Eastern Honshu Research Articles

Phylogeographic analysis of the Japanese wild boar (<I>Sus scrofa leucomystax</I>)

The Japanese wild boar (Sus scrofa leucomystax) is an indigenous subspecies of the wild boar, which is distributed in Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu, and other smaller islands of Japan. The distribution area of the Japanese wild boar has in the last 40 years expanded by 1.9-fold due to improved suitable survival conditions, such as global warming which has decreased snowfall, increased abandoned farmland, and decreased hunting pressure. As a result, the negative impacts of this population increase on humans continue to spread. In this study, 1,251 Japanese wild boars were sampled from 32 prefectures which nearly cover the entire expanded distribution area in Japan, and phylogeographical analysis was performed using 30 Measurement of Domestic Animal Diversity recommended microsatellite markers. Both neighbor-joining (NJ) phylogenetic trees constructed using Nei's DA genetic distance matrix and population genetic structure analysis classified Japanese wild boar into six phylogeographical subpopulations, including northern Honshu, eastern Honshu, central Honshu, western Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. The six identified genetic subpopulations were speculated to form as a result of several factors, including human activity between the northern and eastern Honshu, occurrence of three mountain ranges of 3,000-meter height between the eastern and central Honshu, the inland sea between western Honshu and Shikoku, and the presence of strait between western Honshu and Kyushu. Interestingly, some individual wild boars from Gunma, Tochigi, and Miyazaki areas formed distinct and separate subpopulations, with animals within these subgroups exhibiting traits such as low genetic differentiation and high diversity, which likely suggested gene influx from domestic pigs or other sources.

Satellite Tracking of Migration Routes of the Eastern Buzzard (Buteo japonicus) in Japan through Sakhalin.

We satellite-tracked the eastern buzzard (Buteo japonicus) wintering in Japan to delineate both northward and southward migration routes, destinations, and stopover behavior. Twenty-two buzzards were captured and fitted with functional platform transmitter terminals. For these buzzards that departed from the capture sites, we observed a total of 65 northward migrations during 2008-2016 and a total of 55 southward migrations during 2008-2015. In spring, the eastern buzzards migrated eastward along the Seto Inland Sea in the Chugoku region or further inland. In eastern Honshu, they followed two different routes. One was to Hokkaido via the Tsugaru Peninsula from central or northern central Honshu northward along the side of the Sea of Japan in northern Honshu. The other was to Hokkaido via the Shimokita Peninsula, mainly from the Pacific Ocean side of northern Honshu, moving eastward through central Honshu. Of the 17 birds tracked, 10 summered in Sakhalin, three in Hokkaido, three in northern Honshu, and one unknown. In autumn, the buzzards retraced their northward migration routes. Of the 14 birds that were tracked the entire southward migration, 13 (92%) returned to their respective capture sites. One juvenile wintered in an area different from the capture site. Our study contributes to a deeper understanding of the distribution of breeding and wintering grounds and the migration routes of B. japonicus. In addition, the information on migration obtained in this study can contribute toward appropriate environmental impact assessment for wind power facilities in Japan.

Brachylaima phaedusae n. sp. (Trematoda: Brachylaimidae) from door snails in Japan.

The metacercarial infections of door snails (Gastropoda: Clausiliidae) with unknown species of the genus Brachylaima (Trematoda: Brachylaimidae) have recently been reported in eastern Honshu and Kyushu, Japan. A large scale snail survey was carried out to clarify their taxonomic status. From the period of 2015 to 2020, a total of 1239 land snails (768 door snails and 471 others) were collected from 32 localities in Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. The resulting trematode isolates were identified as Brachylaima sp. by mitochondrial DNA barcoding. The sporocysts were found only a few from Megalophaedusa sublunellata (Clausiliidae), Tauphaedusa subaculus (Clausiliidae), and Aegista trochula (Camaenidae), while the metacercariae were frequently detected from 14 species of Clausiliidae and 2 species of other families. Although Brachylaima sp. showed a broad range of intermediate hosts, door snails seem to be very important to drive the life cycle. The gravid adults of Brachylaima sp. was experimentally raised from metacercariae using immunosuppressed mice. Morphological, phylogenetical, and ecological considerations prompted us to propose Brachylaima phaedusae n. sp. for this unknown species. The definitive hosts of the new species are completely unknown. The wide geographic distribution and high genetic diversity of the new species suggest a possibility that the definitive host is ground-foraging birds, which prefer door snails.

