Wildlife in Japan - Wildlife of Japan｜Saiyu Travel

2022.01.20 update

Sand Tiger Shark (Ogasawara Island: Chichijima)

When talking about “Scuba diving in Ogasawara Island,” it is almost synonymous as saying “Sand Tiger Sharks.” (shirowani in Japanese). They are bottom dwellers, normally found in small caves but encountering them in a shipwreck dive is quite dramatic.

In Chichijima -Futami Bay, there are many ships that were attacked during World War II. Just diving around these wrecksites can be impressive enough by itself, but add in a sand tiger shark or two and it becomes exceptional.

Sand Tiger Shark at Shipwreck, Bonin island Japan｜西遊旅行

There are many different ways that the ships may have ended up on the bottom; some have fallen apart as they sank after having been hit directly, some that sank in their original upright position, and yet others that are completely on their side when they sank to the seafloor.

Sand Tiger Sharks have their favorite places where they like to hang out, and sometimes we got to see more than one at a time!

The sharks swam over me slowly and it really gave me the chills! I want to keep watching this scene, but I must get ready to surface. We are in the deep water, so we cannot linger here too long and must start making our slow ascent back up to the surface.

Our last moments with the Sand tiger shark!

This was the last one we saw, who was swimming among the Striped jack. Right after we saw this Shark, we returned to the surface.

Image & text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Oct 2020, Chichijima, Futami Bay, Ogasawara Islands

Tags: Wildlife in Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Scuba diving in japan, Scuba diving tour in Japan, Bonin Islands, Scuba diving in Ogasawara, Ogasawara Islands, Dive in Japan, Wildlife tour of Japan, Diving tour of Japan, Sand Tiger Shark, Diving in Ogasawara Islands, Sand Tiger Shark of Ogasawara Islands

2022.01.10 update

Banded Pipefish Incubating Their Eggs （Yakushima）

We observed this pair of Banded pipefish in Yakushima’s Isso bay. The pipefish have a white body with many reddish-brown horizontal stripes that cover it from the mouth to the tail fin. The gorgeous tail fin reminds me of the beautiful “Oiran” that Japanese high-ranking courtesans use.

オイランヨウジのペア（屋久島）A Pair of Ringed pipefish

The male banded pipefish has a pouch that incubates the eggs. There can be up to 100 eggs which hatch after about 10 days. The fries are about 6mm when they emerge.

Banded pipefish eat zooplankton. The entrance to this pair’s rock crevice was surrounded by little tiny fries and they were busy feeding on them.

Image & text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Jun 2021, Yakushima, Kagoshima

Tags: Diving tour of Japan, Short-tailed albatross Breeding ground, Yakushima, Banded pipefish, Dive in Yakushima, Wildlife in Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Scuba diving in japan, Scuba diving tour in Japan, Dive in Japan, Scuba diving in Yakushima, Wildlife tour of Japan

2021.12.31 update

Harlequin Ghost Pipefish（Yakushima）

We could see a pair of Harlequin ghost pipefish (Solenostomus paradoxus) in the seas around Yakushima. The pair were in perfect unison with their mimicry, which made it both astounding and beautiful to watch.

ニシキフウライウオのペア（屋久島）A pair of Harlequin ghost pipefish
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Harlequin ghost pipefish is a member of the family Solenostomidae. The Solenostomus were previously thought to be an intraspecific mutation within Solenostomidae but, they became an independent species in 1994.

On every part of the body and along its fins, there are spikes that stick out, with spotted patterns as well. The body is a white color with some transparent areas, but the designs and patterns that appear are so diverse!

The larger one is the female, and the smaller one on the right is the male. Unlike the pipefish, where the males incubate the eggs, in family Solenostomidae, they leave the job of protecting the fertilized eggs to the females with the larger pectoral fins.

In English, the name of the fish is “Harlequin ghost pipefish” or “Ornate ghost pipefish,” but in Japanese they are called “Nishiki fuurai-uo.” “Nishiki” refers to a traditional Japanese weaving textile, highlighting the intricate designs seen on this unique fish.

Image & text : Mariko SAWADA

Observation : Jun 2021, Isso-bay, Yakushima, Kagoshima

Tags: Harlequin ghost pipefish, Diving in Yakushima, Yakushima, Solenostomus paradoxus, Wildlife in Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Dive in Japan, Wildlife tour of Japan, Diving tour of Japan

2021.12.21 update

（Video） A Baby Sperm Whale Came to Play With Us! (Ogasawara)

In October, we encountered a baby sperm whale off the coast of Chichijima in Ogasawara. It seemed like the calf was a bit upset, but also a bit curious about the ship. Everyone on the ship was very excited to see it!

