National ParkPatrimonio Mundial UNESCOReserva de la Biosfera

Yakushima

Japan · East Asia (Kyushu)

East Asia (Kyushu)Declared in 2012107 km²

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Forests of Japanese cedar (yakusugi) up to 7,000 years old, among the oldest living trees on the planet

Area

107 km²

Declared in

2012

Region

East Asia (Kyushu)

Climate

Tropical, Templado, Polar / frío

Best time

March to May

Polar World Heritage Biosphere Reserve

Plan your visit

Best time: March to May
Area: 107 km²

Highlight

Forests of Japanese cedar (yakusugi) up to 7,000 years old, among the oldest living trees on the planet

Protected since 1964 as part of another park, Yakushima became a national park in its own right in 2012. The island is celebrated for its yakusugi, Japanese cedars (Cryptomeria japonica) whose growth is extraordinarily slow on rocky, nutrient-poor ground, which has let some of them reach estimated ages of up to 7,000 years — among the oldest individual living things documented anywhere. The most famous, the Jomon Sugi, found in 1966, gave its name to and helped inspire the look of the enchanted forests in Studio Ghibli's films, Princess Mononoke above all. It was one of Japan's first inscriptions on the UNESCO World Heritage list, in 1993.

Location

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67 species documented in Yakushima

8 Mammals3 Birds4 Reptiles1 Amphibians4 Cartilaginous fish22 Fish2 Bivalvia5 Anthozoa5 Gastropoda5 Malacostraca2 Asteroidea2 Polychaeta1 Turbellaria2 Holothuroidea1 Cephalopoda

At conservation risk:Tortuga boba,Tortuga verde,Almeja gigante,Caballito de mar amarillo,Chucho pintado,Manta de arrecife,Pepino de mar (sandfish),Pez vela del Indo-Pacífico,Tiburón punta negra de arrecife,Tiburón zorro