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Kushiro Shitsugen NP, Hokkaido
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By around 1890, red-crowned cranes were thought extinct in Japan. In 1924, more than 10 survivors were rediscovered at Kirakotan Cape in Kushiro Marsh—the tiny beginning of their recovery.
In 1952, pupils at Hororo Elementary spotted hungry cranes in a field during a severe winter. Their principal began feeding them, and local families pooled grain—starting Tsurui's community effort.
At Onnenai, spring-fed seeps stay around 10°C and unfrozen even when winter air falls below −20°C. Black-backed wagtails and scaly thrushes—usually summer visitors elsewhere in Hokkaido—can winter beside them.
About 200 bird species are recorded around Kushiro Marsh. At Onnenai, woodland, reed-sedge flats and sphagnum bog each attract different birds, from forest thrushes to reed warblers and Siberian rubythroats.
An Ainu name recorded for the red-crowned crane is sarorun-kamuy, “the kamuy living among the reeds.” The National Ainu Museum’s dictionary also records different crane names by region.
Unlike the continental population that winters in China and the Korean Peninsula, Hokkaido’s red-crowned cranes stay in Hokkaido year-round. They still move between summer nesting territories and winter gathering grounds.
A red-crowned crane’s nest is a broad, low platform of dead reeds built in shallow water: it can reach 2.5 m across but stands only about 30 cm high. A pair usually lays 1 or 2 eggs.
Look for the Eastern Marsh Harrier skimming reedbeds with its wings held in a shallow V. Kushiro is listed as a breeding ground for this nationally Endangered raptor, a lesser-known marsh specialist alongside the cranes.
Whooper swans and bean geese use Kushiro’s Shirarutoro, Toro and Takkobu lakes as seasonal stopovers. The marsh is not just nesting ground; its scattered lakes also serve as migration rest stops.
In June 1980, Kushiro Shitsugen became Japan’s first Ramsar-listed wetland. The international designation recognizes wetlands of importance, especially as habitat for waterbirds.