Ogasawara A Baby Sperm Whale Came to Play With Us!

Image & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Oct 2020, Chichijima, Ogasawara Islands
Special Thanks: FISH EYE

Tags: Sperm Whale, Baby Sperm Whale, Wildlife in Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Bonin Islands, Ogasawara Islands, Whale Watching, Whale Watching in Ogasawara, Wildlife tour of Japan

2021.12.11 update

(Video) An Asian Sheepshead Wrasse Named “Yoriko” in Hasama’s Underwater Park (Tateyama, Chiba)

The Hasama Underwater Park is located just on the border between Tokyo Bay and the Pacific Ocean, and it is within 2 hours travel time from the city center. The Underwater Park is rich with fish because of the input of nutrition from the freshwater rivers and the Kuroshio Current running along the coast of Japan. This place is quite famous for the underwater shrine Torii and ‘Yoriko’ the Asian sheepshead wrasse.

YORIKO Asian sheepshead wrasse　コブダイの頼子・波左間海中公園

The Asian sheepshead wrasse is called “Kobudai” in Japanese (as if it was a member of the Sea Bream family), it is a member of the wrasse family, and is a “hermaphroditic” species which can change sex between male and female. It first matures as a female and breeds, then changes sex to a male and participates in breeding again.

This “Yoriko” used to be a female paired with a male named “Yoritomo,” but one day “Yoritomo” disappeared perhaps because he lost the battle for territory. Following that development, “Yoriko” then became a male and has stayed that way to the present day. The lifespan of the Kobudai is thought to be about 20 years long, but “Yoriko” has already exceeded 30 years of age. He has come to be a very cherished and well-loved fish at the Hasama Underwater Park and taken on a mystic-natured creature who time has forgotten.

This is the famous underwater shrine, the only kind in the world, in the Hasama Underwater Park. It is an authentic shrine that was built in 1997 as a branch of the Susaki Shrine in Tateyama.

Another famous place in the Hasama Underwater Park is the “Sea Pen Colony” (in Japanese it is called ‘Yanagi-umiera’). It was the first time I could see these! Depending on the tide, it may or may not appear on the surface of the sand, so I felt so lucky to see the colony. The English name “Sea pen” is because of the resemblance to a Quill pen!

A colony of the Sea Pens Virgularia halisceptrum .

There are many other areas for great fish sightings as well. There is a fish-reef called “Dream” where the scenery created by the soft corals and Sea goldie, as well as Redbar anthias and Cooper’s Fairy Basslets. 。

This is the Spottedtail morwong cleaning station. The name for the fish in Japanese is “Takanoha dai” derived from the Japanese word for “Hawk feather” which is “Taka no ha.” This is based on the similarity of the stripes that are seen on hawk feathers, The polka dots on the tail also really catch my attention.

Here is a friendly pair of redlip morwongs.

Image: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Jun 2021, Hasama Marine Park, Tateyama, CHIBA

Tags: Hasama Underwater Park, Asian Sheepshead Wrasse, Kobudai, Yoriko, Wildlife in Japan, Wildlife of Japan, 頼子, コブダイ, Dive in Japan, Scuba diving in japan, Wildlife tour of Japan, Scuba diving tour in Japan, Diving tour of Japan, Scuba diving near Tokto

2021.12.01 update

Rausu’s Drift Ice Cruise and the Drift Ice in the Port of Rausu・The Steller’s Sea Eagle and White-tailed Eagle

This is a winter report from the Shiretoko Peninsula, Rausu (Hokkaido).

This year the drift ice season in Rausu was very short. The morning we arrived in Rausu, the staff at the lodging, Shiretoko Serai informed us right away, “Until last night, the conditions for the drift ice were very good, but the westerly wind is blowing, so its possible the drift ice might be gone by night time.”
Due to the strong winds, the dawn cruise was cancelled, but luckily we could get a 9am cruise where we could see the Port of Rausu full of drift ice.

This is how it looks in the Fishing Port of Rausu with the accumulated Drift Ice. There are Steller’s Sea Eagles and White-tailed Eagles feeding in the photo. If one takes the photo zoomed in, without the port in the background, you can get surprisingly great photos that make the eagles look like they are in a very natural spot.

