Tasaku Kitahara

Oceanographer and fisheries scientist. Engineer at the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce and engineer at the Fisheries Training School. After graduating from the Department of Zoology at Tokyo Imperial University, he joined the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, resigned briefly, but returned to work and engaged in fisheries and marine surveys as an engineer at the Fisheries Training School. In collaboration with seaweed scientist Kintaro Okamura, he launched the famous "Basic Fisheries Survey" in 1909 (Meiji 42). This was a groundbreaking project in which various government agencies and institutions related to fisheries cooperated to conduct organized, large-scale fisheries and marine surveys. He achieved many research results, including the discovery of "Kitahara's Law" regarding the relationship between tides, tidal boundaries, and fish species and fishing conditions. He also invented many marine measuring instruments, such as the Kitahara-type mid-layer water sampler, Kitahara-type mud sampler, and Kitahara-type quantitative plankton net, and was an outstanding pioneer in Japan's fisheries administration, fisheries research, and marine measuring instrument development. His main work, "Marine Research: Night Talks in Gyoson" (1921), is known as a masterpiece.

[Masao Hanzawa]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

海洋学者、水産学者。農商務省技師兼水産講習所技師。東京帝国大学動物学科選科を卒業して農商務省に入り、一時辞職したが復職し、水産講習所技師を兼ねて水産海洋調査に従事した。海藻学者の岡村金太郎と協力して1909年（明治42）有名な「漁業基本調査」を発足させた。これは、水産関係の官庁諸機関が協力し、組織的かつ大規模な水産海洋調査を行うもので画期的な事業であった。潮目(しおめ)、潮境(しおざかい)と魚種漁況との関係についての「北原の法則」の発見など研究面での成果も多い。また北原式中層採水器、北原式採泥器、北原式定量プランクトン・ネットなど海洋測器の考案も多く、日本の水産行政、水産学研究、海洋測器開発の優れた先駆者。主著の『海洋研究　漁村夜話』（1921）は名著として知られる。

［半澤正男］

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例