Twelve dead bodies of Japanese serow,
Capricornis crispus crispus, were found during the period from May 1967 to May 1975 in the southern parts of the Japan North Alps, and from their stomach contents, the kinds of eaten plants were identified. The locations of the discovery are 1, 100-2, 000m high above the sea-level, and the times of death were estimated to be autumn (October-November), deep snow season (February-April), and early spring (March-May) .
Autopsy of the 12 bodies disclosed that eaten plants in the stomachs belonged to 7 species of 2 families of needle-leaf evergreen, 7 species of 6 families of deciduous broadleaf tree, 4 species of 1 family of broad-leaf evergreen, and 9 species of 7 families of herbs, totaling 27 species of 16 families (Table 1) .
Tables 2 and 3 give the species and families as classified by the seasons of death. In autumn, 9 species were eaten, and many of them are broad-leaved, only one species being needle-leaved. In the deep snow season, 8 species were eaten, and needle-leaf trees were predominant. In early spring, species of edible plants abruptly increased to 18 species, and the proportion of eaten herbs also increased.
Tables 4 and 5 give of edible plant for Japanese serows, which were confirmed by the traces of being eaten in summer. They were very numerous, and moreover herbs were predominants.
In this way, broad-leaved evergreens in autumn, needle-leaved trees in the deep snow season, and herbs in spring to summer are important food for Japanese serows. In other words, they are fond of fresh green leaves.
As the consequence, the deep-snow season is very difficult for them to live. Complete deforestation of vast mountainous tract makes it inhabitable for them, which would be forced to give damage to the afforestation areas of Japanese cypress. This is a mute resistance by serows to environment devastation. At the same time it is a warning against deteriorating miliew of the human being.
In one case, two pieces of vinyl-like synthetic resinous cloth were discovered.
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