Increasing Japanese Macaques

　Since last year, there have been sightings of Asian black bears in urban areas, and sightings of Japanese macaques in urban areas are also on the rise.

　According to staff at a guesthouse in Zaō Onsen, Yamagata Prefecture, the number of Japanese macaques in the Zaō area has been increasing recently; I encountered a troop of them twice on the prefectural road—commonly known as the Nishi-Azuma Sky Valley—which runs from Lake Inawashiro to Yonezawa city. They did not seem particularly afraid of people and were sitting right in the middle of the road, but being surrounded by a troop of nearly 20 monkeys is certainly a bit unnerving.

　Typical zoonotic diseases that can be contracted through bites or scratches from Japanese macaques include B virus disease; as there have been fatal cases, they are dangerous. There is no choice but to drive slowly so as not to provoke them.