It is important to establish educational programs for wildlife management according to the variety of local societal characteristics and types of jobs. Various wildlife seminars are held by prefectures, municipalities, and universities. However, there is a possibility that the effect of seminars is reduced by mismatches between not only the objective of seminars and the experiences of wildlife management, but also the seminar content and needs of the participants. We aimed to investigate the influence of the experience of participants on understanding our seminar, knowledge acquisition of wildlife management, and spreading effect, as well as, to clarify the request for wildlife seminars for each job type. A questionnaire survey was conducted at wildlife seminars, which were organized by the Research Center for Wildlife Management, Gifu University, and the study included 340 participant responses. The contribution of future activity was influenced by the number of wildlife experiences. In addition, administrative officers and private companies wished for the seminar to cover topics such as contents of research, damage control, and ecology, whereas students wished for overview of wildlife, not for damage control. Consequently, it is important to establish step-by-step or continuous educational programs according to the number of experiences. Moreover, wildlife managers are required to familiarize themselves with research, ecology, and damage control throughout off-the-job training and on-the-job training. In particular, it would be necessary to establish a comprehensive core curriculum for wildlife management for students, as they play a vital role in the future of wildlife management.

 In 2019, a sudden decline in the population of Ryukyu-ayu (Plecoglossus altivelis ryukyuensis) was recorded on Amami-oshima Island, coinciding with a rapid increase in the number of migratory great cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo). Given that selective foraging by great cormorants poses the potential risk of causing Ryukyu-ayu extinction, the precautionary principle was applied to protect this endangered species from these piscivorous avian predators. Damage control measures designed to limit the activity of native animals should be non-invasive, and in this study, black nylon strings were pulled across streams to deter great cormorants from gaining access to the spawning grounds of the Ryukyu-ayu. Subsequent under-water censuses in four major streams, based on snorkeling observations, revealed that a rapid reduction in the numbers of Ryukyu-ayu was averted using the line technique, which prevented great cormorants from feeding on Ryukyu-ayu. Consequently, the preventative measures taken against the great cormorant enabled the Ryukyu-ayu to spawn and reproduce without any apparent negative effects on the dynamics of the great cormorant. However, these measures did have one unintentional consequence, in that waterfowl became entangled in one of the strings. Nevertheless, despite the need for further modification, our approach using the line technique was proved to be effective in protecting populations of Ryukyu-ayu on Amami-oshima Island.

 As the number of sightings of Japanese sika deer (Cervus nippon) increases in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan, male sika deer have recently appeared in Tsukuba City (2015 and 2016) and Yuki City (2019), located in the southwestern part of the prefecture (ISW). We analyzed the mitochondrial DNA control region sequences of three individuals and compared them with those of sika deer in the neighboring areas to infer their areas of origin. The three individuals shared an identical haplotype 6TCG1 and repeat motif TD-2. Pairwise F_ST and Exact Test suggested significant genetic differentiation in the Nasu-Yaita/Boso Peninsula/Kanto Mountains and ISW. Based on these results, the most possible area of origin of these deer was Nikko in Tochigi Prefecture, which was the only area with the identical haplotype-repeat motif “6TCG1-TD-2”. The areas where we obtained the three deer are all very close to the Kokai River, which originates in the Nasu area, Tochigi Prefecture, and the Kinu River, which has its upper reaches in Nikko and northern Tochigi Prefecture. The sika deer in ISW may have migrated from Tochigi Prefecture using the green areas along these rivers as corridors.

 Huge blowdown areas were created due to a typhoon in 2004 around Lake Shikotsu, Hokkaido, Japan. These blowdown areas formed an ideal foraging habitat for herbivores, because of the canopy gaps. Here, we report the results of 146 spotlight counts, that were conducted around Lake Shikotsu from October 2006 to October 2015. We observed 2,732 sika deer throughout the study period, and the relative population index increased from 2.20 deer/10km in autumn 2006 to 18.42 deer/10km in autumn 2015.

 Amami rabbit (Pentalagus furnessi) dwell only on Amami-Oshima Island and Tokunoshima Island in southern Japan. These rabbits are sometimes rescued in traffic accidents. In such cases, the rabbits should be fed food that they consume naturally to adequately rear them. To clarify the food resources, we surveyed feeding signs of Amami rabbits on May, July and October in 2019 and February in 2020 at two sites (Sumiyou and Yamato) on Amami-Oshima Island. We recorded approximately 80 plant species consumed by the Amami rabbit. The leaves of the plants were most often eaten.

