An excerpt from Biodiversity Briefings #2, Focused on the Kurile Islands

by Irina Nevedomskaya

The Islands

In Russia's Far East, the long string of the Kurile Islands divides the frigid Sea of Okhotsk from the vast Pacific Ocean. The name of these islands serves as a constant reminder of the Ainu people who settled here several thousand years ago. These people called the islands Ainumosiri, the land of the Ainu, or land of the people. They called themselves the Kur, and thus the islands came to be named the Kuriles. To this day, all the major Kurile Islands have preserved the names given them by the Ainu people. For example, Kunashir means "black earth" in the Ainu language, perhaps originating from the dark hue the coniferous forests give the island; Shikotan means "better settlement." The Ainu lived in harmony with nature, barely disturbing the unique environment in which they lived. Throughout the centuries the islands have remained primarily intact and today certain sections are preserved in Kurilsky Zapovednik.

Kurilsky Zapovednik, the first nature reserve to appear in the Sakhalin Oblast, has just recently celebrated its fifteenth anniversary (it was established on February 10, 1984). The Zapovednik consists of three separate 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 ha. (The core area is 65,365 ha, the buffer zone 41,475 ha, and the Zakaznik 45,000 ha).

Although the island area is small, the species diversity here is remarkable. In all, 1,215 species of vascular plants (ferns, gymnosperms, and angiosperms) are found on the southern Kurile Islands, 1,045 of which grow on Kunashir. Thirty-four vascular plants as well as 5 species of mushrooms, 4 species of lichens, and 4 species of mosses are listed in the Russian and IUCN Red Data Books (please see accompanying graph and box). The variety of birds is also extraordinary. About 260 species, primarily seabirds and raptors, can be found here during the course of the year, and approximately 21 species are included in the Russian Red Data Book.

The Sea

The extremely productive coastal areas off the Kurile Islands provide specific habitats for a multitude of plant and animal species. Red and brown algae grow in a thick carpet up to three kilometers in width around the shores of the islands in the Small Kurile chain. The largest plantation of agar-bearing ahnfeltia seaweed in Russia and the world is located in the Gulf of Izmena on Kunashir Island. A wealth of varied invertebrates, many of which are little-known, also inhabit these waters.

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); the Largha Seals (Phoca vitulina largha); and a subspecies of the sea otter (Enhydra lutris Kurilensis).

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. 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 (Salmo); 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.

Since the establishment of Kurilsky Zapovednik, the distribution of marine products use from this region has undergone a major change: in 1996 Japanese ports began to accept sea products caught by Russian ships. 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.

Unaware of any political boundaries, sea species reproduce and roam the waters of the southern Kurile Islands and around northeast Hokkaido, with the entire ocean opening up before them. Thus, it is essential that Russia and Japan take a joint approach toward conservation and sustainable management of the sea's biological resources.

Yet are the Russian and Japanese governments really concerned about conserving this region? We don't know. Therefore, it is extremely important to nominate part of the southern Kurile Islands (Kurilsky Zapovednik and the natural monuments of Kunashir) as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Recognition as a World Heritage Site would guarantee protection for the unique natural ecosystems of the southern Kurile Islands regardless of political boundaries.

Irina Nevedomskaya is a scientist at Kurilsky Zapovednik.