JP164Daito islands

Site Description

Forest

The site is an island chain, located 340 km east of the main island of Okinawahonto, and has been formed through several upheavals of coral reefs, whose layers range from several hundred to several thousand meters in depth. The land areas of Minamidaitojima, Kitadaitojima, and Okinodaitojima are 30.6 km2, 12.7 km2, and 1.1 km2, respectively. Before the settlement in 1900, the chain islands were uninhabited and covered with tropical virgin forests. Due to the raised coral reefs, central regions of the islands are low, where many ponds and marshes are scattered. Except for a few forests left in steep areas and around wetlands in the middle of the island, almost all the areas are sugarcane fields.

Area & Coordinates

4,250ha 25°51′N 131°15′E
region: Nansei Shoto Region, Okinawa

Designation Type

Wildlife Protection Area (government), World Heritage Candidate

Protection Status

Protected

Conservation issues

Unknown

Birds

Breeding resident

Otus elegans interpositus, Gallinula chloropus, Tachybaptus ruficollis, Alcedo atthis, Ixobrychus cinnamomeus, Hypsipetes amaurotis borodinonis, Lanius bucephalus, Zosterops japonicus daitoensis

Winter visitor

Pandion haliaetus, Milvus migrans, Butastur indicus, Egretta alba, Nycticorax nycticorax, Fulica atra, Ardea cinerea, Anas penelope, Anas crecca, Phalacrocorax carbo, Phoenicurus auroreus, Tarsiger cyanurus, Turdus pallidus, Emberiza spodocephala, Phylloscopus borealis