Netsuke 'Nue' (Legendary Monster) 「鵺」😱

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What do you think this netsuke depicts? This is a boxwood netsuke titled "Nue," carved by Meishu Kawahara. 

Nue originally referred to—and still means—the scaly thrush, a bird about 30 cm long known for the male's loud, far-carrying mechanical whistle. These days, however, the term is better known as a legendary monster with the head of a monkey, the legs of a tiger, the body of a dog, and the tail of a snake, which is said to cry like a nue.

Pale Grass Blue (Pseudozizeeria Maha) 大和小灰蝶（ヤマトシジミ）

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A male pale grass blue butterfly (Pseudozizeeria maha) looks completely different depending on whether its wings are open (1st photo) or closed (2nd photo). With its wings closed, you might overlook it as a plain, small grey-and-white butterfly with black spots. When it opens them, however, you are greeted by the striking pale blue upperside that gives the species its name. (See the 5th photo to view both sides at once.) Because butterflies bask in the sun to warm their bodies, you are more likely to catch a glimpse of that vibrant blue during cooler sunny days.

The pale grass blue resembles the plains cupid (Luthrodes pandava) very much, except the latter has orange spots on its wings. I once mistook a plains cupid for a pale grass blue.

2025/11/2

Skunkvine (Paederia Foetida) 屁糞葛（ヘクソカズラ）

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Skunkvine (Paederia foetida) is native to Asia and can be found across Japan. Because it is notoriously smelly, its Japanese name is hekusokazura, which translates to 'fart-dung vine.' The plant is so resilient that an imperial court official during the Nara period (710–794) wrote a waka poem comparing his own tenacity to the plant. The poem appears in the Manyōshū, the oldest extant collection of Japanese waka poetry.

Despite its terrible name and smell, the flower's glossy red center always reminds me of jam thumbprint cookies.

2026/8/14

Netsuke 'Frog and Ants' 「蛙と蟻」

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In Prince Takamado's netsuke collection at the Tokyo National Museum is this 10cm-tall netsuke, titled Frog and Ants. The frog desperately but cutely escaping from the ants first caught my eye, but what surprised me most was that the carver is the American David Carlin.

Netsuke 'Beginning and End' 「阿吽」

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In the Prince Takamado Collection at the Tokyo National Museum, this 10 cm-long netsuke titled Beginning and End by Kihō Takagi features a salmon roe sushi on its left half—symbolizing life's beginning—and a spent, dying salmon on the right, representing its end.

Netsuke 'Halloween' 「ハロウィン」

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In Prince Takamado's netsuke collection at the Tokyo National Museum, there is a 3-cm-tall piece titled 'Halloween,' carved from a macadamia nut and amber by Toun Shishido. It made me think about Japanese religion. Do they follow Buddhism, Shinto, Christianity, Islam, or something else—or are they mostly atheist?

Stink Bug (Plinachtus Bicoloripes) キバラヘリカメムシ（黄腹縁亀虫）

英語の後に日本語が続きます。

It's supposed to be stinky, but it’s beautiful, isn't it? This is Plinachtus bicoloripes, a species of stink bug native to Asia. You can often find them across Japan on the leaves and fruits of the staff-vine family. This one is hanging out on the fruits of a Hamilton's spindletree (Euonymus hamiltonianus). Fun fact: Plinachtus bicoloripes is actually known to be 'stink-free'—apparently, it smells like green apples or fresh grass! Maybe I should sniff one someday! 😆

2026/10/21

Joro Spider (Trichonephila Clavata) ジョロウグモ（女郎蜘蛛）

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Joro spiders (Trichonephila clavata) are native to Asia and can be found across Japan. As is often the case with spiders, the females are much larger. While a female's body length ranges from 17mm to 30mm, a male's is only 6mm to 10mm. This means the two spiders in the post are both female.

Fennel ウイキョウ

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I've eaten and used this herbal plant many times, but I never realized it had such beautiful flowers. Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare) is native to the Mediterranean region and southern Europe, and it arrived in Japan during the Heian period (794 to 1185) through China.

Elizabeth Better Watch Her Back.... ご注意あれ、エリザベス！（仮定法現在の練習も兼ねてます）

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'If you had a gun and two bullets and saw a king cobra and Elizabeth right in front of you, who or which would you shoot first?'

Bamboo-Leaf Oak (Quercus Myrsinifolia) シラカシ（白樫）

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The bamboo-leaf oak (Quercus myrsinifolia) is native to eastern Asia and can be found across Japan. The tree produces flowers from April to May, followed by its fruits: acorns. What I find most enjoyable is observing their growth. They are tiny and pale green at first, getting chubbier while turning matcha green, and then brown toward autumn. These baby acorns still have styles, which are part of the pistils.

2026/10/16