 This study aimed to investigate the distribution of Japanese serows (Capricornis crispus) in Hakone, Kanagawa, Japan, which has not been confirmed since the Meiji era. A total of 15 automatic cameras were set up from October 2017 to September 2020 (12047.6 camera-days) in the Hakone Nature Forest of Tamagawa University. Japanese serows were observed on four occasions (October 31, 2017, and June 3, June 4, and September 14, 2019) at two sites, providing the first reliable record of the presence of serows in Hakone. Although the previously confirmed areas inhabited by Japanese serows were at a distance > 10 km from the present study area, the recorded distance was considerably larger than the diameter of the home ranges (which was assumed to be circular in shape) and the dispersal distances of Japanese serows. The findings of this study suggest that Japanese serows may be continuously distributed from the study area to the previously confirmed inhabited areas.

 As a conservation measure associated with development projects in Kushiro Marsh, egg sacs and adults of Siberian salamander (Salamandrella keyserlingii) were translocated to artificial ponds in two periods (1986-1990 and 1996-1998). Following the first translocation, Kushiro City Board of Education commenced a continuous monitoring survey for 29 years from 1991 to 2019. The survey revealed that the translocated individuals spawned annually in the artificial breeding ponds by 2016; however, the number of egg sacs continuously decreased, after 2017, no further spawning was observed. Therefore, we consider that the translocated individuals are now either extinct or on the verge of extinction, indicating that the translocation project has failed. In this report, we discuss the factors that caused the failure of translocation projects and summarize factors to consider while translocating Siberian salamander.

 The stomach contents of six adult female nutrias captured in June 2021 were analyzed using DNA metabarcoding to confirm foraging of Unionoid mussel and other invertebrate animal taxa in the Shirokita cove in the lower reaches of the Yodogawa River, Osaka prefecture. Nodularia douglasiae, N. nipponensis, Sinanodonta calipygos, S. sp., Beringiana japonica, Corbicula fluminea or C.leana. were detected in three nutrias. In particular, N. douglasiae was the dominant on the number of read. Ladybug beetles Propylea japonica or P. quatuordecimpunctata and whitefly (Aleurochiton sp.) were also observed, but these are thought to have been taken in along with plants. N. nipponensis has not been found in the Yodogawa river system, and Corbicula spp. have not been found in the midden of dead shell caused by nutria feeding, which was previously reported. This is the first record of the nutria preying on N. nipponensis, S. calipygos, B. fukuharai, but Lanceolaria oxyrhyncha which was previously reported was not detected. These results indicate that DNA metabarcoding is available for further analysis to clarify the nutria feeding habit including aquatic and terrestrial plants and impact on the ecosystems.

 Most of captured sika deer (Cervus nippon) in forests are currently buried at the site where they were captured, because it is difficult to take away from there. The impact of deer-carcass burial and abandonment on the surrounding environment, however, is unclear. In this study, we performed deer-carcass burial to examine its effects on soil-water quality. Three experimental plots were established, each with four treatment plots (placement of a deer carcass on the ground surface (0 m), burial of a deer carcass for each depth of 0.5 m and 1.5 m, and a control), and soil water was collected at 0.5 m and 1.5 m depths in each treatment plot. Soil water was also collected just below the ground where the deer carcass was placed in the 0m treatment plots. Soil-water quality was measured for pH, electrical conductivity, total dissolved organic carbon, total nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, and nitrate–nitrogen concentrations. Although the values varied between the experimental plots, the electrical conductivity, total dissolved organic carbon, and total nitrogen concentrations were sometimes higher in the burial treatment plots than in the control plots, confirming that deer-carcass burial affects soil-water quality. Although this study only used a single deer carcass for each treatment plot, the maximum values of electrical conductivity and nitrate–nitrogen concentrations could be as high as or higher than those found at large burial sites in previous studies. Burying deer carcasses in areas with a high groundwater table, such as along a stream, should be avoided as it may contaminate the stream water.

 The increasingly vast amount of widely available information on the internet provides novel opportunities to analyze levels and drivers of public interest and attitude towards nature. We investigate seasonality in public interest of six bird species in Japan for which observation data and Japanese Wikipedia pageview data are available. We identify seasonality by applying linear regressions and sinusoidal models to Wikipedia pageview data spanning a 6-year period from 1 October 2015 to 30 September 2021. High seasonality in public interest in four of these six species is apparent, especially for species with famous calls which people commonly encounter, and for species closely associated with Japanese culture. This suggests that both culture and seasonality are important determinants of public interest in these bird species in Japan. Increased urbanization decreases direct contact with nature, with online interactions between people and their environment becoming increasingly important. Bird phenology may inform people of seasonal changes, and play an important role in establishing the value of species in culture. Monitoring public interest, including seasonality, can improve our understanding of why people are more interested in some species than others, which in turn can be applied to improve conservation efforts.