2024-12-23 Regional Ecosystem Studies Training II "Satoyama Management Fieldwork Training" ②

Following on from last week, a class for first-year students Department of Ecoregion Science, Faculty of Agriculture, was held at the Tokyo Metropolitan Noyamakita Rokudoyama Park.
Introducing the Regional Ecosystem Studies Practical Training II "Satoyama Management Fieldwork Practical Training"!

After volunteering to cut undergrowth in the Satoyama area in the morning, we walked around the park in the afternoon. Graduate students gave us a field guide using their expertise in the natural environment.

The first photo shows a student researching an NPO giving us a lecture about the current state and challenges of park management.

In the second photo, we learned about the effective use of organic matter in the Satoyama area at a place where fallen leaves and vegetable scraps are used to make compost.

In the third photo, we are being taught about bamboo forest management in front of the bamboo forest. If we stop using bamboo, the bamboo forest will continue to spread, which will be a problem. On the other hand, if it is properly managed, we can harvest bamboo shoots!

The fourth photo shows a rice field in a small valley (Yato) in a hilly area. I learned about rice fields and the aquatic life that lives there. The presence of various water surfaces such as ponds, rice fields, and waterways nurtures a diverse aquatic life.

In the fifth photo, diverse plants are distributed in diverse environments. We are being taught about the survival strategies of these plants. Satoyama is where people live and create plant diversity.

In the sixth photo, I learned about vegetation succession. In the past, deciduous trees such as konara oaks were used for firewood and charcoal in Satoyama. However, as gas and electricity became widespread and trees were no longer cut down, Satoyama became dark and evergreen broad-leaved trees such as Euonymus japonicus, Quercus glauca, and Quercus myrsinae grew thick all over.

The seventh photo is of the field in Rokudoyama Park. I learned about moles. Apparently, Azuma moles live here in the Sayama Hills.
Apparently a mushroom called Long-horned mushroom grows specifically in the mole toilets near the mole's nests, and it breaks down the excrement neatly!

In the eighth photo, I learned about mycorrhizal fungi that live symbiotically with the roots of pines and oaks. Luxury foods like matsutake mushrooms and truffles are the fruiting bodies of mycorrhizal fungi. Mycorrhizal fungi live symbiotically with trees in poor soils, helping them absorb water and nutrients and receiving photosynthetic products.
Matsutake mushrooms were once grown in the Satoyama countryside because fallen leaves were used as compost to obtain nutrients.

The ninth photo shows us being taught about wildlife management.
Recently, deer and wild boars have been appearing in human settlements, causing increasing damage to agriculture, but it is important to monitor the wild animals' ranges before they expand and take measures such as physically controlling them with fences, etc.
The clean and clear forest floor of Satoyama areas also makes it harder for wild animals to get close to human settlements!

The tenth photo shows us learning about forest insects, especially beetles. Even though they are similar species, there are species that live in the upper part of the forest where there are leaves and species that live near the ground.

It was a really fulfilling day as I got to see the real Satoyama, walk around, learn a lot, and even take part in a volunteer activity of clearing undergrowth with a sickle!

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