Sea Eagles on drift ice Rausu（Rausu’s Drift Ice Cruise 羅臼の流氷クルーズ）｜西遊旅行 Saiyu Travel

Image & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Feb 2021, Rausu, Hokkaido

*Contact us, Saiyu Travel for more information about wildlife and bird watching in Hokkaido. We can make various arrangements for your trip. We have a guesthouse, Shiretoko Serai, in Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula.

Tags: 知床サライ, Eagle fighting, Shiretoko Serai, White-tailed sea eagle, Eagle in action, Wildlife of Hokkaido, Wildlife in Hokkaido, Steller's sea eagle, Shiretoko, Wildlife of Japan, 羅臼, Rausu, Drift ice cruise, Birds of Hokkaido, White-tailed eagle, Rausu drift ice cruise, 知床, Birds of Japan, Eagle photography of Japan, Birding tour Japan, Wildlife Photography tour in Japan, Birds Photography of Japan, Bird tour Japan, Wildlife tour in Japan, Rausu sunrise drift ice cruise, Bird watching tour Japan, Shiretoko peninsula, Bird Watching Japan, Oowashi, Wildlife in Japan, Ojirowashi

2021.11.11 update

Winter On The Notsuke Peninsula, The Freezing Rain and Ezo Sika Deer

In February, the Notsuke Peninsula had an ice storm. When air temperatures drop below freezing and the ice rain, water droplets are super-cooled and ice can form on impact with the surface like trees. This ice from the freezing rain will cover and harden any exposed surfaces to make a clear ice called glaze ice. On the sunny days, when the sunlight reflects off the glaze ice, it can be so beautiful.

Glaze ice on the branches of the trees.

It is like being in an art gallery.

The branches covered in glaze ice.

An Ezo sika deer in the early morning ice.

The winter sika deer are looking so soft with their hair puffed out. Especially their fluffy white butt is so cute.

A herd of Sika deer on the Notsuke Peninsula covered with the freezing rain.

After dusk, the herd of male sika deer appeared in the field of snow and ice. It was a beautiful sunset, and I stayed there to watch until it got dark.

Photo & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Feb 2016 , Notsuke Peninsula, Hokkaido

Tags: Hokkaido Sika Deer, 知床, Ezo Sika Deer, Wildlife in Japan, Notsuke Peninsula, Wildlife in, 野付半島, Rausu, Shiretoko peninsula, Wildlife of Hokkaido, Shiretoko, Wildlife of Japan, glaze ice, Wildlife Photography tour in Japan, Sika deer, Wildlife tour in Japan, Notsuke, 雨氷

2021.11.01 update

Steller’s Sea Eagle On The Drift Ice（Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula）

This is a Steller’s Sea Eagle that we observed during a Drift Ice Cruise from Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula. It is such a handsome looking bird of prey, with white wings, a white tail, and a large yellow beak and yellow legs.

When open, the wingspan measures 220 to 250cm (7.2 – 8.2 feet), and the weight can be heavy from 5 to 9 kg (11-20 lbs), and the females are usually a bit larger than the males.

They breed on the coasts of the Sea of Okhotsk and the coast of Kamchatka Peninsula, and in the winter a small part of that population will come to the southern part of the Kuril Islands and Hokkaido. There are about 3,200 pairs in the world, and about 2,000 individuals are thought to migrate to Hokkaido for the winter.

The name “Steller’s Sea Eagle” came from the German naturalist Georg Wilhelm Steller.

Steller was of German but he joined the Russian expedition of Vitus Bering who set out to explore the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands. In 1741, after Bering died of illness on Bering Island, now part of the Commander Islands, the remaining crew and Steller were able to escape and returned home to tell the world of the newly discovered sea animals, such as the Steller’s sea cow and the seabirds living in the area.

Then, as an unfortunate result of being “discovered,” the Steller’s sea cow was overfished and gone extinct within only 27 years of its discovery. Spectacled cormorants were also extinct by 1852.

The reconstructed skeleton of the Steller’s sea cow on display in a private gallery on Bearing Island, Commander Islands.

Returning to the Steller’s sea eagles, they spend the winter in Hokkaido and move back north in the first week of March. It is thought that these Sea eagles did not originally migrate long distances, but came floating on the drift ice to Hokkaido and the Kuril Islands. Then they would return to their breeding grounds for the courtship season. They will lay 1-3 eggs between April to May.

The Steller’s sea eagles against the backdrop of the town of Rausu. Soon, they will be heading back North.

