日本旅行推薦ＳＰ：一、蕪島
皆、僕の日本旅行推薦スペシャルは第一の所が蕪島だ。蕪島は日本東北での八戸市に、ＪＲ鮫駅の近くにある。そして、蕪島は海猫の繁殖地だ。皆そこに絶対行くね！
For the very first installment of myJapanColors’ Japan Travel Special Series, I am going to share with everyone the beauty of Kabushima (蕪島).
Kabushima, literally translated as ‘seagull island’, is a shrine located in Hachinohe city, up in the north-eastern part of Japan, or Tohoku, in the Aomori prefecture. Kabushima is also the breeding ground of over 40,000 black-tailed seagulls, or ‘uminekos’. There is a festival there on the third Sunday of April each year.
The Kabushima Shinto shrine was constructed in 1269, to enshrine the god of the business prosperity and the child giving. This god is also the guardian deity of the fishery. The black-tailed gulls are said to be the messenger of the god, and it is loved as the birds that tell signs of incoming schools of fishes.
Although the Shinto shrine forbids visitors to feed these gulls, people still feed them every now and then, hence these black-tailed gulls of Kabushima are very accustomed to and are not afraid of human. However, it is rumored that the fact that these black-tailed gulls do not fear human is one of the reasons causing a decrease of the black-tailed gull population.
 Seeing Kabushima from a distance; the white specks are uminekos |
 Uminekos gathered at a nearby courtyard. Look at their mass numbers! |
 A close-up shot of an umineko |
 Entrance to the Kabushima Shrine |
 Information map on nature sightseeing spots around Same Station |
 Another information map showing the location of Kabushima |
 Poster introducing the heritage and significance of Kabushima |
 Beautiful flowers surrounding Same Station |
 Same Station |
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