2026 Japan exploration

What did we do today?

We did a wetland walk and saw several different types of mushrooms!

We learned about the Red Crowned Crane when we visited the Akan International Crane Center. In 1953 they were almost extinct (down to about 30) but have recovered to about 1,900 now. The Center feeds it in winter. These are the famous dancing cranes you might see in Japanese art - see example in photos.

We are now at Lake Akan. We had hoped to climb Mt. Meakan tomorrow but the volcano is too active at the moment so it is closed. Here on the lake there is also a mud volcano that we visited that is a very small miniature of Yellowstone.

Lastly, Cindy found this for us to attend

Akanko Ainu Theater Ikor.
Traditional Ainu Dance. (The Ainu ore the indigenous peoples of this area)

Interesting things learned today;

There is a green algae grow together to form marimo. The rolling of the waves makes them into round balls that are hollow. They can be the size of a soccer ball. They are actually designated a Japanese National Monument.

If you want more info on the cranes:
The red crowned crane compared the Sandhill crane you see in Florida: (source ChatGPT)

The red-crowned crane (Grus japonensis)—the one we saw in Hokkaido—is about 5 ft (150 cm) tall, with a wingspan around 7½–8 ft (220–250 cm). Adults are strikingly white, with a black neck and secondary wing feathers and that famous bare patch of red skin on top of the head. They’re among the heaviest flying birds, commonly around 15–22 lb (7–10 kg).

The Florida sandhill crane (Antigone canadensis pratensis) is a nonmigratory subspecies of sandhill crane. It’s smaller, generally around 3½–4 ft (105–120 cm) tall, with a wingspan around 6–7 ft (180–210 cm). Instead of crisp black and white, it’s mostly gray, often with rusty-brown staining on its feathers. It also has red bare skin on its head, but the red extends across the forehead/crown rather than appearing as that neat red “cap” surrounded by black and white.

There is also a big behavioral difference you’d notice. Florida sandhills have adapted remarkably well to people—you’ll see pairs strolling through subdivisions, golf courses and roadsides as though they own the place. 😂 Red-crowned cranes generally remain much more associated with wetlands, marshes, river systems and agricultural landscapes, although the resident Hokkaido population does use farmland and some individuals become accustomed to people around feeding areas.

And their voices are related but impressive in different ways. Both have the crane family’s extraordinarily long, coiled trachea, producing those tremendous bugling calls. A red-crowned pair performing its synchronized unison call and courtship dance is one of the great wildlife spectacles of Hokkaido.Read more