Japan

Japan is an island nation off the east coast of Asia. It is made up of a large archipelago that stretches in a north-east-south-west arc for about 2,400 km in the western Pacific Ocean. Almost all of the land area is taken up by the four main islands of the country. Running from north to south, these are Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu. In addition, there are a number of smaller islands. The capital, Tokyo, is located in east-central Honshu, and is one of the most populous cities in the world. Japan has a rugged landscape, with mountains covering more than four-fifths of the land surface. There are several active and dormant volcanoes, including Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan at 3 776 meters. The islands of Japan cover a wide range of climate zones. As a result, despite Japan's isolation from the Asian mainland, its wildlife is highly diverse. North of the Blakiston’s Line in the north of the country, there are a number of subarctic species that have introduced into Japan from the north. Species typical of tropical regions in south-east Asia are found in the south. The temperate zone, which shares many species with China and Korea, lies between these areas. Japan is also home to many endemic species which do not occur anywhere else in the world, and is home to many endangered and rare species. The country is home to around 130 species of land mammals, more than 600 species of birds, many of them are endemic, around 73 species of reptiles of which nearly half are endemic, and more than 40 species of amphibians.