Page "Kyūdō" Paragraph 30

shafts were traditionally made of bamboo, with either eagle or hawk feathers.

Most ya shafts today are still made of bamboo ( although some archers will use shafts made of aluminum or carbon fibers ), and ya feathers are now obtained from non-endangered birds such as turkeys or swans.

The length of an arrow is the archer's yatsuka plus 6-10 centimeters.

Every ya has a gender ( male ya are called haya ; female ya, otoya ); being made from feathers from alternate sides of the bird, the haya spins clockwise upon release while the otoya spins counter-clockwise.

Kyudo archers usually shoot two ya per round, with the haya being shot first.

It is often claimed that the alternate spinning direction of the arrows would prevent two consecutive identically shot arrows from flying identically and thus colliding.