Electron temperature and ion density perturbations prior to the M6.8 Eastern Honshu, Japan earthquake of July 23, 2008

Electron temperature and ion density perturbations prior to the M6.8 Eastern Honshu, Japan earthquake of July 23, 2008

Topographic Amplification of Crustal Subsidence by the Rainwater Load of the 2019 Typhoon Hagibis in Japan

AbstractThe super typhoon Hagibis traveled northeastward through eastern Honshu, Japan, causing disastrous heavy rainfalls along its path on October 11 and 12, 2019. We performed a comprehensive space geodetic study of water brought by this typhoon using a dense network of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) receivers in Japan. First, we studied the time evolution of altitude‐corrected precipitable water vapor field and compare the movement of water vapor centroid with the rain distribution from radar rain gauge analyzed precipitation. The total amount of water vapor derived by spatially integrating precipitable water vapor on land remained steady at ∼20 Gt. The total precipitation by this typhoon was ∼92, and ∼33 Gt of it fell onto the land area of eastern Honshu. Next, we studied crustal subsidence caused by the typhoon rainwater as surface load. The GNSS stations located under the typhoon path temporarily subsided 1–2 cm on the landfall day and the subsidence mostly recovered on the next day. Using the vertical crustal movement data, we estimated the distribution of surface water in eastern Honshu assuming the layered spherical earth. The amount of the surface load on October 12 was ∼71 Gt, which significantly exceeds the cumulative rainfall on land. We consider that the excess subsidence largely originates from the selective deployment of GNSS stations in the concave topography, for example, along valleys and within basins, in the mountainous Japanese Islands.

Near-surface softening and healing in eastern Honshu associated with the 2011 magnitude-9 Tohoku-Oki Earthquake

The near-surface part of the crust, also called the skin of the earth, is the arena of human activity of which the stiffness is of great concern to engineers in infrastructure construction. The stiffness reduction of near-surface geomaterials also plays a vital role in geohazards triggering. However, the physical mechanism behind the material softening is still not fully understood. Here, we report a coseismic shear-wave velocity reduction in the near surface by up to a few tens of percent during the strongest shaking from the 11 March 2011 Tohoku-Oki Earthquake and a subsequent two-stage healing process including a rapid recovery within a few minutes and a slow recovery over many years. We also present a theoretical contact model between mineral grains in geomaterials containing multiple metastable contacts at small separations due to the oscillatory hydration interaction, which can explain the emergence of different stages in the healing process.

宮城県で確認されたドジョウ（クレードA）（コイ目ドジョウ科） 雄個体の遺伝的・形態的特徴

宮城県で確認されたドジョウ（クレードA）（コイ目ドジョウ科） 雄個体の遺伝的・形態的特徴

Origins of Nonnative Populations of Bufo japonicus formosus (Amphibia: Bufonidae) in Hokkaido, Japan, as Inferred by a Molecular Approach

The Eastern-Japanese common toad, Bufo japonicus formosus, is distributed from southern Hokkaido to Kinki district of northeastern Honshu, Japan. However, Hokkaido populations are suspected to be nonnative and derived from relatively recent artificial introduction from Honshu. To clarify the origin of Hokkaido populations, we analyzed sequence variations of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene in the toads from Hokkaido and compared the sequence data from previous studies. We obtained ten haplotypes from six sites on Hokkaido. Samples from the sites located along Ishikari river system, Asahikawa, Ebetsu, and Ishikari cities, had six haplotypes. Only one haplotype was obtained in Sapporo city and it was genetically far from Ishikari river's ones. Hakodate and Muroran cities samples had one and two haplotypes, respectively. All ten haplotypes from Hokkaido were genetically identical or close to haplotype data from Kanto district or Shizuoka Prefecture, mid-eastern Honshu, far from Hokkaido. Therefore, the toad populations of Hokkaido were considered to be nonnative and multiple introductions from eastern Honshu to Hokkaido were implied.

