Haiwai November 6th. According to a report by Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun on the 6th, “the number of tourists visiting Nara plummeted, and the deer became thin because they couldn’t eat senbei.” Few people went to Nara Park to feed the deer. This has aroused the concerns of local protection groups, calling on people not to blindly feed.
Conservation groups claim that the staple food of Nara deer is grass and nuts. There are enough acorns and large grasslands near the park, so there is no food shortage. But after the rumor that “Nara deer was starving because of the sudden decline in tourists”, people began to feed bread, pet food, and leftovers in the park.
According to the report, the main ingredient of the “deer senbei” fed by tourists is easily digestible rice bran, which is a good “snack” for the deer, but other foods containing additives can cause indigestion and vomiting of the deer, especially if added Seasoned food.
Remember these smelly deer will go through the trash can and accidentally eat plastic bags and packaging boxes with similar smells. Indigestible plastic packaging will remain in the fawn’s stomach, causing malnutrition to death or death. In 2019, conservation groups found plastic packaging in the stomachs of 16 dead fawns.
Starting in late October, the Nara prefectural government and conservation groups began to urge tourists and local people not to feed food other than senbei, and not to leave garbage in the park to prevent deer from eating it by mistake.
Nara Park also publicly stated, “Many people believe the rumors that the deer are starving, even if some people are reminded in person, they still do not listen. Although the deer are cute, they are wild animals after all. Please approach them with correct knowledge.
