Location and General Description
Stretching 1,200 km between Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan, and the Russian peninsula of Kamchatka (from 43? to 51?N latitude), the Kurile Islands divide the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean. The Kurile Islands are a chain of more than 56 islands, some rising to nearly 2,300 m, and contain over 100 volcanoes; 39 of which are currently active (some emitting a constant flow of lava, others producing periodic explosions and violent ejections of toxic gases, ash, and molten rock). Boiling crater lakes, and bubbling fields of sulfur contrast strikingly with deep hidden fjords, glassy crater lakes, dense forests of silver fir, and giant grasses, including wild bamboo. The geology of the area is described as being within the Alpine folding zone of the Pacific Ocean Geosyncline (Nalivkin 1960) and is largely the result of subduction by the Pacific Plate under the Eurasian Plate. Most of the islands date from the miocen-pliocene (?) and mid-pleistocene. Extending over eight degrees of latitude, the arc is divided into distinct botanical zones. Near-arctic tundra dominates in the northern zone (Shumshu to Shiashkotan islands), with only a scattering of stunted pines, birches, and assorted scrub. The central zone (Lovushki to Simushir islands) has the poorest vegetation, with islands consisting of little more than rocky protuberances that support only lichens, mosses, and a few species of bushes.
The most distinctive feature of the Kurile Islands is its diversity. The flora consists of at least in 556 genera and 135 families; at least 14 species are thought to be endemic. About 3,000 species of insects have been recorded, but the true number is probably well in excess of this figure. Among freshwater mollusks, nine bivalves (one endemic) and eight gastropods (two endemic) are known. Numerous shoals of fish congregate here, both from the moderately cold and subtropical waters. Fish from the colder waters include the walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma), cod (Gadus morrhua), mackerel (Scomber scomber), flounder, halibut (Hippoglossus hippoglossus), and salmon (Onchorhynchus); subtropical species include the Pacific saury (Cololabis saira), sardines (Sardina), tuna (Thunnus), and Japanese mackerel. Other species such as crab, shrimp, sea urchin, squid, sea slugs, and scallops are also abundant. At least 48 species of freshwater fishes (including anadromous forms) are found in freshwater habitats adjacent to the Kurile Islands, but only 18 species are known to occur on the Archipelago itself.
Seven species of amphibians and reptiles are recorded from the Kurile Islands: one salamander, two frogs the Asiatic Toad (Bufo gargarizans), Siberian Wood Frog (Rana amurensis), and Dybovsky’s Frog (Rana dybowskii), one skink, and three snakes.
Estimates of the numbers of bird species are approximately 153 for this region. Birds with restricted range include the spotted redshank (Tringa erythropus), Jananese Robin (Erithacus akahige), Bull-headed Strike (Lanius bucephalus), and the Forest Wagtail (Motacilla lutea).
have been recorded from the Kurile Islands: six insectivores, six chiropterans, nine carnivores, nine rodents, and one lagomorph. At least four undescribed species of rodents have been identified. Most of the estimated 5,500 pinnipeds inhabiting the southern Kurile Islands-Hokkaido region are currently concentrated in the waters around Kunashir and the Small Kurile Chain where their main rookeries, habitats, and breeding grounds are found. These animals include Steller's sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) and a subspecies of the harbor seals (Phoca vitulina Kurilensis) (both listed in the Russian and IUCN Red Data Books), largha seals (Phoca vitulina largha), and a subspecies of sea otter (Enhydra lutris kurilensis).
Kurilsky Zapovednik (strict nature reserve), located with the region, was primarily established to protect the breeding grounds of seals and consists of three parts: the northern and southern sites are located on Kunashir Island, the southernmost island of Big Kurile Chain, while the third site lies on Demina and Oskolki Islands, two rocky islands in the Small Kurile Chain. The zapovednik's territory also encompasses the Maliye Kuriley Zakaznik (special purpose preserve), located on Shikotan Island and on several large islands of the Small Kurile Chain. The total area administered by the zapovednik is 151,840 hectares. (The core area is 65,365 hectares, the buffer zone 41,475 hectares, and the zakaznik 45,000 hectares).
Types and Severity of Threats
The convergence of warm and cold sea currents in close proximity to the southern Kurile Islands has made it one of the richest fishing zones in the world. As a result, moderate levels of fishing have escalated to an uncontrolled plundering of the sea with enormous quantities of crab, shrimp, squid, and sea urchin from the southern Kurile Islands region going directly to Japan. In order to help thwart poaching, a marine buffer zone was extended from both sections of Kurilsky Zapovednik on Kunashir Island in 1996 (Russian Conservation News, Biodiversity Briefing 2).
Justification of Ecoregion Delineation
This ecoregion in the Far East of Russia encompasses the broadleaf forests at the southwest tip of Sakhalin, and the Kurile Islands of Kunashir, Iturup and Shikotan. Ecoregion boundaries correspond to the southern subzone of polydominant-thermophylic forests in the Sakhalin-Kurile province in Kurnaev’s (1990) forest map of the USSR.
Much of the information contained in this ecoregion description comes from the home page for the International Kurile Island Project, administered by the University of Washington, Seattle, USA. Please see http://artedi.fish.washington.edu/ikip/ for details.
Nalivkin, D. V. 1960. The geology of the U.S.S.R. A short outline. UK: Pergamon Press. Oxford.
Prepared by: John Pearce