A multigene molecular phylogeny of Eisenia reveals evidence for a new species, Eisenia nipponica (Laminariales), from Japan

ABSTRACTRecently, synonymizing Eisenia with Ecklonia was suggested based on a molecular phylogeny using the rbcL gene and ITS1–5.8S rDNA sequences. However, in a multigene molecular phylogeny based on mitochondrial cox1, cox3 genes and the atp8–16S rDNA region, as well as the plastid atpB, psaA, psbA and rbcL genes, Ecklonia spp. formed a monophyletic clade supported by high statistical values, and Eisenia spp. showed monophyly depending on analytical methods. The Japanese Eisenia species that used to be identified as Eisenia arborea (E. arborea sensu Arasaki) was shown to be genetically distant from E. arborea from the NE Pacific and E. bicyclis from Japan. Eisenia spp. were morphologically distinct in having a split meristematic zone in the mature thallus forming a dorsi-ventral blade with false branches. Therefore, we propose reinstatement of Eisenia as an independent genus and describe a new species, Eisenia nipponica (= E. arborea sensu Arasaki) from Japan. E. nipponica is distributed on the Pacific Coast of central Honshu, having a separate geographic range from E. bicyclis, which is distributed on the Pacific coast of eastern Honshu and the Sea of Japan coast of north-western Honshu and northern Kyushu.

Epidemiological Survey of Babesia divergens Asia Lineage in Wild Sika Deer (Cervus nippon) by Using Direct PCR in Japan.

Babesia divergens is the major causal agent of zoonotic human babesiosis across Europe. Previously, we reported the detection of a B. divergens Asia lineage in wild sika deer (Cervus nippon) in Japan which was genetically closely related to the European B. divergens. To further elucidate its etiology, we conducted a large epidemiological survey by combining lineage-specific PCR system and blood direct PCR. The infection rate of the Asia lineage was 6.6% (116/1,747) throughout Japan, where Hokkaido (45%), Nagano (17%), Iwate (12%), Gunma (11%), and Yamanashi (11%) were highly enzootic (> 10%) among the 30 prefectures examined. European B. divergens was not detected. A geographical information system (GIS) map revealed dense populations of PCR-positive deer in the mountains including the Japanese Alps in eastern Honshu, and Hokkaido. These areas markedly overlapped with the major habitats of Ixodes persulcatus, a principal tick vector responsible for the transmission of the Asia lineage. Other areas in southern Japan including Miyazaki, Kagoshima, and Shimane Prefectures, where positive sika deer were sporadically detected, may be habitats for other tick species involved in the enzootic cycle as I. persulcatus were scarce. The rise in human babesiosis cases is occasionally attributed to healthy blood donors who were unaware of tick bites and Babesia infection. Therefore, there is an urgent need to investigate whether infections in humans have occurred in Japan.

Differences in C-band patterns between the Japanese house mice (Mus musculus) in Hokkaido and eastern Honshu

Differences in C-band patterns between the Japanese house mice (Mus musculus) in Hokkaido and eastern Honshu

Physatocheila nigrintegerrima sp. nov. from Japan: a first fruit-feeder of the genus (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Tingidae).

A new species of the lace bug genus Physatocheila Fieber, 1844 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Tingidae), is described from eastern Honshu, Japan under the name of P. nigrintegerrima. A photograph of a living individual is also given. This species is found on the fruits of Hovenia dulcis Thunb. (Rhamnaceae) and is the first documented fruit-feeder of the genus. A key to the species of the genus from Japan is provided.

