冬の終わりの出来事で特に印象に残ったのが、このモモンガでした。
立ち枯れしたキハダに空いた大きめの樹洞。すぐ上にも反対側にも穴だらけで、よく風も通り少し寒そうな巣穴ですが、このモモンガは今の所一人で暮らしているようです。孤独に戦うモモンガは元々ここに居たのか、それとも？
この写真を撮る数週間前、このキハダがある防風林でシマエナガの撮影をゲストとしていた時、たまに見かけていたエゾリスが現れました。
エゾリスはゆっくりと近づき、通りすぎるかと思いきや、ますます近づき…威嚇までしてきます。あれ？と思ったのでお客さんに少し離れましょうと言い距離を取ると、安心したように木の幹をするする登り、入ったのが例のキハダの樹洞。
おお〜そこは君のねぐらだったか！とお客さんと一緒にエゾリスの顔出しを撮影して、すっかり穴に入ったのを確認してから、その場を後にしました。
後日、前回とは違うゲストと同じ防風林でシマエナガを撮影していた時、エゾリスのことが頭の隅にあったので、そういえばと視線をやると、キハダの樹洞からなぜかモモンガがこちらを見ていました。その時の写真が一番上のモモンガです。
なんだあれ？と呆気に取られているときに、やって来たのが例のエゾリス。どうやら近づくエゾリスの気配でモモンガは顔を出したようです。
これは、すごいことになった！どうなるんだ？とお客さんと一緒に固唾を飲んで見守っていると・・・
One of the most memorable moments at the end of winter was encountering this flying squirrel.
It had made its home in a large tree cavity in a standing dead Japanese cork tree. The hollow was full of holes, both above and on the opposite side, letting in the wind and making it seem like a rather chilly nest.
Still, this flying squirrel appears to be living there alone—for now.
Was it always here, bravely facing the cold in solitude? Or did it come from somewhere else?
A few weeks before I took this photo, I was guiding a guest on a shoot for long-tailed tits in the windbreak forest where this Japanese cork tree stands.
That’s when an Ezo squirrel, which I’d occasionally seen in the area, appeared.
It approached us slowly at first, and I thought it would just pass by—but instead, it came even closer… and then started acting defensively, almost as if it were warning us.
Surprised, I suggested to my guest that we back away a little. As soon as we did, the squirrel seemed to relax and quickly climbed up the tree trunk—right into that very same hollow in the cork tree.
Ah, so that’s your den!
We managed to photograph its little face peeking out, and after watching it disappear completely into the hole, we quietly left the spot.
Some days later, I was back in the same windbreak forest, this time with a different guest, once again photographing long-tailed tits.
The Ezo squirrel was still on my mind, so at one point I glanced toward the cork tree, just out of curiosity—
And to my surprise, peeking out from the hollow wasn’t the squirrel… but a flying squirrel, staring right back at us.
That’s the very moment captured in the first photo above.
As I stood there, stunned and thinking, “What on earth…?”, guess who showed up—it was that same Ezo squirrel.
It seemed the flying squirrel had sensed its approach and popped its head out in response.
At that moment, my guest and I realized we were witnessing something incredible.
What’s going to happen?
We held our breath and watched intently…
エゾリスは巣穴から顔を出すモモンガに少し驚いた様子でしたが、躊躇せずに手を突っ込みます！モモンガも負けじと小さな手で威嚇？
一瞬エゾリスの体でモモンガが見えなくなったかと思うと、エゾリスの全身の毛がビクッと逆だち勝負がつきました。
The Ezo squirrel looked a bit startled to see the flying squirrel’s face peeking out from the nest, but without hesitation, it reached its paw right in!
The flying squirrel didn’t back down either—raising its tiny paws as if to defend itself.
For a brief moment, the flying squirrel disappeared behind the Ezo squirrel’s body…
Then suddenly, all the fur on the Ezo squirrel stood on end with a sharp jolt—
and just like that, the standoff was over.
エゾリスは地面まで一気に降りて、駆け足で逃げていきました。時間にして数十秒の出来事とまさかモモンガが勝つとは思っていなかったので、写真が撮れず、お客さんが撮影したデータをいただきました。（Iさん、ありがとうざいます！）
エゾリスが覆い被さった時に何があったのかは分かりませんが、おそらくモモンガが噛みついたのだと思います。自分の何倍も体が大きい相手によくやるなぁという想いと、エゾモモンガの意外な一面を見て嬉しくなった日でした。
それにしても、この巣穴はそもそも一体誰のものなのでしょう？
最初に見た時は間違いなくモモンガは不在でエゾリスが自分のものにしていました。その時、モモンガがたまたま不在でエゾリスが奪ったのか、エゾリスの巣穴を後から来たモモンガが奪ったのか？
それからさらに数日後、チェックしに行ってみると・・・。そこには誇らしげに？顔を出してこちらを見つめるモモンガがいました。
エゾリスの気配は無く、その後も姿を見ることもなく。
この巣穴が誰のものだったのかは分かりませんが、いずれにせよ勝者はエゾモモンガのようです。
The Ezo squirrel darted straight down to the ground and ran off in a hurry.
