Japanese Endemic Fauna - Let's Explore! Quiz

Answer: Lives in areas covered by snow for part of the year

According to the Jigokudani Monkey Park in Nagano Japan, no other non-human primate lives further north, nor lives in a colder climate than snow monkeys. In Japan they are called Nihonsaru which translates as Japanese monkey but if a Japanese person mentions 'saru' (monkey) they are talking about the Japanese macaque.

The primate is found on three of the four main Japanese islands: Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu but not Hokkaido despite the monkey living on the Shimokita Peninsula, the northernmost point of Honshu just across the strait from Hokkaido. There are differences between the sexes. Males weigh about 11 kg (24 lb) and are approximately 55-60 cm (22-24 in) tall , while females average 8 kg (18 lb) and are 50-55 cm (20-22 in) tall. Japanese macaques have short stumps (8 cm, 3 in) for tails. This macaque has a pink face and posterior but its body is covered in sandy brown or greyish hair. This coat helps the macaque adapt to the cold as its thickness increases with decreasing temperatures, being able to withstand temperatures as low as -20 °C (-4 °F), though they do like to visit onsen (hot springs) in winter. They are omnivorous and live in large matrilineal societies.

Macaques feature prominently in religious references, folklore, and art of Japan, also in proverbs and idioms of the Japanese language. The "three wise monkeys", who warn people to "see no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil" were originally Japanese macaques. Their conservation status is "Least Concern" (International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN 3.1).

Question submitted to this quiz by Phoenix Rising team member 1nn1.

Answer: Sable

Like the sable (Martes zibellina), the Japanese marten (Martes melampus), belongs to the marten genus of the family Mustelidae. This slender-bodied, long-tailed mammal, with dark brown to yellowish-brown fur and a cream-colored throat, is a denizen of Japan's evergreen forests, where it plays an essential role in seed dispersal. In fact, the Japanese marten - like most of its close relatives - is omnivorous, and eats fruits and seeds as well as smaller animals and insects. The nominate subspecies is found on the islands of Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku, while another subspecies (Martes melampus tsuensis) lives on the island of Tsushima, in the Korea Strait. In the late 1940s, the Japanese marten was also introduced in the south of Hokkaido.

Though the Japanese marten is classified by IUCN as Least Concern (2015), and the population trend appears to be stable, the logging industry threatens its preferred forest habitat. In order to draw attention to this animal's vulnerability, the Tsushima subspecies of the Japanese marten was named a Natural Monument Species in 1971, and is now legally protected. In 1972, a law was also passed to protect Japanese marten females from being trapped for their fur.

The ferret and the badger are also members of the family Mustelidae, while the mongoose belongs to the family Herpestidae, which is only very distantly related in spite of a superficial physical resemblance.

This question sneaked softly into the quiz while LadyNym was not looking.

Answer: Green pheasant

The green pheasant (Phasianus versicolor) is also called the Japanese green pheasant. This omnivore is endemic to the Japanese archipelago and was designated kokucho (the national bird) in 1947. The birds are sexually dimorphic: males (cocks) have red faces and dark green bodies with long tails. Females (hens) are smaller, light brown with black spots and have shorter tails. Green pheasants are found on Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu and some of Japan's smaller islands, where its habitat is woodlands, forest edges, brush and grassland. Their diet includes worms, insects, grains and plants.

These animals have long been seen as a food source. The conservation status of green pheasants in Japan is "least concern" on the IUCN red list (2016). Numbers are decreasing, but populations are not fragmented. Birds can be hunted under license and kept in captivity.

Green pheasants have found their way into Japanese literature, where they are held in high esteem. The sorrowful cries of male and female birds for one another are a metaphor for love in classical poetry. There is also a belief in some quarters that green pheasants react to earthquakes and scream during seismic events.

Phoenix Rising's resident Kiwi, psnz, nestled this question into the quiz.

