A small and isolated village in Japan called Nagaro is experiencing an unforeseen population boom - but the new residents are not what you might expect.

Nagoro is now covered with human-like scarecrows, all created by Tsukimi Ayano in the 13 years since she moved back to the village where she grew up, to help care for her mother.

She originally started making them to scare animals away from her crops, but the dolls have taken on a life of their own, far outnumbering actual people in the hamlet.

They stand in houses, fields, trees, streets, and at a crowded bus stop - waiting for a bus that never comes.

Nagoro, like many villages in Japan's countryside, has been hit hard by inhabitants flocking to cities for work and leaving mostly pensioners behind.

At 65, Ayano is among the youngest residents of Nagoro.

"In this village, there are only 35 people," she said. "But there are 150 scarecrows, so it's multiple times more."

On her daily rounds, she walks around the village bidding the taciturn creations a good morning and tending to their needs.

"From here on out as well, as long as I'm healthy I plan to keep making scarecrows,” she said. “I enjoy it and I hope people can enjoy them too as I want to make them even more life-like, so that people will have to look twice and say 'Oh that wasn't a person!'"