The whole encounter lasted only a few dozen seconds, and I hadn’t expected the flying squirrel to actually win—so I missed the shot.
Thankfully, my guest managed to capture the moment and kindly shared the photos with me. (Thank you, I-san!)
I’m not sure what exactly happened when the Ezo squirrel loomed over the entrance, but my guess is that the flying squirrel bit it.
It was amazing to see such a tiny creature stand its ground against an opponent many times its size.
That day, I was both surprised and delighted to witness this unexpected, fierce side of the Ezo flying squirrel.
Still, it leaves me wondering—
Whose nest was it in the first place?
The first time I saw it, the flying squirrel was definitely nowhere to be found, and the Ezo squirrel seemed to have claimed it as its own.
Was the flying squirrel simply away that day and lost its home to the squirrel?
Or had it taken over the Ezo squirrel’s nest later on?
A few days later, I went back to check on the tree—
And there it was: the flying squirrel, proudly (or so it seemed) peeking out and staring right at me.
There was no sign of the Ezo squirrel, and I haven’t seen it since.
In the end, I still don’t know whose nest it originally was.
But one thing’s for sure—the winner appears to be the Ezo flying squirrel.
3月は恋の季節。気温が上がるとエゾモモンガは冬の集団生活をやめて分散します。繁殖のために日中に行動したり、安定が崩れていく時期でもあります。しっかり定刻に観察、撮影できていた2月と違いガイドの毎日はアドリブとぶっつけ本番。だからこそチームの連携が強みになるのを感じたのも今シーズンの3月。そしてエゾリスvsモモンガのシーンに幸運にも出会えたのも3月です。
変化と不安定は予測のつかないことを生み出して、おそらく一生に一度のチャンスに出会えたりするのが面白いところ。朝はますます早いのですが、真冬と違い暖かくて手袋が要らなかったり良いこともあります。
March is the season of love.
As temperatures rise, Ezo flying squirrels end their winter group living and begin to disperse.
They may become active during the day for mating, and it’s a time when the usual stability of their habits starts to break down.
Unlike February, when we could observe and photograph them almost like clockwork, March is full of improvisation and spontaneity for guides like us.
That’s also why I truly felt the strength of teamwork this March—we had to adapt on the fly, and we did it together.
And of course, it was also in March that we were lucky enough to witness that unforgettable encounter between the Ezo squirrel and the flying squirrel.
Change and unpredictability bring surprises—
and sometimes, that’s exactly what leads to once-in-a-lifetime moments.
The mornings keep getting earlier, but unlike the dead of winter, it’s warm enough now that I don’t even need gloves.
There are some perks to the shifting season, too.
交尾が終わるとモモンガのペアはまた定刻に戻ります。安定を取り戻し、巣穴から出る時間も前日と数分の違いに。
まだまだフワフワの見た目ですが、ゆっくりと夏毛に変わり、いよいよ子育てです。
フィールドスコープでは通年でエゾモモンガや野鳥、そのほかの野生動物のガイドをしています。
エゾモモンガやキタキツネの子育て、シマエナガの雛の巣立ちなど、これからのグリーンシーズンも見どころがたくさんあるでしょう。
5月、6月はすでにフライフィッシングの予約で埋まりつつありますが、まだ僅かに空きもあります。ぜひ撮影の方も、リクエストやガイドのご相談をお待ちしております。お問い合わせはコンタクトフォームから、またはインスタのDMでも可能です。
Once mating is over, the flying squirrel pairs return to their regular routines.
Stability comes back, and their emergence from the nest varies by only a few minutes each day.
They still look fluffy for now, but little by little, their summer coats begin to come in—
and soon, it will be time for parenting.
At Fieldscope, we offer year-round guided tours to observe Ezo flying squirrels, wild birds, and other wildlife.
As we head into the green season, there will be plenty of highlights to look forward to—
like Ezo flying squirrels and red foxes raising their young, and the fledging of long-tailed tit chicks.
May and June are already filling up with fly fishing reservations, but there are still a few open slots available.
We’re also happy to take requests or discuss guided tours for photography—please don’t hesitate to reach out.
You can contact us via the contact form or send us a message on Instagram.