More Environment Articles - The Japan Times

October 16, 2025

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Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER

Jul 22, 2004

By Rowan Hooper

* Japanese name: Hashibosogarasu * Scientific name: Corvus corone * Description: Crows are large birds, growing up to 50 cm long with a wingspan of 104 cm. They have entirely black plumage and black eyes. Two species are common in Japan, the carrion crow and the jungle crow, and it's difficult to tell...

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH

Jul 15, 2004

'Hideous alien' had an exotic past

By Mark Brazil

Sometimes accidentally, sometimes to order, we humans transport a bewildering array of species about the world. Many of them wither under the regimens of their new environments; alas, some thrive to the detriment of the locals.

ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH

Jul 8, 2004

Renewable energy sources offer global chance to shed fossil fuels

By Stephen Hesse

As the leading national consumer of fossil fuels, the United States churns out almost a quarter of all the industrial carbon dioxide worldwide. Apologists say this is the price that must be paid in exchange for driving the global economy. Realists see such hubris as eventually undermining human viability...

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER

Jul 8, 2004

By Rowan Hooper

* Japanese name: Kosagi * Scientific name: Egretta garzetta * Description: The Little Egret is a bird related to the heron, with snow-white plumage, a long, pointed black bill and black legs with bright yellow feet. Its body is 50-60 cm long. In the breeding season in summer, the feet turn bright red,...

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT

Jul 2, 2004

Losing battle being fought to keep Kanagawa beaches clean

By Atsuko Sekiguchi

FUJISAWA, Kanagawa Pref. -- It's almost 5 a.m. and the sky is warming as the sun rolls up to burst open the horizon. The pacific rhythm of the ocean waves dominates the soundscape of the virtually deserted beach.

ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK

Jul 1, 2004

Tucking in to alien outcasts

By C.W. Nicol

IN MAY, I was invited to Vancouver to give a keynote speech at the Fourth World Congress of Fisheries. The congress in that beautiful city in southwest British Columbia was attended by about 1,500 delegates from 80 countries. Its theme was: "Reconciling Fishing with Conservation."

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER

Jun 24, 2004

Japanese cormorant

By Rowan Hooper

* Japanese name: Umiu * Scientific name:Phalacrocorax capillatus * Description: Cormorants are striking, almost reptilian looking seabirds with long necks and bills. They are often seen standing on rocks with their wings held out to dry, their black feathers like the cloak of a witch or scarecrow....

ENVIRONMENT / WILD WATCH

Jun 17, 2004

Some pictures worth 1,000 words

By Mark Brazil

I take my hat off to those folk who can draw and paint. What a wonderfully inspiring skill. And when they can illustrate living creatures in lifelike form then I am in awe. What has prompted this outpouring is the fact that I am currently at work on a new field guide, so I am heavily involved in both...

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER

Jun 10, 2004

Snout butterfly

By Rowan Hooper

* Japanese name: Tengucho * Scientific name: Libythea celtis * Description: This butterfly with a wingspan of 19-29 mm is easily recognized: The upper sides of the wings are brown with large bright-orange and smaller white patches. The back edges of the forewing are deeply toothed. The Japanese name...

ENVIRONMENT / OUR PLANET EARTH

Jun 10, 2004

Kicking up a storm over climate change

By Stephen Hesse

For those who cannot decide whether to see "The Day After Tomorrow," I sympathize. This recent Hollywood thriller that offers an apocalyptic portrayal of global climate change has me at odds with myself. I am torn between the desire to wallow in mindless hyperbole, and the fear of seeing an audience...

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK

Jun 3, 2004

Our woodland's magic is a joy to behold

By C.W. Nicol

A very kind Japanese man who has served for more than 30 years in children's homes told me recently that 70 percent of the youngsters in his care nowadays have been abused or seriously neglected by their parents. Early in his career, he said, such abuse was very rare indeed. And, he assured me sadly,...

Japan Times

ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER

May 27, 2004

Wood-boring beetle

By Rowan Hooper

* Japanese name: Ubatamamushi * Scientific name: Chalcophora japonica * Description: This beetle belongs to a group called the Buprestids. They are bullet-shaped and are often metallic-colored, though this species has brown and black stripes running the length of the body, which is flecked with gold....

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Rock group The Yellow Monkey played K-Arena Yokohama in June as part of a nationwide tour. Concerts are increasingly popular in the age of social media as users value in-person experiences.

Inside Japan’s arena boom: Sports, sound and city-building

By Patrick St. Michel

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Tokyo Gas lights the way to carbon neutrality

Tokyo Gas lights the way to carbon neutrality

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