Photo & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: February 2018, Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula, Hokkaido

Tags: Birds of Japan, Birds Photography of Japan, 知床サライ, Wildlife Photography tour in Japan, Rausu sunrise drift ice cruise, Shiretoko Serai, Wildlife tour in Japan, Shireoko, Wildlife in Hokkaido, Shiretoko peninsula, 羅臼, Oowashi, White-tailed eagle, Ojirowashi, White-tailed sea eagle, 知床, Steller's sea eagle, Birding tour Japan, Wildlife of Hokkaido, Rausu, Bird tour Japan, Wildlife of Japan, Rausu drift ice cruise, Bird Watching Japan, Birds of Hokkaido, Eagle photography of Japan, Wildlife in Japan

2021.10.21 update

Spectacular View! Rausu Drift Ice Cruise at Dawn (Rausu, Shiretoko Peninsula)

This is a report from our February 28th Rausu Drift Ice Cruise. We were told to be at the harbor at 4:45 in the morning, so we went straight from the “Washi no Yado”, where we were observing the Blakiston’s Owl up until 4:30am. Without a cloud in the sky, the stars were shining so brightly, in the crisp wintery air of Shiretoko. We headed to the harbor, filled with expectations thinking “Today might be a beautiful day.”

As we departed, I took this shot looking back at the town of Rausu with the backdrop of mountains on the Shiretoko Peninsula.

The Kunashir Island blanketed with red. The captain announced, “Today the drift ice is very close.” Sure enough, we could soon make out the dark shadowy outline of the drift ice.

The drift ice in the foreground, with Kunashiri Island behind. It is beautifully silhouetted in the morning light. The captain let us know “The sun will come out soon.” Everyone was waiting on the deck.

Daybreak.

The Steller’s sea eagles on the drift ice with the morning sun.

The Steller’s sea eagles and White-tailed eagles started to gather around our boat (and the crows too!) Besides that, it was a really beautiful day today!

There are endless shutter clicks on the deck of the ship. Many foreigner bird photographers are on board for the tour and it is not limited to just Japanese people. The early morning daybreak cruise is quite a “hard challenge” because we had just stayed up all night, for observing the Blakiston’s Fish Owls, but this scenery is a wonderful reward for our efforts.

Photo & Text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: February 2018, Rausu, Siretoko Peninsula, Hokkaido

2021.10.11 update

A Sperm Whale Calf Approached The Ship! (Ogasawara Islands)

The water of Chichi-jima (Father Island) in the Ogasawara Islands, at depth of 1,500-2,000meters, are known as a place where female sperm whales with their calves observed throughout the year.

Having said that, it is best to visit this area when the seas are calmer, usually from July to October.

In October, on a day when the conditions were favorable, we headed to the whale watching area off Chichi-jima. We were lucky to encounter a group shortly after we started our search. Each of the groups was made up of 3 to 6 individuals.
Then, we found a lone calf by itself, patiently waiting for its mom, who had gone for a dive into the deep sea.

The baby looks as if it is flying, with such clear water. The calf’s body was a lighter color, but it had the typical wrinkles primarily seen on Sperm Whales, along with some scars of bitemarks from the cookie-cutter sharks.

This young sperm whale, swimming upside down towards our boat, was so close, that we could actually hear the “talking” clicking sounds on our ship!

We could so clearly see the lower jaw of the whale!!!

We parted for a little, but then it returned, approaching the boat again. This time with its mouth open.

This is the calf with its mouth wide open. We could clearly hear the clicking sounds again.

Amazingly, it flattened its fins and rotated while swimming into the edge of the ship, making the suckerfish scuttle around. Perhaps this was an offensive ?

A sperm whale swimming towards the direction of Chichi-jima.

This young sperm whale also came up alongside our ship, raised its face and seemed to look up over at the top of our boat.
The youngster seemed to enjoy spending time with us and then, eventually left and swam back to its mother and the family.

In Ogasawara, you can see these groups of females with their calves, but I wonder if we could ever see a male that comes to have mate someday? It would be such a dream to be able to see a male sperm whale in such clear water like this!

Photo & text: Mariko SAWADA
Observation: Oct 2020, Chichijima, Ogasawara Islands
Special Thanks: FISH EYE

Tags: Whale Watching in Japan, Wildlife tour of Japan, Whale swim in Japan, Whale swim in Amami, Sperm Whale, Wildlife of Japan, Wildlife tour in Japan, Sperm Whale in Japan, Bonin Islands, Sperm Whale swim in japan, Ogasawara Islands, Wildlife in Japan, Whale Watching, Whale Watching in Ogasawara