One of great attraction of Mt. Takao is to be able to observe all kinds of birds. Its number is almost 150 kinds which is one third of the species confirmed in all over Japan. Mt. Takao is the paradise for birds and one of the best place for bird watching. Various kinds of birds and its lifestyle could be observed including summer birds come in spring time, winter birds come from the higher altitude and hearing beautiful bird songs during breeding season.
This is a foreign species native to southern China. After released 20 of them in Tokyo and Kanagawa prefectures in 1919 (Taisho 8), they are now distributed throughout Japan. They are found in woods, shrubs and grasslands in flatlands. They live in a group from autumn to early spring and feed on seeds, nuts, young leaves and buds of trees and earthworms. Their voice sounds like “come here” (chottokoi) in Japanese and had often been used in TV programs, movies and samurai dramas as the birds that live in satoyama (satoyama is where residential area and woods space coexist in a rural area). The breeding season is from May to June. They dig shallow holes in shrubs and build a nest with fallen plants and lay seven to eight eggs in a season.
●Body length about 27 cm
●Season January to December (resident bird: a bird that stays in the same area all year round)
●Body length about 27 cm
●Season January to December (resident bird: a bird that stays in the same area all year round)