I
previously visited Misaki Park in 2014.
My contemporary impressions of the park can be read at Misaki Park (July 26, 2014).
On
that previous visit, I did not have time to watch the dolphin show, so this
time I made viewing the show a priority.
Recently in many western countries, the issue of keeping cetaceans in
captivity has grown into a very heated debate.
In April 2015, the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA)
temporarily suspended the membership of the Japanese Association of Zoos and
Aquariums (JAZA) over a controversy related to the drive fishery method used at
Taiji village in Wakayama Prefecture to collect wild dolphins for sale to
aquariums. (WAZA reinstated JAZA’s membership
after JAZA’s member zoos and aquariums voted to refrain from buying dolphins
caught in drive fisheries.) At the time
of this post, Misaki Park is listed as a member on the JAZA homepage, so I assume
that Misaki Park does not acquire dolphins from Taiji.
The
below two photographs of the exterior of the dolphin show venue, “Shiny Stadium”,
were taken on my previous visit.
Penguin
exhibit
This
photo of the Humboldt penguins was taken on my more recent visit.
Admission
to the dolphin show cost 500 yen. This
is in addition to the 1350 yen it cost to enter Misaki Park. The dolphin show venue
included a main performance pool in front and two smaller pools in the rear.
The
main performance pool appeared to be somewhere between 20 to 25 meters wide,
about 15 meters from front to back, and about 4 meters deep. The two holding pools appeared to be about 5 to
8 meters wide. There might have been other pools somewhere on the property, but
I could not see any.
I
counted 7 trainers working with 6 dolphins.
Since it was a very cold winter day, there were few visitors in the park
overall, and there were only 32 visitors in attendance at this performance.
The
dolphins used were Bottlenosed dolphins and Pacific white-sided dolphins. They performed tricks such as fetching balls,
twirling hoops on their snouts, and jumping.
The performance was not as choreographed and impressive as the dolphin
show at Wakayama Adventure World, and unlike at Adventure World, the trainers
here did not dive into the pool with the animals. (See Wakayama Advenure World, February 15, 2018).
Whenever
I observe these dolphin shows, I marvel at the intelligence of the animals and
the dedication of their trainers. But,
at the same time, I think a lot about the debate over keeping dolphins in
captivity. I do not know enough about cetaceans to judge whether a certain pool is large enough for the dolphins to thrive in captivity
(and some aquarium critics say that no pool can be large enough), but after
having observed wild Bottlenose dolphins swimming in the ocean off of Kumamoto
Prefecture, (see Dolphin Watching in Amakusa, March 25, 2016) these pools
somehow seem very small.
(Note: All photos taken in
this post were taken during visits on July 21, 2014 and February 13, 2018. The comments in this post are based on
observations made during the latter visit.
Conditions may have since changed. Please check it out for yourself.)
MisakiPark is located in the southernmost part of OsakaPrefecture,
about a one-hour train ride from the Namba District in OsakaCity.
Nestled among a group of hills next to
the ocean, the park seems almost hidden among the surrounding forest. The area feels very green and natural, and walking
around the park, one will likely notice many wild birds, including Black Kites
(Milvus migrans) soaring in the updrifts created by the winds coming inland
from OsakaBay.
Opened
in 1957 by the Nankai Railway Company which operates the train line that stops
at the park’s doorstep (Nankai Misaki Kouen Station), Misaki is an amusement
park that includes an animal collection. Roughly three-fourths of the property is
comprised of amusement park-type rides and attractions, and the remaining quarter
is dedicated to the animal collection and the “Shiny Stadium” dolphin show
facility.
A Mixture of Exhibits
Many
of the exhibits at Misaki appear to have been designed and constructed with the
intent to replicate the resident animal’s natural habitat. Some of the exhibits succeed to a partial extent,
some not at all. Some exhibits
allow clear views of the animals. Some
exhibits have plexiglas windows, or chain link fences, or netting material
obstructing the view of the animals. Some
of the exhibits have a lot of space for the animals, some seem to be quite
small.
The exhibit for the Reticulated
Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis reticulate) was nice and spacious. The giraffes seemed to be in good shape and quite
accustomed to people, sometimes sticking out their heads only a meter or two
away from visitors.
The
Sumatran Tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae) and Lion (Panthera leo) exhibits were
located immediately next to each other.
Constructed on a steep slope, these exhibits featured running water,
very high walls, a good amount of grass, and even a tree in each exhibit. I have visited this zoo three times, and I
noticed that the big cats are always lounging or sleeping in the upper parts of
the exhibit where they can look down at the human visitors.
Tiger
exhibit
Below
is “Ran”, the female born August 20, 1997 at the Ueno Zoo in Tokyo.
I
was hoping to see “Bulan”, the young tiger (and son of “Keahi”, a tiger born in
Hawaii) that was sent to Misaki from the Sendai City Yagiyama Zoo in June, but
he was apparently displayed during the morning, and so was in the night
quarters from the afternoon.
Night
quarters for tigers and lions.
The
night quarters were dark and surprisingly small.
