Reintroducing Wolves: A New Hope for Japanese Ecosystems

Japan Forward

30-05-2025

During a recent visit to the Hokkaido University Botanical Garden in Sapporo, I found myself standing before two haunting figures: the taxidermied remains of the now-extinct Ezo and Honshu wolves. Preserved behind glass, their forms felt frozen in time, ghosts of a lost species that once ruled the forests of Japan. Their absence, however, is anything but silent.
In recent decades, deer, wild boar, and even bears have surged in numbers across Japan. They have disrupted ecosystems and damaged crops, edging ever closer to human settlements.
It's within this context that the Japan Wolf Association (JWA) proposes an audacious solution: Bring back the wolves. A taxidermied Japanese wolf (courtesy of the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences / Faculty of Agriculture).
The JWA was founded in 1993 by Associate Professor Naoki Maruyama, who was then teaching at Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology. According to Kunihiko Otsuki, a current director at the Association, the idea was born after Maruyama attended a conference in Poland.
"He happened to see a wolf on the grasslands," Otsuki told me. At the time, Maruyama had been researching the effects of deer overpopulation on Japan's forests. That single encounter made him realize what was missing in his work: a natural predator. He returned to Japan convinced that wolves were the key to restoring balance to the nation's ecosystems, and rallied fellow researchers to form the JWA.
"In the beginning, we were starting from zero," said Otsuki. The notion of reintroducing wolves to Japan was met with skepticism and fear. For many, wolves were still the villains of old folktales, dangerous beasts better left in the past.
Yet over the years, the Association's persistence has paid off. Between 2006 and 2016, public support for their reintroduction rose from 17.4% to 43.3%. During the same period, opposition fell from 30.2% to just 11.0%. These numbers, Otsuki believes, reflect the cumulative impact of the Association's outreach: books, symposiums, a robust online presence, and educational campaigns.
However, progress has since stalled. "Support has plateaued since 2016," Otsuki said. "The biggest barrier now is the government." Japan's Ministry of the Environment remains opposed to the idea of reintroducing wolves. Without political will, the JWA finds itself at a crossroads. "We believe we've entered a phase where political lobbying is necessary. Ultimately, we must move the national government." Tibetan wolves in the enclosure at Osaka's Tennoji Zoo (courtesy of Tennoji Zoo)
What would the return of wolves mean for Japan's environment? Otsuki laid it out in ecological terms: deer populations, particularly Sika and Ezo deer, are causing widespread damage to forests and farmland. The government has responded with increased hunting allowances, but the effects have been minimal. Wolves, as apex predators, could offer a more sustainable solution by naturally regulating deer and boar numbers.
"By restoring the food chain's natural order, wolves would allow vegetation to recover," said Otsuki. This, in turn, would support the return of birds and small mammals, halt soil erosion, and slowly revive entire ecosystems. "Ultimately, we see this contributing to the recovery of healthy forest systems and the mountain–river–sea continuum."
So, where would reintroduction be viable? According to the Association, mountainous regions across Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu are all technically suitable. Wolves, with a natural fear of humans, could be imported from overseas, and would likely avoid populated areas, said Otsuki. Potential sites include Shiretoko, the Daisetsuzan range, the Japanese Alps, the Kii Peninsula, the Chugoku Mountains, and Mt Aso.
Each of these areas has sufficient prey and land area to support multiple packs — roughly 100 to 300 square kilometers per territory. Even in national parks with tourist traffic or rural communities, human activity wouldn't necessarily pose a significant obstacle.
"If Japan's intensive livestock model is maintained, wolf attacks on farm animals would likely be rare," Otsuki explained. Still, he acknowledged the need for systems to mitigate risk: "Subsidies for livestock protection and compensation schemes must be in place to reassure farmers."
Moreover, geography isn't the only factor. "Local government consent and political decisions will greatly influence which sites are selected," he said. "That's why we can't name a concrete location ourselves at this stage."
Public fear remains a formidable challenge. "The biggest misconception is fear — what we call 'Little Red Riding Hood syndrome,'" said Otsuki. People also conflate wolf reintroduction with the introduction of invasive species, or worry that wolves will disrupt ecosystems rather than restore them.
To change minds, the JWA has used every tool at its disposal, including books, lectures, exhibitions, art, and social media. One notable publication, The Maligned Predator: Rethinking Wolves in Japanese History ( Ookami Enzai no Nihonshi in Japanese, Impress Books), directly rebuts the idea that wolves were historically dangerous to humans. A taxidermied specimen of the Japanese wolf (courtesy of the National Museum of Nature and Science).
The Association also shares accident statistics, research from Europe and North America, and even produces children's stories with wolves as protagonists. "We share voices from communities already coexisting with wolves," said Otsuki.
Could Japan follow in the footsteps of Yellowstone National Park or Europe? Otsuki thinks so. The reintroduction of wolves to Yellowstone in the 1990s is often cited as a success story. Wolves restored balance to the ecosystem, reducing elk overgrazing and allowing plant and animal life to flourish.
The European example is different but equally valuable. Protected under the 1979 Bern Convention, wolves in Europe have expanded naturally from neighboring countries into old habitats.
"It's not exactly reintroduction, but more like a comeback," said Otsuki. He highlighted a framework Japan could emulate: protect wolves legally, create compensation systems for damages, and permit controlled hunting once populations stabilize. "Public education, like websites explaining that wolves aren't dangerous, is also key."
Finally, I asked Otsuki what reintroduction would mean for Japan, not just ecologically, but culturally and spiritually.
"It would be a big step for biodiversity," he said. Japan is classified as a biodiversity hotspot (rich, highly threatened ecosystems) by Conservation International. "Wolves could help reverse the decline of vegetation, birds, insects, soil life — even reduce sediment buildup in rivers and dams."
Culturally, wolves once held sacred meaning in Japan. Shrines, such as Mitsumine Shrine in Saitama Prefecture, still honor them, and legends abound about wolves that protected and guided humans. "These stories show that wolves were once part of a vibrant spiritual worldview," Otsuki explained. Their return could reignite that relationship.
In a time when balance feels increasingly out of reach, the howl of a returning wolf might signal something far greater than its own survival. It could mark the first step toward restoring Japan's ecological soul.
And perhaps most profoundly, reintroducing wolves would force a reckoning with the natural world. "Seeing a wolf hunt a deer might strike some as cruel," said Otsuki, "but it reminds us of nature's laws. It helps us reflect on what life means, and what it means to live as a human in harmony with nature."
Author: Daniel Manning