Stork pair likely laid eggs in Shimane Pref. schoolyard: education board
(Mainichi Japan)
UNNAN, Shimane -- The municipal education board in this western Japan city announced on March 8 that a pair of storks likely laid eggs on an artificial nest-tower in an elementary school playground.
The birds, which are designated national treasures, have nested on the grounds of the municipal Nishi Elementary School. If the eggs are confirmed, it will be the first time storks have laid eggs for three consecutive years in the city of Unnan since wild storks disappeared from Japan in 1971. It will also be the first time the birds have laid eggs in a schoolyard in the Chugoku and Shikoku regions.
According to the education board, the female stork is called Bongsuni, and her male partner is named Genki-kun. They assume the eggs were laid on March 4 as the pair started avoiding prolonged absences from the nest. If all goes well, the eggs are expected to hatch in early April and fledge in June.
An education board representative was pleased that the storks "laid eggs in a good environment, and also for the students," but is also asking bird watchers to observe the birds from a distance of at least 150 meters from the nest.
(Japanese original by Hideyuki Yamada, Izumo Resident Bureau)