Two new species of Pseudogobio pike gudgeon (Cypriniformes: Cyprinidae: Gobioninae) from Japan, and redescription of P. esocinus (Temminck and Schlegel 1846)

Two new species of pike gudgeon, Pseudogobio agathonectris from western Honshu, Japan, and P. polysticta from eastern Honshu, Japan, are described, and P. esocinus (Temminck and Schlegel 1846) is redescribed. The two new species were previously considered to be P. esocinus, which had been only a nominal species of the genus from Japan. The two species are distinguishable from P. esocinus by following a combination of characters: tip of pectoral spiny soft ray not reaching that of 6th soft fin ray, and tip of outer edge of pectoral fin strongly curved posteriorly; long barbel (15.3–36.9% of HL in P. agathonectris, 16.9–34.8% in P. polysticta, respectively), with the tip commonly extending beyond vertical through anterior edge of eye; 10–14 (modally 13) and 12–14 (13) pectoral soft fin rays; long mouth (33.2–45.3% of HL and 29.6–42.0%); short length between anus and anal fin origin (16.5–21.4% of SL and 15.9–22.4%), with 11–14 (12) and 11–16 (12) scales; and small body size (at most 150 mm SL). Pseudogobio agathonectris is distinguishable from P. polysticta by the canonical discriminant functions based on five meristic and 25 morphometric characters, and distinct dark blotches and obscure black spots on dorsal and lateral body (vs. obscure blotches and many distinct spots).

Phylogeographic study on a cryptic dojo loach species (Misgurnus sp. Type I) in Japan

Event Abstract Back to Event Phylogeographic study on a cryptic dojo loach species (Misgurnus sp. Type I) in Japan Ryuya Okada1*, Keigo Morita1, Taichiro Toyama2, Hiroshi Onozato3, Keisuke Takata4 and Tadao Kitagawa1 1 Faculty of Agriculture, Kindai University, Japan 2 Other, Japan 3 Other, Japan 4 Faculty of Science, Shinshu University, Japan Recent genetic study revealed that the Japanese population of the dojo loach (Cypriniformes: Cobitidae: Misgurnus anguillicaudatus species complex) included a cryptic species distributed in discontinuous restricted areas in certain parts of north-eastern Japan (Misgurnus sp. Type I, hereafter called as Type I loach), and a common dojo loach species widely distributed throughout the Japanese Archipelago (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus, hereafter called as Type II loach). Type I loach is considered a relic species of the ancestral dojo loach type and its phylogeographic information can provide crucial perspective on the formation of Japanese archipelago and its fauna. However, its original distribution range is ambiguous due to the recent artificially created species and existence of hybrid populations involving Type II loach. In this study, we conducted comprehensive sample collection throughout the possible species’ range. Furthermore, we performed genetic analysis using the cytochrome b (cyt b) gene sequence of mtDNA to reveal the phylogeographic pattern of Type I loach. Mitochondrial haplotypes originating from Type I loach were detected from 34 populations from an eastern part of Honshu Island and Hokkaido Island. In the phylogenetic tree, the haplotypes of the Type I loach formed two major clades, namely consisting of haplotypes from populations in eastern Honshu’s Pacific slope and those from other areas (averaged sequence divergence was about 9 %). This intimated long-term isolation of the populations between the regions. Furthermore, the eastern Pacific Honshu clade consisted of three subclades, corresponding well with their geographic proximity. Similarly, the other clade consisted of three subclades; however, two subclades were haplotype admixtures detected from geographically distant areas. Since some haplotypes were commonly detected ranging from northern Honshu to Hokkaido even across the major faunal boundary line between the Honshu and Hokkaido Island (Brakiston Line), we found that the current distribution patterns are strongly affected by artificial introductions. No significant geographical genetic structures in Hokkaido Island populations were observed, suggesting that their origin was artificial. The hybrid origin populations’ distribution pattern corresponded with the areas related to artificial introductions. Conclusively, artificial disturbances within natural distribution are likely contributors of hybrid population formation. Keywords: mitochondrial DNA, Relic, Native population, Introduced population, hybridization, Hokkaido Conference: XVI European Congress of Ichthyology, Lausanne, Switzerland, 2 Sep - 6 Sep, 2019. Presentation Type: Poster Topic: TAXONOMY, PHYLOGENY AND ZOOGEOGRAPHY Citation: Okada R, Morita K, Toyama T, Onozato H, Takata K and Kitagawa T (2019). Phylogeographic study on a cryptic dojo loach species (Misgurnus sp. Type I) in Japan. Front. Mar. Sci. Conference Abstract: XVI European Congress of Ichthyology. doi: 10.3389/conf.fmars.2019.07.00118 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 12 May 2019; Published Online: 14 Aug 2019. * Correspondence: Dr. Ryuya Okada, Faculty of Agriculture, Kindai University, Nara, Japan, cop1008bz@yahoo.co.jp Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Ryuya Okada Keigo Morita Taichiro Toyama Hiroshi Onozato Keisuke Takata Tadao Kitagawa Google Ryuya Okada Keigo Morita Taichiro Toyama Hiroshi Onozato Keisuke Takata Tadao Kitagawa Google Scholar Ryuya Okada Keigo Morita Taichiro Toyama Hiroshi Onozato Keisuke Takata Tadao Kitagawa PubMed Ryuya Okada Keigo Morita Taichiro Toyama Hiroshi Onozato Keisuke Takata Tadao Kitagawa Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.

