in Japan are established by the Ministry of the Environment and, for areas of more local importance, by the

Prefectural Governments A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

in order "to protect and promote the reproduction of birds and mammals" in accordance with the 2002 (superseding the amended 1918 Law). The areas established have a maximum duration of twenty years (subject to renewal) and hunting is prohibited within them. are designated within the Wildlife Protection Areas in order to protect habitats and ecosystems.

Classification of wildlife

The

wildlife of Japan The wildlife of Japan includes its flora, fauna, and natural habitats. The islands of Japan stretch a long distance from north to south and cover a wide range of climatic zones. This results in a high diversity of wildlife despite Japan's isolation ...

is classified either as

game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...

species or protected species. The former includes thirty species of bird and seventeen of mammal that are considered (1) able to withstand hunting (2) harmful to agriculture and forestry (3) useful for meat or other derivatives. These species include the

brown bear The brown bear (''Ursus arctos'') is a large bear species found across Eurasia and North America. In North America, the populations of brown bears are called grizzly bears, while the subspecies that inhabits the Kodiak Islands of Alaska is kno ...

black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...

Japanese deer The sika deer (''Cervus nippon''), also known as the Northern spotted deer or the Japanese deer, is a species of deer native to much of East Asia and introduced to other parts of the world. Previously found from northern Vietnam in the south t ...

Japanese hare The Japanese hare (''Lepus brachyurus'') is a species of hare endemic to Japan. In Japanese, it is called the ''Nousagi'' (Japanese: 野兎), meaning "field rabbit". Taxonomy Coenraad Jacob Temminck described the Japanese hare in 1845. The speci ...

Japanese quail The Japanese quail (''Coturnix japonica''), also known as the coturnix quail, is a species of Old World quail found in East Asia. First considered a subspecies of the common quail, it is now considered as a separate species. The Japanese quail ...

, and Japanese pheasant. Over six hundred species are protected. Insectivorous mammals and rats are excluded from protection since they are considered harmful to

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

; some marine mammals fall under the alternative jurisdiction of the

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries may refer to: * Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Cambodia) * Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Japan) * Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Niue) * Depar ...

. While the number of animals hunted is falling with the decline in the number of hunters, the number of birds and mammals "controlled" is rising in relation to damage to crops.

Established Wildlife Protection Areas

As of 1 November 2019, eighty-six Wildlife Protection Areas have been established at a national level, covering an area of , including of Special Protection Areas. As of the same date, 3,639 Wildlife Protection Areas have been established at a prefectural level, covering an area of , including of prefectural Special Protectional Areas. The eighty-six nationally designated areas, divided into the four classes of , , , and , are as follows:

Complementary measures

Wildlife Protection Areas are just one element in a network of complementary protected area systems. Others include

Wilderness Areas Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

and Nature Conservation Areas under the Nature Conservation Law; Natural Parks under the Natural Parks Law; Natural Habitat Conservation Areas under the Law for the Conservation of Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora;

Natural Monuments Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are p ...

and

Special Natural Monuments is a collective term used by the Japanese government's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties to denote Cultural Properties of JapanIn this article, capitals indicate an official designation as opposed to a simple definition, e.g "Cultura ...

under the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties 1950;

Protected Forests Protection is any measure taken to guard a thing against damage caused by outside forces. Protection can be provided to physical objects, including organisms, to systems, and to intangible things like civil and political rights. Although th ...

under the National Forest Management Bylaw; and Protected Waters under the Preservation of Fisheries Resources Law. Areas are also protected in accordance with three international programmes: the

World Heritage Convention The World Heritage Convention, formally the Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, is an international treaty signed on 23 November 1972, which created the World Heritage Sites, with the primary goals of ...

(see

Yakushima , native_name_link = , image_caption = Landsat image of Yakushima , image_size = , nickname = , location = East China Sea , coordinates = , map = Japan#Japan Kagoshima Prefecture , map_relief ...

Shirakami-Sanchi 270px, Shirakami Mountains Relief Map (with UNESCO World Heritage Site) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Tōhoku region of northern Honshū, Japan. This mountainous area includes the last virgin forest of Siebold's beech which once cove ...

, Shiretoko, and

Ogasawara Islands The Bonin Islands, also known as the , are an archipelago of over 30 subtropical and tropical islands, some directly south of Tokyo, Japan and northwest of Guam. The name "Bonin Islands" comes from the Japanese word ''bunin'' (an archaic readi ...

);

Man and the Biosphere Programme Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the improvement of relationships between people and their environments. MAB's work engag ...

(see

Mount Ōmine , is a sacred mountain in Nara, Japan, famous for its three tests of courage. Officially known as , it is more popularly known as Mount Ōmine due to its prominence in the Ōmine mountain range. It is located in Yoshino-Kumano National Park in t ...

Mount Ōdaigahara , also is a mountain in the Daikō Mountain Range on the border between the prefectures of Mie and Nara, Japan. It is the highest in Mie at . Walking trails from the Nara side start from a car park at about 1400 metres. The mountain is famous ...

, Hakusan, and Shiga Kōgen); and the

Ramsar Convention The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on Wetlands. It i ...

(see

Ramsar Sites in Japan The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable use of wetlands. Adopted in 1971, it entered into force in 1975 and as of April 2022 had ...

References

External links

Protected areas in Japan (Ministry of the Environment)

* ttps://www.env.go.jp/nature/choju/area/pdf/area2-3.pdf Map of all 86 Wildlife Protection Areas (Ministry of the Environment)* {{in lang, ja}
Wildlife protection in Japan (Ministry of the Environment)
Protected areas of Japan ja:鳥獣保護区

Classification of wildlife

Established Wildlife Protection Areas

Complementary measures

See also

References

External links