Decentralized Breeding and Public Exhibitions at Ishikawa Zoo

Ishikawa can be said to have a close connection with the crested ibis. By 1934, when the bird was designated as a national natural treasure, it was already seldom seen elsewhere in Japan. It was in 2010, 40 years after Nori was confirmed in 1970, that the crested ibis returned to Ishikawa Prefecture. Two mating pairs of ibises raised at the Sado Japanese Crested Ibis Conservation Center were transferred to Ishikawa Zoo, which has since successfully raised many chicks and returned them to Sado Island. In 2016, the first public viewing of crested ibis outside of Sado Island took place at the Toki Satoyama House in Ishikawa Zoo. Allowing visitors to chance to see the birds up close, the museum aims to convey the importance of creating an environment that protects biodiversity.