Phylogeography of the Japanese White-Toothed Shrew (Eulipotyphla: Soricidae): A Clear Division of Haplogroups between Eastern and Western Japan and their Recent Introduction to Some Regions

The Japanese white-toothed shrew (Crocidura dsinezumi) is a species endemic to Japan. For this species, only minimal phylogeographic investigations have been conducted. We obtained DNA sequences of mitochondrial cytochrome b and control region and nuclear ApoB genes for 191 individuals of C. dsinezumi from 107 locations collected throughout its known range. In the phylogenetic trees based on mitochondrial DNA sequences, two haplogroups (Eastern and Western Clades) were recognized, and the demarcation line between them was located in central Honshu without an overlapping area. The estimated divergence time between the two major clades indicated that they could have diverged prior to the final geologic division of Hondo and the Asian Continent (100–150 KYA). For the ApoB gene, Types A, G, and R (heterozygote) were recognized although there was a single site mutation. Type A mainly occurs in eastern and central Japan and Types G and R in central and western Japan. It was suggested in the present study that some shrews in Hokkaido were introduced recently from eastern Honshu (possibly the Tohoku Region) whereas others might have been distributed there naturally, and that population in Jeju (South Korea) was introduced recently from Kyushu.

Asymmetric hybridization and introgression between sibling species of the pufferfish Takifugu that have undergone explosive speciation

Pufferfishes belonging to the genus Takifugu are a prominent example of recent adaptive radiations of marine fishes. Using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) markers, the genetic characteristics of natural hybrids between two sibling species, Takifugu snyderi and Takifugu stictonotus, were investigated to gain insights into the role of hybridization in rapid diversification. Numerous early generations of hybrids (131 F1 hybrids and 18 first-generation backcrosses) were screened by Bayesian assignment procedures from samples collected at three sites off the Pacific coast of eastern Honshu, Japan (Ibaraki: 36°21′N, 140°37′E; Fukushima: 37°03′N, 141°03′E; Iwate: 40°02′N, 141°59′E), during 2012–2014. Analysis of mtDNA indicated that hybridization is highly directional, as the majority of the F1 hybrids (75.6%) were offspring between T. stictonotus females and T. snyderi males. Among the 18 backcrosses, 17 were toward T. snyderi and one was toward T. stictonotus. Two of 118 individuals classified as genetically pure T. snyderi based on AFLP markers were affected by mtDNA introgression from T. stictonotus. These results suggest that interspecific gene flow has been highly asymmetrical toward T. snyderi, which may partly explain the marked difference in intraspecific genetic diversity between the two species. The proportion of F1 hybrids in the Ibaraki and Fukushima areas is exceptionally high compared with that of other marine fishes, indicating the need for continuous monitoring of hybridization and its impact on integrity of each parental species under the changing marine environment.

