Gull Hatching Season Begins in Aomori Prefecture; Fluffy Chicks Vulnerable to Predators

The Yomiuri Shimbun

14:33 JST, May 17, 2025

A black-tailed gull chick nestles beside its parent in the Kabushima district of Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, on Friday. With the arrival of the hatching season, fluffy newborn chicks have been spotted chirping in nests all over Kabushima — the nation’s largest breeding ground for the species. The first chick of this year was confirmed to have hatched Wednesday, about a week later than last year, according to a local protection monitoring center for the birds. “When chicks are born, predators also come near,” said a monitoring member. “We want to continue our monitoring activities so that the parent birds can raise their chicks safely.” Peering into a nest, a woman from Yokohama said, “The parent bird looks a bit scary, but the chicks are so cute.”