Welcome! Ecological Engineering Lab.
We are lab. of Agriculture & Rural Ecological Engineering.
Island ecology is known worldwide as a biodiversity hotspot.
Naturally, Japan is one of these islands. The number of endemic species that can be seen only in Japan surpasses those of the US or the European continent (e.g., amphibians and reptiles).
What supports the richness of the Japanese ecosystem is that what we call “the Land of Abundant Reed Plains and Rice Fields”, the rural and agricultural environment created and protected by our ancestors.
It is not a virgin-state-nature, but a fertile ecosystem created by the human hands, where the balance between human activities and the survival of plants and animals existed.
However, the post-WWII energy revolution and the declining birthrate and an aging population have exhausted rural society itself, and at the same time, biodiversity has been rapidly disappearing.
The investment in infrastructure aiming to recover the exhausted rural communities has led to a vicious cycle of further deterioration of the species habitat. As a result, the once harmonious relationship between humans and plants has turned hostile.
We will research to clarify the actual conditions of the organisms that live in rural societies and find a way to coexist with us once again.
プロフィール
NAKASHIMA Naohisa (Dr. Agr.)
Obihiro Univ. Agriculture & Veterinary Medicine
Assistant Professor
Interest: Rural Civil Engineering, Ecological Engineering
Research
Movement of frogs
Outline
We aim to reveal the movement and life history of frogs mainly living in paddies. Using the recapture method surveys its lifestyle from breeding to hibernation. We have discovered the overwintering frogs underground by using radio wave tags for the first time.
Habitat suitability and distribution modeling for a little animal
Outline
We have been developing the habitat suitability and distribution model for a little animal living in a rural area. The regulating factors of distribution are a combination of the landscape scale such as geographical feature and the micro-environment, including suitable temperature or humidity. The distribution model includes such micro-environmental or physiological factors. Additionally, Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) or Earth Observation Satellite image can improve higher resolution and accuracy than the previous model for investigating the landscape area.
Developing index of growing crops by using UAV
Outline
We have been developing the approach that UAV can investigate a degree of crop growth from a distance. The approach aims to grasp the crop condition made in a broad field in Obihiro and Tokachi in full detail within a short time.