Bark removal by sika deer Cervus nippon was observed by periodically providing potted trees along deer trails from spring through winter in Nara Park, Nara Pref., in central Japan. Potted trees used were Illicium religiosum and Ilex rotunda, which are known to be preferred by deer. Two types of bark removal were observed: gnawing and rubbing. Gnawing was done by males, females and fawns in all seasons, and the frequency was related with deer population density. Deer that barked trees by gnawing always ingested the scraped bark, and also tended to forage on twigs of the potted trees. Rubbing was done only by males during rutting season. These observations indicate that bark removal by gnawing is associated with feeding and bark removal by rubbing is related with rutting behavior by males.

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Researchers conducted a questionnaire survey to investigate present hunting activities, hunters' attitudes toward regulations, the hunting environment, and the role of hunters in wildlife management in Shimane Prefecture. There were 249 respondents, and the response rate was 80.0%. Wild boar hunters accounted for 61.6% of the total, and the remainder were mostly bird hunters (32.5%). The main objective of wild boar hunting was nuisance control, and very few hunted for profit despite of the high commercial value of this species. Most respondents were farmers and used wired leg traps. When asked about current problems, wild boar hunters indicated the cost of hunting, but bird hunters indicated the shortage of game.

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Researchers conducted questionnaire surveys targeting farmers, as well as hearings in 9 village communities in Shimane Prefecture, in 2001 and 2002, to analyze the present status of agriculture, wild boar damage, and farmers' attitudes toward these issues. With 508 respondents to the questionnaire, the response rate was 64.0%. About half of all farmers (53.5%) answered they still experienced agricultural damage from wild boar, and 76.0% had experienced it. Most farmers who had experienced damage installed fences as countermeasures (81.1%), and the costs and labor to do so were regarded as a heavy burden. However, agricultural damage from wild boar did not significantly affect the farmers' perspectives. About a half of respondents experiencing damage recognized the importance of wild boar management in order to continue farming activities, but the absence of successors and low profitability were regarded as more serious problems. The hearings revealed that the installation of fencing mostly depended on the extent of financial assistance from the local government.

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The food habits of the Kerama deer (Cervus nippon keramae) were investigated on the basis of feeding mark observations in the field, as well as fecal analysis. The feeding mark investigation found 118 plant species were eaten by the Kerama deer: 7 ferns, 23 woody plants, 35 forbs, 42 graminoids (Gramineae, Cyperaceae), and 11 non-graminoid monocots. With graminoids, many feeding marks were found on young leaves and reproductive organs. In the fecal analysis, the proportions of five plant categories (ferns, woody plants, forbs and non-graminoid monocots) dominated throughout the year at forest site, but the proportion of graminoids varied according to season at the marsh site. At marsh sites, the proportion of graminoids began to increase in March and was highest in August. These results suggest that the Kerama deer selectively eat high quality parts of graminoids. On this point, food habits of Kerama deer are quite different from those of Sika deer populations in northern Japan, where the proportion of graminoids increases in winter due to the lack of food. The study concluded that the food habits of the Kerama deer were the concentrate selector (CS) type.

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This study evaluated the impacts on fish fauna and habitat in streams supplying water for agriculture, caused by drainage channel alterations done with consideration of the ecosystem, in June 2002. Study sites, in Iwate Prefecture, Japan, included earthen channels downstream, earthen channels upstream, semi-encased channels (with concrete encasement on both sides), and encased channel sections. The investigation clarified the relationships between fish communities and environmental factors. Hydraulic conditions were important for conservation of fish fauna, and the condition of the substrate was important for several kinds of benthic fish. Total populations and the species of fish tended to be remarkably few in the encased channel sections compared with other sections. On the other hand, no significant difference was found in total population numbers and the species of fish in the semi-encased channel sections compared with earthen channel sections, and the earthen substrate was effective for the conservation of fish fauna to some degree in the semi-encased channel section. However, the study suggested that an earth substrate alone would be insufficient in the conservation of some benthic fish.

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