Lion
exhibit
The
below video of the tiger exhibit was recorded in 2012:
The
manmade mountain in the Japanese macaque (Macaca fuscata fuscata) exhibit was
the size of a small building. I think
there were about 40 macaques in this exhibit.
The
Japanese black bears (Ursus thibetanus japonicus) were contained by high walls
and a deep dry moat.
Some
other exhibits: Red Kangaroo (Macropus rufus)
Red
Panda (Ailurus fulgens)
Sika
Deer (Cervus Nippon)
Capybara
(Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris)
Cages and Terrariums?
At
the following enclosures, views of the animals were obstructed by Plexiglas
windows, chain-link fences, or nets.
Raccoon
(Procyon lotor) and Raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides)
Patagonian
cavy (Dolichotis patagonum)
American
Beaver (Castor Canadensis)
Clawed
otter (Aonyx cinerea)
Meerkat
(Suricata suricatta)
American
alligator (Alligator mississippiensis)
Black-tailed
prairie dog (Cynomus ludovicianus)
Bird Cages
The
bird enclosures varied in size and shape.
I thought all of them would have seemed nicer if they were larger.
American
flamingoes (Phoenicopterus rubber rubber)
The
Bird Area contained many waterbirds
Ruddy
Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea)
Black
Kite (Milvus migrans) exhibit
Exhibit
for Snowy owl (Nyctea scandiaca)
From
left to right: male, female, juvenile
Bird
house
This
Steppe eagle (Aquila rapax) had an area of about
3 meters by 3 meters by 3 meters.
Educational Efforts
All
of the exhibits in this zoo had information signs which included the Japanese
name, English name, and scientific name of the animal. They also included information regarding the
geographic habitat of the animal as well as IUCN assessment ratings and
endangered statuses. Unfortunately,
other than the names, all of the information was only in Japanese. (I also asked at the information desk near
the park entrance about whether they had any English language maps or pamphlets. I was told that they usually do, but they
were temporarily out of stock on this particular day.)
This
zoo also featured an educational display in what used to be the elephant
enclosure. (There is no longer an
elephant in this zoo, and judging by the transformation of this area into an
educational display, I would venture to guess that MisakiPark
does not intend to bring in a new elephant.)
Even
in death, “Izumi” the elephant still resides in this enclosure in skeleton form. (She died in 2004 at the estimated age of 50). A display of plastic vegetables and straw is
used to show how much food she ate each day.
This
exhibit also featured the skeletons of other animals that lived in this
zoo. There were also replicas of various
bird eggs and samples of real bird feathers.
In
front of the Kangaroo enclosure, there was this sign which says “try touching
this Kangaroo fur!”
Opportunities for
Animal Encounters
There was a “Doubutsu Fureai
Hiroba” where families could get close to small domesticated animals such as sheep,
ponies, miniature pigs, Patagonian cavys, goats, chickens, and rabbits. There was a 200 yen charge for entering this
area as well as a separate 100 yen charge for food to give to the animals.
Outside
of the Doubutsu Fureai Hiroba, there were signs throughout the park asking visitors
to not feed the animals because their diets were controlled and monitored by
the zookeepers.
Confusingly,
contradicting the “do not feed” signs, there were a number of coin-operated
machines located near the Japanese macaques and the Japanese black bears which
dispensed animal feed for 100 yen. Apparently,
it is okay to feed the animals if you buy the food from these machines. I hope that the amount of food packed into
these machines is calculated into the animals’ daily rations.
The
Japanese black bear sat in the same spot of his enclosure all day waiting for
visitors to throw him food.
According
to the park pamphlet, during the summer vacation season in August, limited
numbers of visitors can participate in play sessions with otters, feeding time
with squirrel monkeys or giraffes, or donkey rides. Also during the period from July 19 to
September 28 (this year’s schedule), visitors can pay to touch and swim with
the dolphins at the dolphin show facility.
(In some countries, dolphin swim activities are criticized as having
negative effects on the animals. Here in
Japan, I have yet to hear anyone make such criticisms.)
Food and Souvenirs
There were 3 restaurants in
the park as well as a number of vending machines selling drinks.
Gyuudon,
french fries, and a coke: 1100 yen.
The
souvenir shop that served as the park’s exit insured that all visitors
departing the park would have one last chance to spend their money in the park.
There
was a fair selection of stereotypical zoo animal toys and goods available as
well as a small selection of original zoo goods that had the MisakiPark
name and logo: keychains, uchiwa fans, small hand towels, notepads, and
pens. There was a larger selection of
food items like cookies, cakes, rice crakers, etc. that had the MisakiPark
name and logo.
Getting There
The
entrance to MisakiPark is immediately
adjacent to the Nankai Railways Misaki Kouen station. The entrance is marked by a line of flag
poles and a statue of an elephant.
After
exiting the station, you walk about 250 meters down a gradual slope to the park
ticket office. Admission to the park is
1350 yen for adults and 700 yen for children (3 years old to elementary school
age).
(Note:
All photos taken in this post were taken during a visit on July 21, 2014. The comments in this post are based on
observations made on that day.
Conditions may have since changed.
Please check it out for yourself!)
