The Mikado Pheasant Becomes a Mascot as "Jia Yilang" Debuts to Welcome Taiwan Lantern Festival

The mascot "Jia Yilang," transformed from the county bird Mikado Pheasant, made its first public appearance today (25th). (Photo by Lü Yanting)

Next month, the 2018 Taiwan Lantern Festival will kick off in Chiayi County. Today (25th), the festival’s mascot "Jia Yilang," derived from the county bird Mikado Pheasant, made its early public debut. The mascot theme song "Light and Shadow 235" was also launched. To celebrate the birth of the county’s mascot and the upcoming grand Taiwan Lantern Festival, the county government specially invited the Tourism Bureau’s Taiwan promotional ambassador "Oh Bear," as well as the popular guest from Chiba Prefecture, Japan—"Chiba-kun"—to join County Magistrate Chang Hua-kuan, Speaker Chang Ming-da, and "crack open the shell" to welcome "Jia Yilang." Together, they sang and danced to the theme song, symbolizing Chiayi’s takeoff.

At the morning press conference, "Jia Yilang" hatched from its shell, representing new hope and light. Chang Hua-kuan said that the Mikado Pheasant, listed as a rare and precious endemic species in Taiwan, has been chosen as the county bird of Chiayi. Today, the Mikado Pheasant comes down from the mountains to the plains, signifying that Chiayi County, having undergone a transformation, is ready to embrace a new beginning. Its birth coincides with the county's 10-year lantern festival event, marking a double celebration.

The mascot "Jia Yilang" has a name that sounds like "diligent and hardworking Chiayi people." The concept of "one" promotes happiness first and quality first—visions that Chiayi County hopes to achieve together. It also shoulders the mission of making Chiayi County the cultural tourism ambassador of "235 Fall in Love with Me." Its nickname "Gai Yi Ge" represents being lovable and pleasing to all who see it.

The Chiayi Lantern Festival pioneers the "land, sea, and air" tri-sphere art light zone. From flat to three-dimensional, from ground level to water and sky, it breaks away from previous years’ flat-form lantern festival formats. Through dynamic light and shadow changes, it provides visual impact to visitors. In line with the Year of the Dog, the main lantern "Loyalty and Righteousness Innate" features the smiling face of an indigenous child and a loyal Taiwanese dog standing atop the sea of clouds on Alishan, symbolizing looking back at the past, standing firm in the present, and gazing into the future. The county sincerely invites domestic and international tourists to visit Chiayi.