The use of seismically isolated buildings by urban wildlife in Japan.

Some wildlife species that have expanded their range into urban areas use various anthropogenic structures for breeding and resting. We investigated the use of seismically isolated buildings, with gaps between the structures and ground surface, by urban wildlife in Japan. Camera traps set in a building revealed that masked palm civets (Paguma larvata) continued to use the building for approximately 3 years. Civet feces and footprints were found in two buildings during field sign surveys. To ensure public health, civets should be prevented from invading seismically isolated buildings by covering gaps with elastic materials and avoiding placing pipes that could be used by the animals near these gaps.

Habitat Selection and Activity Patterns of Japanese Serows and Sika Deer with Currently Sympatric Distributions.

The Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) and sika deer (Cervus nippon) in Japan are usually allopatric. However, a recent expansion in the distribution range of sika deer, combined with an increase in abundance, has resulted in an overlap of the distribution ranges of the two species. We examined the habitat selection and activity patterns of Japanese serows and sika deer using camera traps placed at 83 sites within a 210 km2 study area, where the distribution range of these two species has recently overlapped. Although both species were photographed throughout the study area, we observed a low spatial overlap between them. The Japanese serows selected steep slopes, and the sika deer selected areas far away from human settlements. In addition, the Japanese serows and sika deer exhibited temporal partitioning with diurnal and crepuscular activity patterns, respectively. The observed partitioning could be explained by differences in their species-specific habitat selections, rather than competition, because the photographic capture rate of the Japanese serows was not affected by that of the sika deer and vice versa. These partitioning behaviors are likely to reduce the rate of encounters between the two ungulates, which enables their coexistence considering the sika deer density remains low.

Methods of evaluating the spermatogenic ability of male raccoons (Procyon lotor).

Feral raccoons (Procyon lotor) have been growing in number in Japan, and they are becoming a problematic invasive species. Consequently, they are commonly captured and killed in pest control programs. For effective population control of feral raccoons, it is necessary to understand their reproductive physiology and ecology. Although the reproductive traits of female raccoons are well known, those of the males are not well understood because specialized knowledge and facilities are required to study them. In this study, we first used a simple evaluation method to assess spermatogenesis and presence of spermatozoa in the tail of the epididymis of feral male raccoons by histologically examining the testis and epididymis. We then evaluated the possibility of using 7 variables-body weight, body length, body mass index, testicular weight, epididymal weight, testicular size and gonadosomatic index (GSI)-to estimate spermatogenesis and presence of spermatozoa in the tail of the epididymis. GSI and body weight were chosen as criteria for spermatogenesis, and GSI was chosen as the criterion for presence of spermatozoa in the tail of the epididymis. Because GSI is calculated from body weight and testicular weight, this model should be able to be used to estimate the reproductive state of male raccoons regardless of season and age when just these two parameters are known. In this study, GSI was demonstrated to be an index of reproductive state in male raccoons. To our knowledge, this is the first report of such a use for GSI in a member of the Carnivora.

A training system of orientation and mobility for blind people using acoustic virtual reality.

A new auditory orientation training system was developed for blind people using acoustic virtual reality (VR) based on a head-related transfer function (HRTF) simulation. The present training system can reproduce a virtual training environment for orientation and mobility (O&M) instruction, and the trainee can walk through the virtual training environment safely by listening to sounds such as vehicles, stores, ambient noise, etc., three-dimensionally through headphones. The system can reproduce not only sound sources but also sound reflection and insulation, so that the trainee can learn both sound location and obstacle perception skills. The virtual training environment is described in extensible markup language (XML), and the O&M instructor can edit it easily according to the training curriculum. Evaluation experiments were conducted to test the efficiency of some features of the system. Thirty subjects who had not acquired O&M skills attended the experiments. The subjects were separated into three groups: a no-training group, a virtual-training group using the present system, and a real-training group in real environments. The results suggested that virtual-training can reduce "veering" more than real-training and also can reduce stress as much as real training. The subjective technical and anxiety scores also improved.