Hello Woods Forest is right in the middle of the autumn foliage season.
The sugar content inside the leaves changes to red, which is why they appear red.
As we walk through the forest carpeted with colorful fallen leaves,
everyone is fascinated by the variously shaped nest boxes installed on trees here and there.

"I wonder what’s in there?" Every time they found a birdhouse, they got really excited.
In spring, small birds use the birdhouses to raise their young.
In autumn, curious about what might be inside,
"Let’s check out that birdhouse too!"
The children kept discovering things they wanted to try on their own,
and eagerly moved deeper into the forest.
Looking up at a certain birdhouse from below, a cute flying squirrel’s face suddenly pops out.
“Usually, they sleep during the day and wake up at night to go into the forest
to eat, but since it’s raining today for the first time in a while,
they might be watching the rain,” said the cast.
“So cute!” “I’ve never seen one before!!”
Excitement filled the air from encountering such a rare creature.

As you walk through the forest, you’ll see logs lined up in various places.
Mushrooms grow on logs that have been left in the forest for a long time,
larvae that eat the mushrooms gather, and insects eat the wood.
Between the logs, small creatures can hide or live,
making the logs an important habitat for living things.
Managing the forest so that many creatures can be born and live there
is also an important role of Hello Woods.
Not only logs but fallen leaves are the same.

If you gather a lot of fallen leaves, at the end of summer,
mother rhinoceros beetles come to lay their eggs.
The rhinoceros beetle larvae that hatch from there
eat the fallen leaves, grow bigger, and produce droppings.
The soil mixed with those droppings is full of nutrients!
"In the old days, people used the soil created by having rhinoceros beetle larvae and earthworms eat the fallen leaves collected from the mountains, as well as the fermented leaf mold, as compost for rice paddies and fields.
Fallen leaves, logs, and rhinoceros beetles each have important roles in the forest."
Everyone was interested in this story!

Today's final destination: the Aquatic Biology Laboratory.
Here, research is being conducted to increase the population of aquatic insects that have become scarce.
When it gets cold, giant water bugs overwinter under fallen leaves or in the water.
The overwintering cases at the research institute have not only fallen leaves but also
water areas,
which is said to help prevent the fallen leaf areas from drying out.
Living things cannot survive without moisture. Just like humans!

Giant water bugs and diving beetles, which usually live in rice paddies and the surrounding waterways,
are declining in number because pesticides are used to eliminate creatures considered pests,
which causes water pollution and reduces their food supply,
leading to a decrease in their population.

Not only that, even if the environment is suitable, the newly hatched giant water bug nymphs have a tendency to cannibalize each other,
so they don’t increase rapidly all at once
we all were surprised to hear this from the doctor!

"How can we create a healthy environment for both the rice fields and the giant water bugs?
How can we make that happen?
It's a homework assignment for you who will create the future." The children, told this by the doctor, nodded firmly with a big "Yes!".

While walking through the forest, when looking toward the mountains, clouds were billowing up between the trees.
The rain that fell evaporates from the ground, rises, and becomes clouds!
At the end, we heard an important story from the forest guide,
that protecting nature and learning about the environment isn’t something difficult,
but something you can do while having lots and lots of fun,
and everyone nodded in agreement as they listened carefully,
and that concluded this press event.

This time, the three main areas are the "Hacchoutonbo Rice Terraces"
the "Animal Research Laboratory (Mammals) (Aquatic Life)"
and the "Life Plaza".
Together with forest producer Ryuichiro Sakino,
we spent an hour and a half touring the forest,
learning about protecting the forest, the many creatures living there,
and coexistence, among other things related to forest life.

At first, Sakino speaks at the entrance of the forest.
"Animals need places to hide in order to live," he says.
There are several trees felled in Hello Woods leaning against each other.
Many creatures are born from there,
and at the same time, it serves as a place to quickly hide when enemies come
and to rest both body and mind.
"It's the same for people. There's no shame in hiding. Because we have a place where we can feel at ease and relax,
we can stay healthy every day," he said.
I see, forest creation also leads to awareness about people.

Now, we head briskly down through the forest toward the "Hatchoutonbo Rice Terraces."
These rice paddies are not for rice cultivation, but rather aimed at conserving the creatures, including rare species, that gather there.

The T-shaped poles seen between the paddies were erected based on old documents,
so that goshawks, gray-faced buzzards, and owls can perch on them.

"Because the hawks came, the sparrows disappeared,
and many creatures gathered through the food chain.
That's why a rice field that requires no pesticides at all was realized," everyone admired this explanation!
The people of old skillfully coexisted with living creatures,
protecting the rice.

Next was the Tower of Life. Everyone was fascinated by the mushrooms growing on the surface of the wood,
the internal state, and the story of the tower’s role and the ecosystem of the creatures living there.

Since it completely decays after four years,
this tower is rebuilt many times.
Circulating the blessings of nature is difficult,
but it feels like a very beautiful process.
In the vast forest, encounters with creatures rarely seen,
learning about the roles of living things and the forest,
and a fun interview session filled with many questions and surprises.