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Sea Turtle Association Of Japan, Kuroshima Research Station
Kuroshima Research Station started in 1973, under the name of the UnderwaterPark Foundation, Yaeyama Underwater Park Research Institute, for the purpose of managing and utilizing the underwater area in Sekisei(Jap. 石西) lagoon between Ishigaki (Jap. 石垣) Island and Iriomote (Jap. 西表) Island including Kuroshima (Jap. 黒島) Island. From the beginning, it worked as ocean research station, and existed until 2002 under the financial support of Nagoya Railroad Business Operations Co. Ltd. At present Kuroshima Research Station belongs to the NPO Sea Turtle Association of Japan. Its activities worthy of mention are its 30 years’ research into the nesting of sea turtles, especially confirmation of the nesting of the hawksbill sea turtle for the first time in Japan, in addition to confirming the nesting of green sea turtles. Their research regarding acanthasters and coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lagoon
A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') and ''atoll lagoons''. They have also been identified as occurring on mixed-sand and gravel coastlines. There is an overlap between bodies of water classified as coastal lagoons and bodies of water classified as estuaries. Lagoons are common coastal features around many parts of the world. Definition and terminology Lagoons are shallow, often elongated bodies of water separated from a larger body of water by a shallow or exposed shoal, coral reef, or similar feature. Some authorities include fresh water bodies in the definition of "lagoon", while others explicitly restrict "lagoon" to bodies of water with some degree of salinity. The distinction between "lagoon" and "estuary" also varies between authorities. Richard A. Davis Jr. restrict ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ishigaki Island
, also known as ''Ishigakijima'', is a Japanese island south-west of Okinawa Hontō and the second-largest island of the Yaeyama Island group, behind Iriomote Island. It is located approximately south-west of Okinawa Hontō. It is within the City of Ishigaki in Okinawa Prefecture. The city functions as the business and transport center of the archipelago. The island is served by New Ishigaki Airport, the largest airport in the Yaeyamas. Much of the island and surrounding waters including Mount Omoto and Kabira Bay are protected as part of Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park. Ishigaki Island, like the rest of Okinawa, is culturally influenced by both Japan and Taiwan due to its location, about off the north eastern coast of Taiwan. History A tsunami of record height hit Ishigaki Island in 1771. One of the perpetrators of Aum Shinrikyo's sarin gas attack, Yasuo Hayashi, was arrested on Ishigaki Island 21 months after the attacks and from the scene of the crime. Ishigak ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iriomote
is the largest of the Yaeyama Islands of Japan, and the second largest in Okinawa Prefecture after Okinawa Island itself. The island has an area of and a 2005 population of 2,347. The island does not have an airstrip, and most visitors — over 390,000 in 2006 — arrive from Ishigaki by ferry, a ride to on Iriomote's northeast coast or on the southeast coast. Administratively the island belongs to Taketomi Town, Okinawa Prefecture. Infrastructure is limited to a single coastal road connecting the hamlets on the northern and eastern shores. Wildlife The island is famed for the Iriomote cat, a '' Critically Endangered'' wild cat found only on Iriomote. the population size is estimated to be 100–109 individuals. The island has a venomous snake—''Trimeresurus elegans'', known locally as the ''habu'', a species of pitviper whose bite has a fatality rate of 3% and a permanent disability rate of 6–8%.U.S. Navy (1991). ''Poisonous Snakes of the World''. New York: Dover P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kuroshima, Taketomi, Okinawa
Kuroshima (黒島; Yaeyama: ''Ffusïma'', Okinawan: ''Kurushima''), also known as "Kuro Island", is an island in Taketomi Town, Okinawa, part of the Yaeyama archipelago. The island has the approximate shape of a heart symbol when viewed from the air, and is marketed as "Heart Island". The name means "Black Island". The island has an area of about and a population of approximately 210 . Kuroshima is a comparatively flat island, as the highest point is just above sea level. Cattle raising is a major economic activity and a yearly "cow festival" is held. Sometimes the island is marketed as "Island of Cows" as well, as there are more cows than inhabitants living on it. Tourist activities include diving and sunbathing. Sights Kuroshima has various sights to offer: *A lighthouse stands at the southern tip. *In the Visitors' Center in the west of the island various old photos, stuffed animals and traditional fishing and agricultural equipment are on display. *''Puzumari'' is an ol ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sea Turtles
Sea turtles (superfamily Chelonioidea), sometimes called marine turtles, are reptiles of the order Testudines and of the suborder Cryptodira. The seven existing species of sea turtles are the flatback, green, hawksbill, leatherback, loggerhead, Kemp's ridley, and olive ridley sea turtles. All six of the sea turtle species present in US waters (all of those listed above except the flatback) are listed as endangered and/or threatened under the Endangered Species Act. The seventh sea turtle species is the flatback, which exists in the waters of Australia, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. Sea turtles can be separated into the categories of hard-shelled (cheloniid) and leathery-shelled ( dermochelyid).Wyneken, J. 2001. The Anatomy of Sea Turtles. U.S Department of Commerce NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-SEFSC-470, 1-172 pp. There is only one dermochelyid species which is the leatherback sea turtle. Description For each of the seven types of sea turtles, females and males are the sa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hawksbill Sea Turtle
