[O-02] Natural disasters and people -Listen to the voice of the Earth on the Japanese Geoparks-

[O02-P20] Conservation concerns in Yuzawa Geopark: Distributions and seasonal variation in blood-sucking flies and an invasive plant species

*Haruki Takayanagi¹ (1.Yuzawa City Geopark Promotion Council)

Keywords:blood-sucking flies, conservation, invasive species

Yuzawa Geopark, located in Yuzawa City, Akita, Japan, is subject to two conservation issues that are common to many urban greenspaces: pest species are of concern for sustainable tourism, and invasive species threaten the integrity of the satoyama landscape. The first step in the management of both of these species groups is to clarify their distribution and seasonal variation. Here, we focused on blood-sucking flies (Hirosia spp.) in tourism hotspots, and on the invasive Rudbeckia laciniata in areas where it has colonized the satoyama landscape. Using dry ice traps, we found that blood-sucking flies were most abundant in early August, and that Hirosia iyoensis and Hirosia sapporoensis may have mutually exclusive spatial distributions. Visual surveys for R. laciniata confirmed that these plants occupy orchards, mined areas, and areas around silos at high densities, and have a patchy distribution in downstream areas. Appropriate mitigative measures are presented and discussed based on these results.