Plants and animals of Japan

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:43

The unique location of Japan and a complex of natural and climatic factors have led to the fact that there are no fertile lands on the islands. The country has no land connection with the mainland. Due to long-term isolation, some animals in Japan have changed so much that they are classified as subspecies.

Plants of the Japanese Islands

About 60% of the area of Japan is occupied by forests. There are about 2,750 plant species on the islands, of which 168 are tree-like. Despite the compact size of the territory, the country's climate is heterogeneous. Within the islands, plant species characteristic of the tropics, subtropics and temperate latitudes have been noted.

Plants and animals of Japan have long developed in isolation from the mainland. This has led to some differences in the evolution of species.

Tropical and subtropical vegetation

Moist tropical forests are typical of the Ryukyu Islands. Of the tree-like forms, palms, cycads, ficus, etc. are common. Pine and fir are found in mountainous areas. many on the islandslianas and epiphytes, among which ferns predominate. O. Yaku is known for the fact that trees that are about 2 thousand years old have been preserved on it. They have a length of up to 50 m, and a trunk diameter of up to 5 m.

Sea coast about. Kyushu is also occupied by tropical vegetation. Forests of subtropical trees can be found on this island up to a height of 1 km. The same representatives of the flora are typical for Shikoku and Honshu (southern part). The dominant species are evergreen oaks, cypresses, pines, arborvitae and other endemics. Magnolias and azaleas can be distinguished in the undergrowth. In ancient times, the southern part of the Japanese islands was occupied by laurel forests, where camphor laurel, tea bush and Japanese camellia mainly grew. Today, these forest communities exist only on about. Honshu. Their species composition has changed somewhat. In the subtropical zone, in some places you can find bamboo and ginkgo groves.

Broad-leaved forests

Northern part of about. Honshu and the southern half of about. Hokkaido is occupied by these forests. They are dominated by oaks, beeches, chestnuts, maples, lindens, ash trees, hornbeams and other woody plants. The slopes of the mountains are a zone of deciduous and coniferous forests. The latter are represented by cryptomeria, hemlock, yew, etc.

On about. Hokkaido at an altitude of 0.5 km above sea level, this plant community is replaced by fir-spruce with an admixture of bamboo. Part of the mountain peaks is outside the forest zone. They are occupied by special plant communities, which include dwarf pine, rhododendron,moorland, etc.

The anthropogenic impact on the flora and fauna of Japan is quite large, due to the limited territory and dense population. Plain forests have been reduced and farmlands have been created in their place.

Animals of Japan

The number of endemic species on the islands reaches 40%. In addition, the diversity of forms is very low compared to the mainland of the Asian region. The evolution of species has led to the grinding of organisms, which are classified as Japanese subspecies. The country owes its diversity of fauna to the presence of different natural zones on its territory.

The animal world of Japan has a number of features:

• Mammals - 270, birds - 800, and reptiles - 110 species.
• The species composition of different islands does not match.
• Japanese macaque widespread.
• A wide variety of feathered fauna.
• A small number of reptiles. Among snakes, only 2 species are dangerous to humans.
• Wild animals of Japan are mostly preserved in nature reserves and national parks. The country has many protected areas.

Animal world of Japan by islands:

• Southern: squirrels, bats, various monkeys, cuckoos, larvae, etc.
• Oh. Kyushu and nearby: badgers, bears, hares, wild boars, etc.
• Oh. Honshu: foxes, spotted deer, stoats, Japanese sables, flying squirrels, chipmunks, wood mice, shrews, etc.
• On about. Hokkaido, in addition to the species mentioned, there are representativesFar Eastern fauna: brown bears, Siberian sables, hare hares, three-toed woodpeckers, bile owls, fish owls, crossbills, waxwings, hazel grouses, etc.

Animals of Japan, which were isolated from the mainland for a long time, formed stable biocenoses. But their fate is currently largely up to the individual.