The hawksbill sea turtle (''Eretmochelys imbricata'') is a critically endangered sea turtle belonging to the family Cheloniidae. It is the only extant species in the genus ''Eretmochelys''. The species has a global distribution, that is largely limited to tropical and subtropical marine and estuary ecosystems. The hawksbill's appearance is similar to that of other marine turtles. In general, it has a flattened body shape, a protective Carapace#Turtles and tortoises, carapace, and flipper (anatomy), flipper-like limbs, adapted for swimming in the open ocean. ''E. imbricata'' is easily distinguished from other sea turtles by its sharp, curving beak with prominent tomium, and the wikt:serration, saw-like appearance of its shell margins. Hawksbill shells slightly change colors, depending on water temperature. While this turtle lives part of its life in the open ocean, it spends more time in shallow lagoons and coral reefs. The IUCN, World Conservation Union, primarily as a result o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north toward the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, and Taiwan in the south. Japan is a part of the Ring of Fire, and spans Japanese archipelago, an archipelago of List of islands of Japan, 6852 islands covering ; the five main islands are Hokkaido, Honshu (the "mainland"), Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa Island, Okinawa. Tokyo is the Capital of Japan, nation's capital and largest city, followed by Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Fukuoka, Kobe, and Kyoto. Japan is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eleventh most populous country in the world, as well as one of the List of countries and dependencies by population density, most densely populated and Urbanization by country, urbanized. About three-fourths of Geography of Japan, the c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Green Sea Turtle
The green sea turtle (''Chelonia mydas''), also known as the green turtle, black (sea) turtle or Pacific green turtle, is a species of large sea turtle of the family Cheloniidae. It is the only species in the genus ''Chelonia''. Its range extends throughout tropical and subtropical seas around the world, with two distinct populations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, but it is also found in the Indian Ocean. The common name refers to the usually green fat found beneath its carapace, not to the color of its carapace, which is olive to black. The dorsoventrally flattened body of ''C. mydas'' is covered by a large, teardrop-shaped carapace; it has a pair of large, paddle-like flippers. It is usually lightly colored, although in the eastern Pacific populations, parts of the carapace can be almost black. Unlike other members of its family, such as the hawksbill sea turtle, ''C. mydas'' is mostly herbivorous. The adults usually inhabit shallow lagoons, feeding mostly on various ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Acanthaster
''Acanthaster'' is a bitypic genus of large and venomous starfish placed in its own family, Acanthasteridae. Its two members are known as crown-of-thorns starfish. Acanthaster are native to coral reefs in Indo-Pacific region. The species in this genus are a contributor to coral reef degradation because they prey on a large amount of live coral at high density. Species These species are listed in the World Register of Marine Species: *'' Acanthaster brevispinus'' Fisher, 1917 *''Acanthaster planci'' (Linnaeus, 1758) Some sources add ''Acanthaster ellisi'', (Gray, 1840) but it is now considered as a subspecies of ''A. planci'' in the eastern Pacific. Recent molecular work has suggested that ''Acanthaster planci'' is a species complex of up to 4 different species that have yet to be separately described (Vogler et al., 2008). Haszprunar, Vogler & Wörheide (2017) suggest to split "''A. planci''" in : * ''Acanthaster planci'' (Linnaeus, 1758) -- Northern Indian Ocean, always ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coral
Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton. A coral "group" is a colony of very many genetically identical polyps. Each polyp is a sac-like animal typically only a few millimeters in diameter and a few centimeters in height. A set of tentacles surround a central mouth opening. Each polyp excretes an exoskeleton near the base. Over many generations, the colony thus creates a skeleton characteristic of the species which can measure up to several meters in size. Individual colonies grow by asexual reproduction of polyps. Corals also breed sexually by spawning: polyps of the same species release gametes simultaneously overnight, often around a full moon. Fertilized eggs form planulae, a mobile early form of the coral polyp which, when m ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turtle Conservation Organizations
Turtles are an order of reptiles known as Testudines, characterized by a special shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Cryptodira (hidden necked turtles), which differ in the way the head retracts. There are 360 living and recently extinct species of turtles, including land-dwelling tortoises and freshwater terrapins. They are found on most continents, some islands and, in the case of sea turtles, much of the ocean. Like other amniotes (reptiles, birds, and mammals) they breathe air and do not lay eggs underwater, although many species live in or around water. Turtle shells are made mostly of bone; the upper part is the domed carapace, while the underside is the flatter plastron or belly-plate. Its outer surface is covered in scales made of keratin, the material of hair, horns, and claws. The carapace bones develop from ribs that grow sideways and develop into broad flat plates that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