Pollution of radiocesium and radiosilver in wharf roach (Ligia sp.) by the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant accident

Radionuclide concentrations in wharf roaches inhabiting coastal areas of Honshu, Japan, were investigated in October 2011 and June 2012. Relative high concentrations of 110mAg (2.1–127 Bq kg-wet−1), 134Cs (2.6–61 Bq kg-wet−1), and 137Cs (3.5–92 Bq kg-wet−1) were detected in specimens from the eastern Honshu areas. Significantly lower 137Cs concentrations (0.7–1.6 Bq kg-wet−1) were detected in specimens from western and northern Honshu. The decay-corrected 137Cs concentration was significantly inversely correlated with the distance from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant. Thus, wharf roach may serve as a good bioindicator for monitoring radioactive contamination of its habitats.

Multi-scale monitoring of landscape change after the 2011 tsunami

Abstract. The Great East Japan Earthquake (magnitude 9.0; occurred on 11th March 2011) and subsequent huge tsunami caused widespread damage along the Pacific Ocean coast of eastern Honshu, Japan. This research utilizes multi-resolution remote sensing images to clarify the impact on landscapes caused by this disaster, and also to monitor the subsequent survival and recovery process in the Sendai Bay region. The coastal landscape in the target area features a narrow strip of coastal sand barrier, historically stabilized by planted pine groves; backed by a low-lying plain that has traditionally been diked and converted to irrigated rice paddies. Farmsteads on the flat alluvial plain are surrounded by groves called “Igune”, consisting primarily of conifers. MODIS data (250 m resolution) were employed to map the overall extent of inundation and damage on the regional landscape scale. The major damage caused by the tsunami, destruction of coastal pine forests and inundation or rice paddies on the plain, was identified at this level. Progressively finer scale analysis were then implemented using SPOT/HRG-2 (10 m resolution) data; GeoEye-1 fine resolution data (0.5 m) and very fine resolution aerial photographs (10 cm) and LiDAR. These results demonstrated the minute details of the damage and recovery process. Some patches of pine forest, for example, were seen to have survived, and some coastal plant communities were already recovering only a year after the disaster. Continuous monitoring using field work and remote sensing is required for balanced regional strategies that provide for economic and social recovery and as well as restoration of vegetation, biodiversity and vital ecosystem services.

Two new Salamanders of the genus Onychodactylus from Eastern Honshu, Japan (Amphibia, Caudata, Hynobiidae).

We describe two new species of hynobiid salamanders in the genus Onychodactylus from eastern Honshu, Japan, based on the morphological and genetic evidence. Onychodactylus intermedius sp. nov. is distributed in southern part of Tohoku District and northern Ibaraki and Niigata Prefectures, and was previously reported as S-Tohoku group. Onychodactylus intermedius belongs to the O. japonicus species complex, and differs from the other congeners in having relatively long tail, narrow head, short snout, 18 presacral vertebrae, and distinctly curved vomerine tooth series without gap. Onychodactylus fuscus sp. nov. is known from only four localities in Fukushima and Niigata Prefectures of Tohoku and Hokuriku Districts. It also belongs to the O. japonicus complex, but lacks the dorsal stripe, which is a diagnostic character of the species complex. In other characteristics, O. fuscus differs from the other congeners in having comparatively long tail, wide head and internarial space, shallowly curved vomerine tooth series with gap, and relatively few vomerine teeth. Both species described here breed in winter. Phylogenetically, the two new species are closely related to each other, forming a well-supported clade with O. tsukubaensis as their sister species. Onychodactylus intermedius sp. nov. is known to be parapatric with O. japonicus and O. nipponoborealis without hybridization, whereas O. fuscus sp. nov. is sympatric with O. japonicus at least in a single known locality, and analysis of microsatellite loci indicates they are reproductively isolated.

