Protecting the Water Beetle! - Shingo Sano, Kannonzaki Nature Museum

Hello, I'm Fumika Mabuchi.

This time, we'd like to introduce Shingo Sano, a curator at the Kannonzaki Nature Museum located within the Kanagawa Prefectural Kannonzaki Park in Yokosuka.

Actually, he's my cousin's husband.
That said, I've never actually met them, but I've seen them both on a social media site they used to run, and they both love nature, the sea, animals, and photography.

From a young age, Ms. Sano loved insects and other living creatures, and in her kindergarten graduation essay, she already wrote, "I want to become an expert on insects and dinosaurs."
When she was in the second grade of elementary school, she learned at the Kanagawa Prefectural Museum of Natural History that the diving beetle and the giant water bug were extinct species in Kanagawa Prefecture. This sparked her curiosity, and she began searching for them, which led to her developing an interest in aquatic insects and creatures living near water.

In her elementary school graduation essay, she wrote about her aspirations, which would later become the cornerstone of her current activities: "I love insects and catching them makes me happiest, so in the future, I want to work in a field that involves conservation activities or research for the purpose of preserving living creatures, so that there will be enough insects in the world that they won't decrease no matter how many I catch."

After that, I studied under Professor Tadashi Kitano of Tokai University, who was researching diving beetles, and spent six years immersed in the study of diving beetles. After graduation, I went on to work as a part-time lecturer, advisor, and lecturer at the prefectural museum.
However, feeling that I still lacked many qualities to pursue the career I wrote about in my elementary school graduation essay—a career involving conservation activities and research for the purpose of preserving living creatures—I decided to enroll in the doctoral program at the Graduate School of Environmental Information Sciences at Tokyo City University.

And now, I am working as a museum curator, a profession that was one of my goals.

So far, Mr. Sano has been immersed in insects and living creatures, but is there anything he enjoys doing outside of work? When asked, he replied...

"I have a long-term dream: I want to collect diving beetles from all over the world! And I also want to research the Asian genus of diving beetles!"

That was the answer I received.
I couldn't help but think, "Wait, isn't that your job?", but the person themselves said, "Even I don't know where the line is between my hobby and my work..."

When asked, "Is there anything you like besides living things?",
"I love physical activity, and I was in the track and field club in junior high school. Now, I play soccer, boxing, and sports chanbara with junior high school students who volunteer at the museum in the museum garden. When I get home, I do some light strength training and running, but in the summer there are so many temptations from insects that I end up going into the forest to catch bugs while I'm running."
And so, in the end, the conversation turned to living creatures.

"Also, I like drinking parties. It's not so much that I like alcohol, but rather that I like the atmosphere of drinking and having fun with everyone."

It finally appeared at the very end!!
I had watched several videos on the museum's YouTube channel, which Mr. Sano is in charge of, before hearing this story, so I was very convinced by his answer.
I mean, while watching the video, I thought that Sano must be very good at charming people, and that he must be very good at getting the people around him involved and making them his allies.

At the Kannonzaki Nature Museum, where Ms. Sano works, various events are held throughout the year.
Kannonzaki Nature Museum Official Website

There are participatory events held both inside and outside the facility, as well as events and exhibitions that do not require registration, so please feel free to check them out.

If you'd like to go but it's too far, or if you're just a little curious, check out their social media accounts, as they're very active there.
What's amazing about the Kannonzaki Nature Museum's social media presence is that the content posted on each platform is different.

I think it's quite common for posts like this to be copied and pasted, but the themes are completely different depending on the platform.
Moreover, it's updated frequently.
This is amazing.
Kannonzaki Nature Museum Facebook

My personal favorite is Instagram.
The first image in each post is consistent, making it feel like I'm looking at an illustrated encyclopedia or a collection of specimens, which really appealed to my collector's instinct.
Kannonzaki Nature Museum Official Instagram

Additionally, on the YouTube channel, Mr. Sano takes the lead in organizing insect collecting with children, documenting their ecological surveys of various creatures, and sharing information useful for our daily lives and children's education.
Kannonzaki Nature Museum Official YouTube

What's more, they even have a sub-channel.
Wow. The level of fulfillment is incredible.
Subchannel

In addition, they also have a blog, Twitter, and TikTok.
The Kannonzaki Nature Museum is truly amazing!
blog
Twitter
TikTok

By the way, Ms. Sano also has a personal blog and Instagram account.
This one is also updated quite frequently.
Sano Shingo is truly formidable!
Sano's blog
Sano's Instagram

Whether you already knew about it or not, you'll definitely want to keep an eye on what the Kannonzaki Nature Museum does in the future!

<Kannonzaki Nature Museum>
Opening hours: 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Last entry at 4:30 PM)
Closed on: Mondays (or the following day if Monday is a public holiday), New Year holidays. *Open every day in July and August.
Admission fee: Adults (16 years and older) 500 yen, elementary and junior high school students 300 yen, toddlers (4 years and older) 100 yen
For inquiries: TEL 046-841-1533
https://kannonzaki-nature-museum.jimdofree.com/