Photo/Illutration Ryosuke Ogawa, a high school student hawker, works with a Harris’s hawk on the roof of a building in Numata, Gunma Prefecture, on Nov. 20. (Cho Tsuin)

NUMATA, Gunma Prefecture--A father and son who share a fascination with hawks are aspiring to take the family business--eradicating pests--to new heights.

Shinichi Ogawa, 48, runs a service to discourage birds from encroaching and leaving droppings at buildings and other sites by releasing a hawk to circle overhead.

His son Ryosuke, who has been helping out since October, plans to improve his hawking skills away from home after graduating from high school, in the hope of joining his dad full-time.

On a day in late November, Ryosuke arrived at a job site after school and changed into his work uniform, saying enthusiastically: "Let's get started! I'm busy and have responsibilities, but this work is fulfilling."

The third-year Oze High School student had taken a 40-minute bus ride to the seven-story Terrace Numata building that houses the Numata city office and various restaurants.

Taking over his father's work for the day, Ryosuke released a Harris's hawk named Luke from the rooftop.

The presence of hawk, a natural predator, keeps the pigeons at bay.

Terrace Numata had been plagued by pigeon droppings since it opened in May. Pigeons tend to gravitate toward open ceilings and handrails, and floors in the building have been covered with the bird feces.

The city office set up protective nets covering about 1,300 square meters and using wires, but was unable to solve the problem.

Eventually, city officials learned about Ryosuke and asked the Ogawa family to help out.

Since this autumn, a hawk has regularly patrolled the skies above the building and pigeon droppings have decreased as a result.

Ryosuke, one of a few high school student hawkers in Japan, loves birds and has aspired to become a hawker since seeing one on TV when he was a sixth-grader in elementary school.

He encountered a Harris's hawk and met an instructor at a specialized raptor shop in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture. He has since been taking training sessions there and had won three years in a row in the Harris's hawk section of Flight Festa, one of the biggest raptor competitions in Japan.

Influenced by his son, Shinichi started rearing another hawk.

"I was envious of the trusting relationship that my son and the hawk were building," he said.

The Ogawa family set up a home for hawks at their house in Shinto village. They train the birds to feel safe by walking around the area with one resting on the left arm.

The business opportunity was born out of problems faced by neighbors, with bird droppings being left on cow enclosures and other areas.

When the Ogawas released a hawk, other birds dived for cover.

Before getting into the hawker business in 2017, Shinichi got into the construction and nursing care business so he could stand on his own two feet. The economic slump caused him to change his jobs repeatedly.

"I can pour great energy into a job that I love," he said, referring to hawking.

His business clients, mainly local companies, range from large commercial facilities in the Tokyo metropolitan area and leading automakers to factories and warehouses of transportation firms.

With the number of contracts doubling compared with last year, the Ogawas now have six hawks.

Ryosuke plans to train under a teacher in Ushiku after graduation.

“I am very happy to work with hawks,” he said. “I want to learn more about raptors.”

Shinichi said he looks forward to working with his son again, adding with a loving smile, "After training, if he still wishes (to work with me as a hawker), I'll give it some thought."