private company in Nakanoshima Island (5.2 km2) in Lake Toya, Shikotsu-Toya National Park, Hokkaido, between 1956 and 1966. The deer population rapidly increased and became overabundant without annual culling, causing irreversible impacts to natural vegetation [2]. The local deer management council consisting of stakeholders started to reduce and maintain the deer number in low density in 2013 supported by the Ministry of Environment. Eradication is an option in areas where deer were introduced artificially. Platforms to make a decision by local stakeholders are necessary in community-based deer management in cases of sustainable use or eradication.
