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July 02, 2026
 

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ANIMALS

A photo of a bear taken by a drone camera in the village of Showa, Fukushima Prefecture
JAPAN
Dec 1, 2025
Drones used to locate and drive away bears in Fukushima village
Showa’s local government has conducted patrols using the drones on a regular basis since October.
A committee of signatories to the Washington convention holds a meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on Thursday.
JAPAN
Nov 28, 2025
International conference rejects blanket restriction on eel trade
The proposal was submitted by the European Union, which claimed that eel populations are declining mainly due to catches of eels for export.
A bear warning sign is displayed in Shirakawa-go, a popular tourist spot in Gifu Prefecture. A town in Miyagi Prefecture has retracted its social media post warning of a bear sighting after discovering an image submitted to it had been generated using artificial intelligence.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 27, 2025
Japan town retracts bear sighting warning sparked by AI image
The town of Onagawa in Miyagi Prefecture issued the warning after receiving the image of a bear in a residential area, but later discovered it was generated using AI.
Naoyuki Kayamoto (left) and Makoto Murakami of venture firm Hundred aim to launch a subsidiary in the United States.
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Fukushima
Nov 24, 2025
The Fukushima startup bringing a welfare perspective to animal testing
Naoyuki Kayamoto’s venture firm Hundred develops laboratory instruments that cause less stress to animals during experiments.
About 48,000 chickens at a poultry farm in Miyazaki Prefecture will be culled, following the confirmation of a bird flu outbreak.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Nov 22, 2025
Japan confirms fifth bird flu outbreak of season
About 48,000 chickens at a poultry farm in Miyazaki Prefecture will be culled.
A brown bear gnaws at the cage it is trapped in, in Sunagawa, Hokkaido, in 2024. Small towns can face cost concerns when responding to bear sightings.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Nov 20, 2025
How a small-town spat in Hokkaido nearly derailed its bear response measures
Tensions brewed after a local politician accused hunters of being money-hungry and inefficient, leading to a weekslong halt in bear-culling operations.
As bear attacks spike across northern Japan, the country's community of nature enthusiasts say that while the risk might be high now, enjoying the outdoors is still possible with the proper precautions.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 19, 2025
‘Be bear aware’: Japan’s outdoor pros sound off on ursine risks
Japan’s nature researchers, hunters and trail runners reflect on how a spike in bear activity affects their professions and hobbies.
Glass eels at the Saint-Gilles-Croix-de-Vie fish market in France on Feb. 13. Gangs in Haiti are profiting from a lucrative trade in baby eels.
WORLD
Nov 19, 2025
Haitian gangs getting rich off murky market for baby eels
Demand for the creatures comes largely from Asia and is filling the coffers of the criminal organizations terrorizing Haiti.
A Self-Defense Forces member holds a shield during practice setting up a bear trap in Kazuno, Akita Prefecture, on Nov. 5.
JAPAN
Nov 17, 2025
Wild bears attacked 196 people in Japan between April and October
By prefecture, Akita had the highest number of casualties during the April-October period, with 56, including three fatalities.
A bear walks in front of a box trap set up at a park in the city of Akita on Nov. 2.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 17, 2025
Bears attacks and sightings continue in northern Japan
A woman was found dead in a rice field of a suspected bear attack in Akita Prefecture on Sunday while a bear made its way into an Aeon shopping mall in the prefecture.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara (second from left) addresses a ministerial meeting on bear attacks at the Prime Minister's Office on Friday.
JAPAN
Nov 14, 2025
Government launches emergency bear attack prevention plan
Many of the proposed measures focus on increasing personnel and resources for bear management and culling.
The skull of a Pleistocene wolf from Alaska, used for photogrammetric reconstruction of 3D models in a study on the emergence and diversification of dog morphology, pictured at the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
WORLD / Science & Health
Nov 14, 2025
Doggie diversity in size and shape began at least 11,000 years ago
New research contradicts the notion that such diversity was mainly a relatively new phenomenon driven by selective breeding in recent centuries.
Police cars leave the Akita Prefectural Police headquarters to cull bears, in the city of Akita on Thursday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Nov 13, 2025
As attacks surge, who can cull bears in Japan?
In Japan, few people typically own guns, and the process to qualify for a license to hunt the animals takes time and effort.
A box trap is set up in Kazuno, Akita Prefecture, on Nov. 5 to capture bears.
JAPAN
Nov 12, 2025
LDP proposes measures against bear attacks
The measures include employing those with hunting licenses as “government hunters” and procuring electric fences and traps.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a session of the House of Councilors Budget Committee in parliament on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Nov 12, 2025
Japan to use extra budget to address bear attacks
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Wednesday that a proposed supplementary budget would include spending to help local governments address attacks by bears.
Japan may cover half the cost of installing fences around outdoor baths at traditional inns and hotels to prevent bear attacks.
JAPAN
Nov 11, 2025
Japan weighs aid for outdoor bath fences amid bear attacks
The Japan Tourism Agency is aiming to cover half the cost of installing fences around outdoor baths at inns and hotels.
Takashimaya will sell ¥20,260 lucky bags through a lottery that allow customers to experience as if they are a horse owner throughout the year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 10, 2025
Horse-themed lucky bags to hit Japan during 2026 New Year’s sales
Next year’s bags include those providing customers an opportunity to interact with horses as consumers are increasingly prioritizing experiences over goods.
A staff member sorts bells next to an advertisement for bear spray at a store in Hanamaki, Iwate Prefecture, on Oct. 24.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 10, 2025
Businesses in Japan tighten bear safety measures as sightings surge
Convenience stores and delivery companies are taking action to protect employees and customers as the predators are spotted in record numbers.
Kunio Komesu, a member of the Sea Turtle Association of Japan, at a beach in Ogimi, Okinawa Prefecture, in October
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Okinawa
Nov 10, 2025
Sea turtle eggs in Okinawa being damaged by waves due to coastal erosion
If the erosion persists, the three types of turtles — which are listed on the Environment Ministry’s Red List of endangered species — might stop laying eggs there.
Agriculture minister Norikazu Suzuki speaks during a meeting held at the ministry on Oct. 22 after the season's first bird flu outbreak was reported in Hokkaido.
JAPAN
Nov 9, 2025
Fourth avian flu outbreak this season confirmed in Niigata
This is the fourth outbreak of avian influenza at a poultry farm in Japan this season and the second confirmed case in Niigata.
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ¥3,000 from ¥1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
‘My dream is broken’: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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