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Zhen Ji
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Japanese cities plagued by influx of crows
Japanese cities facing plagues of crows are struggling for ways to keep the feathered pests' numbers down, with one city council going as far as to make feeding a crow a punishable offence.
Flocks of the large and menacing birds tend to roost in parks and forests on the outskirts of urban areas and descend upon the city early in the morning Photo: PA
The municipal assembly of the city of Minoh, close to Osaka in central Japan, has this week passed an ordinance that prohibits residents from leaving food out for crows.
Anyone who ignores the law, or refuses city officials access to their property to check whether they are breaking the law, may be reported to police and can be fined up to Y100,000.
Eradication campaigns in other cities across Japan have been largely ineffective as crows have apparently become braver and more intelligent in the face of threats from humans.
Flocks of the large and menacing birds tend to roost in parks and forests on the outskirts of urban areas and descend upon the city early in the morning, ripping open plastic rubbish bags outside restaurants before they can be collected.
Crows have also attacked people - with young children carrying food a favourite target - and causing power blackouts when they build nests on power pylons.
The birds have also been blamed for severing fibre optic cables and halting bullet trains by damaging power lines. There are even reports of crows snatching ducklings from zoos.
Experts estimate that as many as 150,000 crows fly into Tokyo every day, attracted by the easy availability of discarded food.
Efforts by local authorities to date include knocking down nests and destroying the birds' eggs, using poison or making restaurant operators put their waste in communal metal bins.
The Mitaka district of western Tokyo has even introduced a night-time rubbish collection service that has had an impact on the number of crows gathering in the neighbourhood.
