“Juratic” is a trio of dinosaurs who are tourism ambassadors for Fukui Prefecture, where lots of dinosaur remains have been excavated.

The ocean-themed mascot Hoya Boya, from Kesenuma City, wears a scallop belt, a sharkskin cloak, and a sea squirt helmet, and he uses a Pacific saury as a sword.

Oshinari-kun, a 9th Century poet with a tower on his head, is the mascot for the Oshinari Shopping Street in Tokyo.

Duolingo mascot Duo the owl at a pop-up in Shibuya, Tokyo

Santa Claus Pikachu at the Shibuya Pokemon Center in Tokyo

Mascots Sanchawan and Ga-yan from Setagaya, Tokyo, looking festive

The towering Lerch-san, mascot for Niigata Prefecture, is based on Theodor Von Lerch, an Austro-Hungarian who introduced skiing to Japan in 1911.

A hybrid of a camellia flower and a traditional daruma doll, Ofunaton is the mascot of Ofunato City, Iwate Prefecture. He denies being a pig.

Sanudon the udon noodle fairy, whose eyebrows are based on a mountain, promotes Sanuki udon from Kagawa, Japan.

Tonyu-kun the soy milk carton sings through his forehead.

Christmassy characters gathered in Asakusa, Tokyo, today.

Capicle, a pink alien in a car, is the mascot for the Tokyo Used Car Sales Association.

Pippi, the mysterious mammalian mascot of Tochigi Wanpaku Park (designed by Studio Ghibli), is looking festive.

Sphia, a kitten who wants to be a sphinx, is the mascot for Himawarikan, who sell nursing care equipment.

Soncho-san, a warm and nostalgic southern rockhopper penguin, is the mascot for Penguin Village, who promote SDGs and regional revitalization.

Rammaru, mascot for Black Rams Tokyo rugby club poses with the team’s new “cheerleading ambassadors”, Ramu and Uryufu.

Sasadangon, a popular unofficial mascot from Niigata Prefecture, is a sasa dango monster. (Sasa dango, a rice cake filled with red bean paste and wrapped in a bamboo leaf, is a sweet local treat.)

The mischievous and playful blue ogre Hatakki is one of a pair of mascots for Takahata Town, Yamagata Prefecture.

Teruru, from Tachikawa City in Tokyo, is a “teru teru bōzu” (a small traditional doll made by children and believed to bring good weather), and he is “friends with the sky”.

Hanni-chan, an egg-shaped yellow bear with big feet and thin arms, is a mascot for property rentals website Apamanshop.

The mascots of Oyama City are Fuunya, an orange-brown tabby, and his younger brother Mumunya, a grey tabby who clings to Fuunya’s head.

@mondomascots.bsky.social The police in Shunan City in Yamaguchi prefecture has a pufferfish in a police uniform as a mascot. I don't know if they have a costume for it, but I took a pic of the plushie when I got my driver license renewed

Zarigani Hakase, a professorial crayfish, and Funadon, a guileless carp, are local characters from Hanyu City.

Nyakatsugawa-kun, a traditionally-dressed cat, is the mascot of Nakatsugawa City in Japan. His head is a kurikinton, a local chestnut sweet.

Toronyan, an apprentice river-boatman cat, is the mascot for Nagatoro Town in Saitama. His hat is decorated with the town’s flowers, cherry blossoms and wintersweet, and his eyes sparkle like the flowing Arakawa River.

Toyotama, a spherical chicken with cars for feet, is the mascot for Toyota Motors in Saitama, Japan.

Tufted puffins Erika-chan and Erio-kun a Lee mascots from Japan’s Northern Territories.

Sokanyan, a cat from Soka City who loves the local Soka senbei rice crackers, was at the World Character Summit.

Akkuma, a devilish purple bear from outer space who has settled in Hokkaido, rocks out.

Kozeni-chan (left) and Furabee promote Gyoda City's yummy local delicacies, jelly fry (fried bean curd and vegetables) and Gyoda fry (a sort of savoury pancake).

Buko-san, the energetic mascot of Yokoze (a town in Saitama Prefecture), is based on Mount Buko (a nearby mountain) and a taiko drum (the symbol of the local festival). He was born on April 5, 1304, at midnight.

Shirakaba-chan is a white birch tree from the town of Sakuho in Nagano, Japan.

Potekuma and Pumeru-chan, potato-bear hybrids, are the mascots of Chichibu City.

Terumaru, a bright young lightbulb and the mascot of the Tokyu Denki electric company, trapped in a door yesterday:

Momo and Noah, who dress as owls, and Panki the panda are mascots from Hong Kong. They came to the World Character summit in Hanyu City.

Gyoda Mamekichi, a sentient green soybean, is the mascot for Gyoda City.

Myusy, a festive sea slug, is a mascot for the coastal town of Hayama, in Kanagawa Prefecture. Myusy supports beach cleanups and activities to protect the marine environment.

Fujipyon, a pink bunny whose head is shaped like Mt. Fuji, is a mascot from Fujikawaguchiko, a town in Yamanashi, Japan.

10-year-old Fu-chan and his 60-year-old grandfather, Ji-chan, are the mascots for drugstore chain Seims.

Purple-kun, an energetic purple cyclist, is the mascot for sporting goods chain Murasaki Sports.

Okebamba-kun, a laid-back horse with a golf course on his head, is the PR ambassador for Oketo Town, Hokkaido.

Assorted mascots

The World Character Summit 2025 in Hanyu City today

Izumin is the mascot for Yokohama City’s Izumi Ward. The blue head represents Izumi’s spring water; the green legs represent the lush greenery; and the purple body represents Izumi’s official flower, the iris.

Shironya is a mysterious white cat who lives in Hiroshima Castle. His ears look like gables and he has a clapboard collar.

Sweee the swallow is the mascot for Freee accounting software and has an overwhelming desire to help small businesses.

Juroku Appurisu, a silly yet reliable squirrel, is the mascot for Juroku (16) Bank’s app. He likes chestnuts, walnuts, and asset management.

Tanusuke is a tanuki (raccoon dog) and the mascot of Tokuyama chemicals. His treasure is a leaf he found in the forest of Mount Tsukuba. His dream is to make everyone happy with magic. It is said that his tail became striped after he prayed for everyone’s safety.

Mackey, the mascot of Matsubara City in Osaka, is a girl born to a pine tree fairy and a rose fairy. She has a kind and cheerful disposition, but as a rose, she also has a thorny side.

Banao, a banana-headed boy who loves bananas comes from Kirishima City, Kagoshima, where bananas are grown.