The three baby goats frolicking in their enclosure, hewn out of northern Okinawa's itajii (evergreen oak) forest, were having a great time.

Their open grassy area, set among low hills dotted here and there with tankan (orange) plantations and an abundance of hibiscus bushes, was catching the onshore breeze just above the small west-coast settlement of Yona.

Chasing each other and bouncing around like playful lambs, the cute kids had no inkling of what might be in store for them a few months down the line.