Answer: Yes

The Ryukyu Islands form a chain stretching from south of Kyushu in a south-westerly direction nearly to Taiwan. The Okinawa habu (Protobothrops flavoviridis) is found in the southern section of this chain. Typically growing to 120-150 cm or 4-5 ft (although individuals nearly twice that length have been found), these pet vipers have a potent venom delivered via hollow fangs designed to inject this venom deep into the intended prey. Often found near civilization, especially cultivated fields, these nocturnal hunters largely feed on mice and other rodents and even boldly enter homes and other structures searching for this food. Despite the high potency of the venom, the many bites to humans are rarely fatal but can cause ongoing health issues if not treated. In 1910, the Asian mongoose was introduced to Okinawa with the intention of reducing the population of this snake whose IUCN conservation status is LC (Least Concern) despite falling numbers. Also on Okinawa, the snake is harvested to make a sake-type alcoholic liquor called awamori, which ostensibly has medicinal properties.

This question was introduced to this quiz by Phoenix Rising member MikeMaster99 who has no intention of ever trying awamori!

Answer: Fish

Koi is a Japanese term for 'carp' but these fish are more correctly called nishikigoi or 'brocaded carp'. 'Koi' is a homophone for a different word that means 'affection' or 'love'. As such, koi are symbols of love and/or friendship in Japan. There are colored varieties of Cyprinus rubrofuscus which are kept by the Japanese and other cultures for decorative purposes in outdoor ponds or water features. They can be white, black, red, orange, yellow, blue, brown, cream, gold or silver-white.

Originally from China, with documents stating they were known in the fifth century BC, they were domesticated as a food fish. Their ability to adapt to a variety of conditions means they could tolerate the cooler temperatures of Japan where they have been known at least as far back as 720 AD. The color development occurred in Japan as the rest of world had not seen a colored variety when Niigata koi were exhibited at an annual exposition in Tokyo.

They are often thought of as goldfish but these are a separate species, Carassius auratus, which originated in China over a thousand years ago. The conservation status of koi is domesticated.

Question submitted to this quiz by Phoenix Rising team member 1nn1.

Answer: Seed disperser

Located about 1,000 km (620 mi) south of Tokyo, the Bonin Islands (also known as Ogasawara Islands), are part of Micronesia. Because of their unique ecology, the islands have been nicknamed "the Galápagos of the Orient", and were designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011.

The Bonin white-eye (Apalopteron familiare), formerly known as the Bonin honeyeater, is the only member of its genus, and one of two restricted-range species of birds found in the archipelago. This small, yellow-and-green songbird, with a distinctive black triangular patch around each of its eyes, was once widely distributed throughout the Bonin Islands, but at present is only found on the island of Hahajima and two nearby islands. Forests are the Bonin white-eye's preferred habitat, where it can easily find the foods that form most of its diet: though it also feeds on insects, spiders, and small reptiles, fruits, seeds, flowers and nectar form more than half of this bird's diet. Among its favorite foods is one of the islands' endemic plants, the Bonin mulberry (Morus boninensis). Indeed, the Bonin white-eye's importance for the dispersal of seeds of native flora cannot be overstated.

Unfortunately, the Bonin white-eye is threatened with habitat loss, due in particular to the clearance of primary forests. Its tendency to feed on the ground also puts it at risk of predation by introduced species, such as cats and rats. Protected by Japanese law as a National Endangered Species, this bird is classified by IUCN as Near-Threatened (2016).

LadyNym let this question fly into the quiz, singing melodiously.

