World Heritage

Out of 8 places in Japan that were declared UNESCO World Heritage locations, 2 are closely related to plants and animals.

One is the Shirakami Sanchi, the general name of the mountainous area of approximately 130,000 hectares in the north of Honshu. This region is one of Japan's very few remaining natural forests, consisting primarily of beech trees. The Shirakami Sanchi beech forests boast a healthy diversity of approximately 500 species of vegetation. The region is also home to many vertebrates, including 2 of Japan's indigenous mammals, the Japanese serow and the Japanese macaque, and birds like the inuwashi, kumagera and kumataka that are threatened with extinction.

Yakushima, another World Natural Heritage site, is an island located to the south of Kyushu. The island enjoys a wide variety of tree species, from subtropical evergreen trees at sea level to sub-arctic plants in the inland mountainous region. Perhaps the most outstanding natural phenomenon found in Yakushima, however, are the ancient yakusugi trees (cedars native to Yakushima) which are famous for their extraordinary longevity. The oldest is the Jomon cedar, which is approximately 7,200 years old and has a circumference of 16.4 meters. Yakushima is also home to birds like the akahige and akakokko, which are threatened with extinction.