Coastal Area 10202 Okhotsk coast

Basic Information References

Reason(s) for selection Criteria

Characteristics References

These massive sandy shores, including numerous natural beaches, extend along the Sea of Okhotsk coast from Monbetsu to the Shiretoko Peninsula (not including Cape Notoro). One feature that makes these sandy shores distinctive is the intermittent string of coastal lakes extending east from the city of Monbetsu, including Lake Komuke, Lake Shibunotsunai, Lake Saroma, Lake Notoro, Lake Mokoto, Lake Tofutsu, and others. The coastal areas of these lakes are highly diverse (Suda, personal communication). Their bird populations are particularly diverse, including numerous Laridae such as slaty-backed gull, glaucous-winged gull, black-legged kittiwake, and others, and raptors such as Steller's sea eagle, osprey, peregrine falcon, and others. The vicinity of Lake Komuke sees large populations of numerous species during the spring and fall migrations of Scolopacidae Rafinesque and plovers, and at least 1% of the minimum estimated population of the red-necked phalarope and at least 0.25% of those of the lesser sand plover, Numenius phaeopus, and dunlin have been recorded here (Ministry of the Environment, 2001). Communities of common glasswort are visible in the coastal areas near the coastal lakes, as are Zostera caespitosaand Zostera japonica eel grass beds. Lake Saroma in particular is home to Japan’s largest lagoon eel grass beds, and there are remains of oyster reefs on the lake bottom. It is an important habitat for the Japanese scallop, Hokkai shrimp, oyster, and others (Ministry of the Environment, 2001). Also to be seen are mammals such as the ringed seal, ribbon seal, spotted seal, and others, and in the river mouth areas there are Dolly Varden trout, three-spined stickleback (swimming downstream to the sea) and others. In the winter, numerous pinnipeds and raptors can be seen as ice floes approach the coast. The ice floes also give the area a unique, highly productive environment. Offshore, the Okhotsk dichothermal water layer results in increased productivity (Suda et al., 2000; Hiwatari et al., 2003; Suda et al., 2004; Hiwatari et al., 2004; Hiwatari et al., 2005; Suda et al., 2005).