War and State Building in Medieval Japan (review)

Reviewed by: War and State Building in Medieval Japan Suzanne Gay (bio) War and State Building in Medieval Japan. Edited by John A. Ferejohn and Frances McCall Rosenbluth. Stanford University Press, Stanford, 2010. xi, 180 pages. $60.00, cloth; $20.95, paper; $20.95, E-book. From this book’s title, one expects an account of Japan’s two medieval shogunates and their systems of vassalage, with emphasis on conflict as the main vehicle of political change. Instead, the book offers a fresh rationale for Japan’s transformation from medieval to early modern times, utilizing comparative historical and political theories of European origin. An introduction and postscript contain the editors’ provocative if one-dimensional explanation for successful political and territorial consolidation in late sixteenth-century Japan. Between are six essays by historians of Japan who address “the choices made by lords and peasants throughout the medieval period and across different parts of Japan” (p. 11). These vary in the degree [End Page 124] to which they apply the editors’ theoretical framework, but each is illuminating in its own way. John Ferejohn and Frances Rosenbluth first posit a theme of resistance, citing four groups that opposed political incorporation in medieval times: mountain dwellers, pirates plaguing coastal commerce, the “political arm of Buddhism” repelling the government’s encroaching territorial and jurisdictional authority, and the outer daimyō of Kyushu, Shikoku, and remote eastern Honshu who were finally defeated in 1600 at Sekigahara. In their geographical isolation and effective fighting techniques, the first group is likened to Swiss farmers who resisted domination by outside lords. Members of the second group are characterized as resisters preying on commercial ships rather than successful merchant mariner–sea lords in their own right, the more recent scholarly interpretation. At any rate, pirates do not figure again in the volume. The third group included any militarized element within Buddhism, from traditional monasteries like Enryakuji and Negoroji to the grass-roots Lotus and Ikkō leagues. The final of the four groups comprised the domainal lords on the losing side in the Battle of Sekigahara. In this chronologically capacious fashion, the editors identify resistant elements in medieval Japan. Ferejohn and Rosenbluth further contend that, as in Europe, the emergence of the modern territorial state—e.g., the Tokugawa settlement—came about because “once widespread destruction reached an intolerable threshold, ordinary people were willing to pay for large armies” (p. 11), resulting eventually in territorial consolidation. Thus, farmers are assigned agency in a major political transformation, even as the editors acknowledge that farmers’ bargaining leverage varied considerably over time and place. The first and sixth essays, by Karl Friday and Thomas Conlan respectively, focus on the warrior class and do not explicitly amplify the themes laid out in the introduction. Friday depicts the origins of the samurai as emerging from the imperial court in ancient times. He reminds us of the great power of the center to control and reshape the countryside, even as real power gradually shifted to locals. A clear explanation of the complex political and military reality of ancient Japan, this essay should be especially helpful to Europeanists either drawing parallels or positing contrasts. Conlan, examining late medieval warfare, plays down the significance of material technology such as firearms and instead emphasizes organizational technology—the ability to mobilize, train, and supply armies—as crucial to the eventual political consolidation of Japan. His analysis of data on wounds reveals that from theLnin War (1467–77) on, warriors served regularly in established bands as successful provincial governors extended their territorial rule. This is organizational technology harnessed for war, the building and maintaining of a regular fighting force. Conlan’s essay is focused on [End Page 125] aspects of making war from the top, but he does remind us that farmers were providing the necessary revenues, supplies, and manpower. Essays by Susumu Ike and Tsuguharu Inaba are in close harmony with the editors’ farmer-centric perspective. Describing the great range of relationships between lords and retainers in medieval times, Ike characterizes life for ordinary rural people even before 1467 as “chaos,” rhetorically laying the groundwork for a “frustrated farmer” argument. From Masakado’s tenth-century rebellion through Hideyoshi’s unification attempts, he...