Preserving precious species, the Ogasawara Islands of Japan are listed as a World Heritage Site

By Li Xinyi, compiled and reported

 

In June this year, the UNESCO World Heritage Committee inscribed Japan’s Ogasawara Islands (Ogasawara Village, Tokyo Metropolis) and “Hiraizumi” (Hiraizumi Town, Iwate Prefecture) as World Heritage Sites. This follows the 2007 inscription of the “Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine and its Cultural Landscape” (Ōda City, Shimane Prefecture), marking yet another Japanese site to receive World Heritage recognition. Japan now has a total of 16 World Heritage Sites. The newly designated natural World Heritage Site — the Ogasawara Islands — is a natural waterpark in the subtropics.

In addition to the inhabited Chichijima and Hahajima, the Ogasawara Islands include around 30 large and small uninhabited islands, all interconnected across the sea with the main islands at their center. Furthermore, these islands are known as the Galápagos of the Orient. In addition to dolphins and whales, they are home to numerous other rare plants and animals found nowhere else in the world, such as black-footed albatrosses, Bonin flying foxes, Bonin red cranes (Melastoma tetramerum), and Bonin rhododendrons. Countless unique species abound. The endemic rare flora and fauna of the Ogasawara Islands have evolved independently on the islands. Even organisms with the same origins have developed richly diverse preserved genes due to differing habitats — a point highly commended by the World Heritage Committee during the selection process.

The Ogasawara Islands are located about 1,000 kilometers south of the Japanese archipelago in the Pacific Ocean and have no airport; the only means of access is by boat. Visitors can take the regular ferry “Ogasawara Maru” from Tokyo’s Takeshiba Pier. The Ogasawara Maru is a 6,700-ton ocean liner that features hotel-style cabins and a restaurant serving meals made with local Ogasawara ingredients, offering passengers a comfortable sea voyage. After approximately 25.5 hours, the ferry arrives at Futami Port on Chichijima.

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