Japan Travel: Beware the Birds!
While the cawing of crows at dawn may be a familiar nuisance in most parts of the world, in Japan the ominous-looking birds are raising hell. They're snipping fiber optic cables for nest material, causing major blackouts and have even pecked at children's faces as they tried to steal candy. Seriously.
According to the International Herald Tribune, an explosion in the population of crows is to blame, due largely to an increasing amount of garbage as the Japanese have adopted a more Western lifestyle. Local experts guess that as many as 150,000 of the birds are currently terrorizing Tokyo alone. The city stepped up trapping efforts after a crow buzzed the head of the governor last year while he was playing golf. (At least the guv didn't try to kill the bird with a well-placed shot.)
The eerie part? The crows are getting wise:
In Kagoshima, they are even trying to outsmart the Crow Patrol. The birds have begun building dummy nests as decoys to draw patrol members away from their real nests.
If you're heading off to Japan sometime soon, you might want to invest in one of those clear umbrellas that Scarlett Johansson toted throughout Tokyo. It's a stylish way to avoid getting hit with, um, droppings.
Related Stories:
· As the Crows Fly, Japanese Get Fed up [IHT]
· Japan Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: isado]
Leave a Comment
Not yet a member? Click here to become a member.
Already a member? Login below: