is a national park located in the east of the island of

Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The lar ...

, Japan. It was designated as a national park on 31 July 1987. The park is known for its wetlands

ecosystems An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syst ...

. Kushiro-shitsugen (Kushiro Wetlands or Kushiro Swamp,

Marshland A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...

) covers an area of on the Kushiro Plain (Kushiro-heiya) and contains the largest tracts of reedbeds in Japan. The

Kushiro River is a river in Hokkaidō, Japan. It is in length and has a drainage area of . The Kushiro originates from Lake Kussharo and flows south across the Kushiro Plain. The river is joined by two tributaries, the Kuchoro River () and the Setsuri R ...

(), which originates in

Lake Kussharo is a caldera lake in Akan National Park, eastern Hokkaidō, Japan. As with many geographic names in Hokkaidō, the name derives from the Ainu language. It is the largest caldera lake in Japan in terms of surface area, and sixth largest lake ...

, meanders through much of the park. During 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 site, Ramsar sites (wetlands). It is also known as the Convention on W ...

of 1980, in which Japan participated, the park was first registered as a

peatland A mire, peatland, or quagmire is a wetland area dominated by living peat-forming plants. Mires arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter, usually litter from vegetation, due to water-logging and subsequent anoxia. All types ...

with raised bogs. In 1967, the wetlands (''shitsugen'') themselves had been designated as a national

natural monument A natural monument is a natural or natural/cultural feature of outstanding or unique value because of its inherent rarity, representative of aesthetic qualities or cultural significance. Under World Commission on Protected Areas guidelines, na ...

. For that reason, access is strictly limited and the landscape, most typical of Hokkaido, has been preserved. Senmo Line Lake Touro

Wildlife

The vegetation of the park consists of reeds,

sedges The Cyperaceae are a family of graminoid (grass-like), monocotyledonous flowering plants known as sedges. The family is large, with some 5,500 known species described in about 90 genera, the largest being the "true sedges" genus ''Carex'' wit ...

peat moss ''Sphagnum'' is a genus of approximately 380 accepted species of mosses, commonly known as sphagnum moss, peat moss, also bog moss and quacker moss (although that term is also sometimes used for peat). Accumulations of ''Sphagnum'' can store wa ...

wetlands,

black alder Black alder is a common name for several plants and may refer to: *''Alnus glutinosa ''Alnus glutinosa'', the common alder, black alder, European alder, European black alder, or just alder, is a species of tree in the family Betulaceae, nativ ...

thicket A thicket is a very dense stand of trees or tall shrubs, often dominated by only one or a few species, to the exclusion of all others. They may be formed by species that shed large numbers of highly viable seeds that are able to germinate in t ...

s. The rivers which bend freely back and forth, groups of lakes and marshes, and other wet ecosystems comprise a varied environment. Kushiro-shitsugen is home to over 600 species of plants. The park is a valuable haven for wild species such as the red-crowned crane (''Grus japonensis''),

huchen The huchen (''Hucho hucho'') (, from German), also known as Danube salmon or redfish (german: Rotfisch), is a large species of freshwater fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. It is the type species of its genus ''Hucho''. Distri ...

(''Hucho perryi''),

Siberian salamander ''Salamandrella keyserlingii'', the Siberian salamander, is a species of salamander found in Northeast Asia. It lives in Wet woodland, wet woods and riparian groves. Distribution It is found primarily in Siberia east of the Sosva River and t ...

(''Salamandrella keyserlingii'') and dragonfly (''Leucorrhinia intermedia ijimai'').

Geography

Related cities, towns, and villages

Kushiro Subprefecture is a subprefecture of Hokkaido Prefecture, Japan. Kushiro is home to a population of red-crowned cranes, estimated in 2022 to number about 1,900. Geography Municipalities Mergers History *November, 1897: Kushiro Subprefecture estab ...

Kushiro, Hokkaidō is a city in Kushiro Subprefecture on the island of Hokkaido, Japan. It serves as the subprefecture's capital and it is the most populated city in the eastern part of the island. Geography Mountains * Mount Oakan * Mount Meakan * Mount Aka ...

** Kushiro, Hokkaidō (town) ** Shibecha, Hokkaidō **

Tsurui, Hokkaidō is a village located in Kushiro Subprefecture, Hokkaido. As of September 30, 2016, it has an estimated population of 2,516, and an area of 571.84 km2. Tsurui is a breeding ground for the red-crowned crane, one of the 100 Soundscapes of Ja ...

References

External links

J-IBISRamsar
{{authority control National parks of Japan Parks and gardens in Hokkaido Protected areas established in 1987 Ramsar sites in Japan

Wildlife

Geography

Related cities, towns, and villages

See also

References

External links