Selfie sticks are being banned by a growing number of museums, theme parks and other places due to worries those taking so-called selfies will bump into people or things around them.

The Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium began banning selfie sticks in May. An aquarium official said that before the ban selfie stick users were frequently seen almost bumping into other people. The aquarium also has displays in which people look down on tanks from above, so it was worried about the sticks or smartphones falling in.

The Tokyo Opera City Art Gallery decided to ban selfie sticks during its "Takahashi Collection Mirror Neuron" exhibition from April to June. The gallery initially allowed some exhibits to be photographed, but some visitors nearly bumped into the artworks as they tried to take pictures of themselves alongside using selfie sticks.

Tokyo Disneyland is among many venues that ban selfie sticks. No major accidents due to the sticks have been reported, so the rules appear to be preventive.

Asahiyama Zoo in Asahikawa, Hokkaido, has not banned the sticks, but said if visitors try to poke them into cages to photograph animals, they will be warned verbally. A zoo official said a ban would be considered if selfie sticks appeared to be stressing the animals out.

bbabo.Net