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July 05, 2025
 

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INSECTS

As synonymous with summer as fireworks and sweltering temperatures, mosquitoes are ubiquitous in Japan. However, will rising temperatures lead more dangerous species of the bug to call Japan home?
ENVIRONMENT / Wildlife / Longform
Aug 7, 2023
The mosquito: Summer’s unwelcome little bloodsucker
An outbreak of dengue in Yoyogi Park nine years ago could be a sign of things to come if the wrong mosquito makes it into Japan.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Jun 23, 2023
Chemical-maker Kao unveils new way to combat mosquitoes
Researchers found that spraying a solution that allows mosquitoes' wings to become wet can prevent them from flying and knock them out of the air.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Tohoku
Feb 20, 2023
As food crisis looms, some wonder, 'What's it like to eat insects?'
A vending machine that offers edible insects was recently set up in Sendai, and the bugs are selling well, but it is also true that many people hate even the sight of insects.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Dec 6, 2022
From flickering fireflies to lowly dung beetles, insects are vanishing
Amid deforestation, pollution and climate change, bugs are struggling — along with the crops, flowers and animals that rely on them to survive.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 23, 2022
The Joy of Cooking (Insects)
Climate-conscious cooking means getting creative.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / Longform
Jan 9, 2021
Insects: The future of food?
A thriving industry looks promising if consumer aversion can be overcome.
Japan Times
WORLD / FOCUS
Aug 31, 2020
Millions of beetles are wiping out forests around the world
Due to climate change, trees are more easily attacked and killed by the insects, in turn impacting forests' ability to absorb carbon and emit oxygen.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 25, 2020
What bugs me most about the summer
It's summertime and that means the sounds of cicadas and the bites of mosquitoes.
Japan Times
LIFE
Aug 11, 2020
Beetlemania: Japanese collectors pay high prices for big bugs
The nation's love of stag and rhinoceros beetles has flourished during the pandemic, with families driving demand.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Jul 18, 2020
Overindulging at home and playing the online ratings game amid a pandemic
One man reportedly left as many as 18 empty wine bottles and four large empty sake bottles out to be recycled each week during the pandemic.
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
May 23, 2020
Rats, bugs, crooks and trucks share media spotlight amid pandemic
With city dwellers around the world in lockdown, increasing reports have surfaced about wild animals infiltrating urban areas.
JAPAN
Oct 21, 2019
Japan's government to take steps to prevent fire ants from settling
The government Monday decided to take steps to prevent poisonous foreign fire ants from settling in Japan.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / OLD NIC'S NOTEBOOK
Jul 28, 2019
Will our insects keep on disappearing?
With concern, but little surprise, I read an article by Daphne Rousseau in The Japan Times on July 2 about a mass extinction of insects in Krefeld, Germany, near the Dutch border.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Jul 25, 2019
The sound of summer: Love them or hate them, cicadas have a special place in Japanese culture
Cicadas — known as semi in Japanese — are a superfamily of insects with around 2,000 known species worldwide, around 35 of which live in Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle / Kateigaho International Japan Edition
Jul 6, 2019
Ryo: A frame of mind to beat the heat
The first of a four-part series that focuses on traditional ways to mitigate the heat of a Japanese summer.
Japan Times
WORLD / Science & Health
Feb 21, 2019
Why do zebras have stripes? Because they make bad landing strips for flies
Scientists are providing new evidence to answer the long-standing question about why zebras have stripes. It appears stripes make terrible landing strips, bamboozling the fierce blood-sucking flies that try to feast on zebras and carry deadly diseases.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Science & Health
Dec 10, 2018
Bug business: Cockroaches corralled by the millions in China to crunch waste
In the near pitch-dark, you can hear them before you see them — millions of cockroaches scuttling and fluttering across stacks of wooden boards as they devour food scraps by the ton in a novel form of urban waste disposal.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Nov 20, 2018
Edible insects hit supermarket shelves in U.K.
Fancy some roasted crickets for a light snack? Look no further than in the local supermarket aisles.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Aug 16, 2018
Bugs struggle amid Japan's record summer heat
Specialists in Hyogo believe populations of mosquitoes and beetles have suffered this year as the moist environments where their young thrive have dried up in the heat wave.
LIFE / Language / NEWS IN NIHONGO
Jul 23, 2018
Kids cheer on their bugs at the Kabutomushi Sumo Competition
The National Kabutomushi Sumo Tournament, where rhinoceros beetles are made to fight on tree branches instead of sumo rings, was held recently in Yamagata Prefecture.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Magnitude 5.5 earthquake jars Tokara Islands amid flurry of seismic activity
A strong quake struck off the Tokara Islands on Thursday afternoon, with the island chain having recorded around 1,000 earthquakes since a burst of seismic activity first began on June 21.
Japan to require flight passengers to keep power banks within sight
The transport ministry has announced new regulations requiring flight passengers to keep power banks within sight to mitigate fire risks while on board planes.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

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