Answer: Cat

Typically around the same size as a domesticated house cat (height of 25 cm or 10 in with a length of 50-60 cm or 20-24 in), the Iriomote cat is actually a 'leopard cat' based on its coloring and taxonomic name (Prionailurus bengalensis iriomotensis). This wild cat has a typical lifespan of 7-8 years and is found solely on the mountainous Iriomote, which is in the Yaeyema Islands, part of the Ryukyu Archipelago, largely in the Okinawa Prefecture. This solitary predator will occasionally pair up during breeding season. Nocturnal hunters, they live near water courses in the subtropical rainforest covering much of the island and typically feed on frogs, birds, lizards, snakes and sometimes fish. The IUCN Conservation Status of the Iriomote cat is "Critically Endangered". The major threats include habitat loss, interbreeding amongst the very small extant population (estimated at only 100 individuals in 2021) and feral domestic cats.

This question was inserted into this quiz by Phoenix Rising member and ailurophile, MikeMaster99, who does not want to see any species disappear into extinction.

Answer: Mammal

The Japanese serow or kamoshika (Capricornis crispus) is a goat-antelope and member of the Mammalia class of animals. Living mostly on Honshu, these animals make their habitat in dense woodland, eating leaves, shoots and acorns. Bushy furred with short, backwards-curving horns, the Japanese serow grows about 81 cm (32 in) tall and weighs in from 30-45 kg (66-99 lb).

Long a hunting target in Japan, by the mid-20th century these animals were nearly extinct through these activities. A 1955 law made the Japanese serow a "Special National Monument" to prevent poaching. This strategy was very successful with animal numbers rebounding dramatically. Complaints by foresters and farmers led to the law's repeal in 1979. Now, kamoshika are protected in conservation areas but culled as a pest elsewhere. Its IUCN Conservation Status is "Least Concern" (2008).

The Japanese serow is considered a living national treasure of the forest. When the Chinese government gifted Japan with a giant panda in 1973, the Japanese responded with two Japanese serow. Like other goat and antelope species, C. crispus is known for its speed and agility. The Yamaha Motor Company's XT 225 motorcycle is marketed as the "Yamaha Serow".

Phoenix Rising member psnz quickly and sure-footedly jumped this question into the quiz.

Answer: It is almost flightless

The Ryukyu Islands lie between the island of Kyushu and Taiwan. The Okinawa rail (Hypotaenidia okinawae) is known there as "Yanbaru kuina" (Yanbaru rail) - Yanbaru being the heavily forested northern part of Okinawa. Like most of its relatives in the large family Rallidae, this medium-sized, olive-brown bird lives and nests on the ground, and is almost flightless, with round, very short wings. It can, however, run quite fast on its strong, bright-red legs, which - together with its equally red bill and eyes - are one of its distinguishing features. The Okinawa rail inhabits the dense evergreen forests that cover Yanbaru, where it feeds on lizards, frogs and other amphibians, snails, and large insects.

As has become all too common, this species is threatened by habitat loss caused by logging, road-building, and other human activities that encroach on forested land. Introduced species such as cats and dogs, as well as the small Indian mongoose, which was introduced on Okinawa in the early 20th century to control the population of venomous habu snakes (see Q.4) - are also a danger to this ground-dwelling bird. Habu also prey on the Okinawa rail's eggs and young. Though the species is legally protected in Japan, and Yanbaru has been a national park since 2016, the Okinawa rail is classified by IUCN as Endangered (2020), and its numbers are decreasing.

LadyNym ran very fast - as if pursued by a predator - in order to complete this question.

Answer: Salmon

Anadromous fish migrate to sea after being born in freshwater and then only return to freshwater to spawn. Most members of the Salmonidae family (salmon) are anadromous, however, some species such as the Kirichuri char (also frequently called charr) remain in freshwater all their lives. This fish is only found in streams of the Kii Peninsula in Honshu. Much of its diet consists of insects including crickets and grasshoppers which move into the water to flee parasitic infection. The conservation status is listed as 'Endangered' by the IUCN, resulting from its very small range (solely the headwater streams of the Totsu River), habitat loss, recreational fishing, and interbreeding with the related, but introduced, white spotted char.

This question has been lured into the quiz by MikeMaster99 who, unlike these fish, is not overly enamored by the prospect of eating nematode-laden insects!