Ichikawa Zoological & Botanical Garden — otters, pandas and plants

How Ichikawa compares to larger zoological facilities

Ichikawa Zoological & Botanical Garden (市川市動植物園) is the municipal zoo and plant collection for Ichikawa City in Chiba Prefecture; it opened on 21 August 1987. Rather than presenting only large-scale exhibits, the site is organised around a declared theme of close contact with animals and combines a zoological collection with an ornamental botanical garden and a rose garden. The entrance area includes a rest house and a natural-history museum with animal specimens, and a miniature railway runs inside the grounds. The garden also displays animals given as goodwill gifts from exchange and sister cities, and it manages a mix of small-mammal, monkey, livestock and bird facilities alongside greenhouse plant collections.

Several exhibits and facilities name wider institutions as sources of animals: a number of animals in the second red-panda house were transferred from other parks such as Tama Zoological Park and Tohoku Safari Park. That combination—intimate, hands-on zones together with a greenhouse-focused botanical program—defines what Ichikawa offers in contrast to larger metropolitan zoos.

Animal highlights

The garden keeps a range of species across small-mammal, monkey and aviary zones. Two exchanged-animal programs are singled out in the collection: Sichuan red pandas were donated in 1986 from Leshan City in Sichuan Province, and Sumatran orangutans were donated in 1992 from Medan City in North Sumatra. The orangutan group has produced offspring: a first child (male) was born in 2003, a second child named Lily (female) in 2010, and a third child (female) in 2018.

A central feature of the site is the saruyama (monkey hill) that houses Japanese macaques; the grounds also include a livestock zone with cattle, horses and donkeys. The collection extends to lemurs, squirrel monkeys and other small primates, and small carnivores such as tanuki and fennec fox are kept in the small-mammal and monkey zone. A walk-through “flying cage” exceeds 1,000 square metres and keeps nearly 40 birds, including stork species, flamingos, ibis and waterfowl. Nearby, emus are kept in a bamboo grove.

Otters, petting areas and small mammals

Interaction is literal in the park’s petting zone, Nakayoshi Hiroba, where visitors may touch guinea pigs at any time during opening hours; rabbits, chickens, and mini pigs are also listed among animals available for hands-on contact. The small-animal house contains species such as tanuki, a fennec, and small-clawed otters.

The small-clawed otter exhibit received notable attention in summer 2013 when the otter house introduced a pipe-based play apparatus known as “nagashi-kawauso”. The park has continued to pair small-mammal displays and interactive spaces with more conventional enclosures so that the visitor experience ranges from up-close contact to observation of more reclusive species.

Botanical collections and greenhouses

The botanical side of the garden is anchored by two main greenhouses. A large tropical greenhouse centres on the symbol tree Tabibito-no-ki (traveller’s palm) and cultivates tropical species such as coffee trees and jade vine; it also displays fruiting tropical plants including pineapple, banana and papaya. A second greenhouse focuses on cacti and succulents—air plants and a wide variety of cactus forms are shown there. In total the garden presents about 350 plant species across its collections.

The botanical garden sits at the midpoint of Omachi Park, a larger green area of roughly 150 hectares that preserves valley and slope-forest landscape. Entering the plant complex, visitors pass through a courtyard and on to a small pond where turtles and small fish live. The cactus house leads through to the large greenhouse; the latter includes a dedicated corner for carnivorous plants.

Facilities, accessibility and transport

Facilities at the garden include a rest house and a natural-history museum at the entrance; the museum and the management building’s third-floor lobby display animal specimens and aquaria with turtle and fish species suitable for aquarium keeping. A pair of cockatiels is kept next to the zoo management office window. Visitors will also find a restaurant and a shop on site; a mini-railway and play equipment occupy the mini-rail area.

Accessibility features are explicit: the garden has a first-aid facility, wheelchair-accessible ramps and toilets with handrails. The grounds are described as barrier-free and suitable for independent wheelchair use.

Transport options given from the site are specific.

• From JR East Musashino Line: Ichikawa-Ono Station — about a 40-minute walk; alternatively take the Ichikawa City community bus (B route) bound for the Health/Medical Welfare Center, change at that terminal to the A route bound for Matsuhidai Station, and alight at the Dobutsu Shokubutsuen stop.
• By Keisei Bus (Chiba West service): routes that run via the municipal cemetery to the Ichikawa bus depot stop at Ono-machi 4-chome (get off, then roughly a 10-minute walk) or at Komagata (get off, then roughly a 10-minute walk). Keisei Bus also runs an outbound service that terminates at the garden on weekends and public holidays.
• From JR East and Toei: Motoyawata Station and Keisei Main Line Keisei-Yawata Station — take Keisei Bus Chiba West services that stop at Ono-machi 4-chome or Komagata (each about a 10-minute walk), or the weekend/holiday bus that terminates at the garden.
• From Hokuso Railway Matsuhidai Station: take the Ichikawa City community bus (A route) bound for Ono Central Hospital and alight at Dobutsu Shokubutsuen.
• From Hokuso Railway Omachi Station: about a 20-minute walk to the garden, with the route passing the Natural Observation Garden and the Rose Garden; Keisei Bus services that stop at Komagata are an alternative (about a 10-minute walk from there).
• By car: approach via the Shuto Expressway Route 7 (Komatsugawa Line) or the Keiyo Road, using the Ichikawa or Baraki interchanges and proceeding toward National Route 14. Private parking is available.

Around the garden are linked outdoor facilities such as the Omachi Natural Observation Garden and a rose garden, and additional recreational sites noted in the park area.

FAQ

When did Ichikawa Zoological & Botanical Garden open?

It opened on 21 August 1987.

Which animals were donated by exchange or sister cities?

Sichuan red pandas were donated in 1986 from Leshan City and Sumatran orangutans were donated in 1992 from Medan City in North Sumatra.

What otter exhibit drew attention in 2013?

In summer 2013 the small-clawed otter house displayed a pipe-based play apparatus called "nagashi-kawauso."

Is the garden accessible for wheelchair users?

The garden provides a first-aid facility, wheelchair-accessible slopes and toilets with handrails and is described as barrier-free for independent wheelchair use.