カワウの営巣地

桂川を桂離宮から上流にたどっていると、河畔の樹木が白く色変わりしているのに気づきました。よく見ると、カワウの営巣地あるいはねぐらのようです。カワウは一時数を減らして絶滅危惧もされましたが、近年とみに数を増やし、京都地方の桂川では最近100羽単位の集団が、亀岡ではそのような集団が4つ5ツトできているそうです。内面漁業への影響から、ドライアイスを使って巣の中の卵や雛を処分する方法が提案され、実験されています。きわめて残酷な方法と言えます。漁協の実際の損害はどの程度のものかは知りませんが、アニマルウェルフェアの観点からも、もう少し人道的な解決方法を探ってほしいものです。

As I followed the Katsura River upstream from Katsura Rikyu (Katsura Imperial Villa), I noticed that the trees along the riverbank had turned white. Upon closer inspection, it was due to the nesting or roosting of the Great Cormorant. In recent years, their numbers have been increasing rapidly, and in the Katsura River in the Kyoto area, a group of 100 birds has formed in several places, and in Kameoka area, four or five such groups have been established. Because of the impact on the internal fishery, a method of disposing of the eggs and chicks in the nests using drones and dry ice has been proposed and is being tested. This is an extremely cruel method. I don't know how much damage the fishermen's cooperatives have actually suffered, but from the perspective of animal welfare, I hope they will find a more life-respecting solution.

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