Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #51: Unique Nara Deer Park
The theme from Amy this week for Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #51 is: Unique. I want to post our unique experience in Japan.
Our family went to Kyoto, Japan in January 2019. While in Kyoto, we visited Nara Park.
Nara Park is a public deer park located at the foot of Mount Wakakusa. Established in 1880, it is one of the oldest parks in Japan. The park, including the adjunct temples and gardens, is as large as 1,600 acres.
Nara Park
Kasugataisha Shrine
Evergreen Botanical Garden
The wild sika deer are designated as natural treasures. They are freely roaming around the park.
Visitors can purchase “deer-crackers” to feed them.
Well, this deer wanted to taste the ice cream
The number of deer grew to around 1,200 in 2008 and created concerns about environmental and crop damage.
During fiscal 2016, 121 people were injured by deer. In 2016 the area around Nara was designated into four different zones, with the outer zones allowing deer to be captured and killed. The culling started in 2017, with a limit of 120 deer to be culled during 2017.
As of July 2017, there were around 1,500 deer living in the park, and at least 164 people had been injured by them in fiscal 2017-2018. Most of them were tourists feeding the deer.
In April 2018 Nara city set up new signs in English, Chinese and Japanese informing tourists that the deer are wild animals and to not tease them during feeding.
I took the following video when a deer bowed to ask for food from visitors.
Lens-Artists Photo Challenge #51: Unique Nara Deer Park
The Showers of Blessings 
I have read about this place. So sweet.
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We have our own deer park here….it is not a surprise people are harmed in the interactions. A grand post, Miriam.
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Thank you, Michael. Is there a deer park in New York? I don’t have to go to Japan to see the deer then.
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Wild deer around our home are a natural disaster. We have fences to protect our gardens.
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Very unique!
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Thank you, John!
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What a friendly neighborhood for Deers 😀 Lovely photos
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Thank you so much, Adebisi, for reading. Yes, I’m glad we got to visit and see so many deer. 🙂
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Hi, Miriam! You got some great pictures at Nara Park! The video was nice too. 🥰
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Hi Vashti, I want to thank you for giving me the idea of visiting Nara. It turned out to be something we totally enjoyed. ❤
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It’s my pleasure, Miriam. I’m happy you enjoyed the park. 😀 ❤
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My granddaughter loved it, kept calling the deer puppy. ❤ 🙂
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Now that IS unique Miriam!!
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Thank you, Tina. Yes, we hadn’t seen so many deer!!
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Such a unique park with so many deer around. Beautiful photos, Miriam！I didn’t know tourists got injured by feeding them. Love this post! 🙂
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My brother in Hong Kong went to Japan often. He warned me before we went. Deer would poke into backpacks and bite anything hanging strings. The ones we saw were gentle though just because we don’t “tease” them. 🙂
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They look so gentle and cute. Who would know they coul poke into backpacks… ? 🙂
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Yes, I think it’s natural for animals to search for food. 🙂
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Such a cool place, to wander around with the deer. Love the little video of the bowing deer! 🙂
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Thank you, Barbara! We had such a great time and my granddaughter loved the deer. 🙂
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Beautiful pictures, Miriam. I always enjoy your pictures of your family.
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Thank you, Robbie. We had such a wonderful time there in Kyoto!!
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This looks like a lovely day out for the family, Miriam.
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Yes, it was, Norah. I had never seen so many deer. Autumn had a great time. She called them “puppy.”
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So cute! 🙂
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Thank you, Norah. 🙂
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This is awesome 👍 and what a great park, too good.
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Yes, we had a great time. Thank you for reading! 🙂
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Welcome Miriam.
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❤ 🙂
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