Introduction |
In the current
renewal of interest in global biodiversity, the complex and threatened
floras and faunas of tropical regions of the world have received
considerable attention. In contrast, certain temperate and boreal biotas
have been ignored, despite high biotic diversity, the absence of basic
taxonomic information, and the threat of plant and animal extinctions. Of
all such northern regions, the islands of the Kuril Archipelago probably
stand out most as being "biologically unknown" and, at the same time, in
danger of over exploitation. A chain of more than 56 islands, the system
is only slightly smaller than the Hawaiian Islands, covering an area of
15,600 square km and providing 2,409 km of coastline. Stretching 1,200 km
between Hokkaido, the northernmost island of Japan, and the Russian
peninsula of Kamchatka (from 43 to 51 degrees N latitude), the Kurils
divide the Sea of Okhotsk from the Pacific Ocean and form the northern
extension of an insular arc that originates in the Ryukyu and Mariana
archipelagos to the south and continues as the Aleutian Islands to the
north and east. All of the Kurils are volcanic in origin, ranging in age from
Upper Cretaceous to Late Pleistocene; each island has its own unique
geological and biological history. Substantial opportunities for in
situ diversification are provided by great distances between the
islands and mainland source biotas and by significant barriers to plant and
animal dispersal (e.g., deep channels between islands, associated with
strong ocean currents).
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![](../Img/kurilmap.gif)
Location of the Kuril Archipelago (red) in the Western
North Pacific Ocean.
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The geographic
remoteness and inaccessibility of the Kurils (Russian publications refer
to the islands as "the end of the world"; e.g., Pushkar, 1960: 172;
Shurtakov, 1962: 12, 1971: 114), combined with extreme environmental
conditions, have discouraged human visitation. Storms, volcanic
eruptions, earthquakes, and tidal waves; blistering winter winds
alternating with impenetrable summer fogs; ravenous swarms of mosquitoes
and foul smelling masses of floating seaweed all have contributed to make
the Kuril Archipelago one of the least known corners of the earth
(Stephan, 1974: vii, 11-12).
Although described
historically as "hideous," "uninhabitable," "fog-smothered and noxious,"
made up of nothing but "dreary rocks, destitute of verdure" (e.g., La
Perouse, 1799: 68), the Kurils offer a spectacular ruggedness that is
difficult to match. Located along one of the most volatile sections of
the Pacific "rim of fire," the Kurils contain over 100 volcanos, 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). Hot beaches, where local residents cook food in the
sand, hot springs, boiling crater lakes, and bubbling fields of sulfur,
contrast strikingly with deep hidden fjords, glassy crater lakes, dense
virgin forests of silver fir, and giant grasses, including wild bamboo
(Milne, 1879: 340; Efremov, 1951: 38, 46, 145; Stephan, 1974: 12, 17;
pers. obs., July-August 1994).
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![](../Img/volcano.gif)
Klyucherskaya Sopka in eruption, Kamchatka
Peninsula.
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Climatically, the
various parts of the Kuril Archipelago are highly variable. The
northernmost islands of the arc (e.g., Shumshu and Paramushir) are almost
Arctic, while the southern islands (Kunashir and Iturup) contain pockets
that are nearly subtropical. Consequently the flora of the islands is
variable as well. Extending over eight degrees of latitude, the arc is
divided into distinct botanical zones (Stephan, 1974: 17). Tundra
dominates in the northern zone (Shumshu to Shiashkotan), with only a
scattering of stunted pines, birches, and assorted scrub. The central
zone (Lovushki to Simushir) has the poorest vegetation, some of the
smaller members consisting of little more than rocky protuberances that
support only lichens, mosses, and a few species of bushes. The southern
zone (Urup to Kunashir and the Habomais) possesses a relatively rich
flora due to warm ocean currents and abundant rainfall; in addition to
coniferous and mixed forests of birch and spruce, there are linden, ash,
oak, and maple trees in protected pockets.
Plants normally
associated with more temperate regions make unexpected appearances on the
southern Kurils. Shikotan is partly covered with rich deciduous forests,
with an abundance of raspberries, strawberries, apples, and nuts. Wild
bamboo, attaining a height of 4 m, grows nearly everywhere on Iturup
and Kunashir. Magnolia trees bloom every summer on Kunashir. Silvervine
(Actinidia), normally found only in the tropics, and giant parasol-shaped
plants (Angelica ursina) populate the lush recesses of Iturup and
Kunashir.
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![](../Img/forest.gif)
IKIP 1995 expedition party in forest on Kunashir, with
Michael S. Yamashita, photographer,
and Charles E. Cobb, writer, on assignment with the National Geographic
Society.
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Very little published
information can be found on the fauna of the Kurils; general statements
about the larger mammals, marine birds, and commercially important fishes
(salmon and cod) and crustaceans (king crab) are the only exceptions.
Brown bears, wolves, squirrels, and snowshoed hares inhabit the larger
islands. Tens of thousands of sea otters, fur seals, and sea lions once
populated the chain, but today only small colonies exist on the central
islands. The literature records more than 170 species of birds (but some
unpublished estimates are as high as 280; see "Rationale and
Scope--Birds"). Island rivers
seasonally overflow with salmon, and offshore waters support abundant
populations of cod, mackerel, and ocean perch. King crab from Kunashir
and Iturup are still harvested in large quantities.
Although the general
outlines of the flora and fauna of the Kurils can be summarized (as has
been done above), more detailed information is nonexistent or
unpublished; what little is published is confined to the Russian and, to
a lesser extent, the Japanese scientific literature. Little systematic
collecting has ever been done, and since the close of World War II, no
non-Russian biologists have done any work of significance. With the
exception of a few Russian collections (e.g., those of the various
institutes of the Russian Academy of Sciences at Vladivostok, Magadan,
St. Petersburg, Moscow, Novosibirsk, and Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), museum
samples of plants and animals originating from the Kurils are unavailable
and frozen tissues are completely non-existent (whole samples and tissues
collected by us in the southern Kurils in July and August 1994 are a
notable exception). The biota is a mix of Japanese, Kamchatkan, and
endemic species, but the biodiversity of the islands, relative to each
other and to the mainland, is unknown. Limited coastal regions of several
of the larger, more strategically positioned islands have been heavily
impacted since the close of World War II by the construction of Russian
military installations and the more recent growth of fishing villages but,
otherwise, the islands remain undisturbed (pers. obs., July-August
1994). Only six are currently inhabited.
Politically, the Kuril
Islands have been for decades the focus of bitter dispute between Japan,
the Former Soviet Union, and now the Russian Republic. The Archipelago
was originally settled by the Russians, following its exploration in the
17th and 18th centuries. In 1855, however, Japan seized a group of the
southern islands and in 1875 took possession of the entire chain. In
1945, as part of the Yalta agreements, the islands were ceded to the
Soviet Union, and the Japanese population was repatriated and replaced by
Soviets. Japan still claims historical rights to the four southernmost
islands (which they call the Northern Territories) and although the
Soviet Union and Japan normalized relations in 1956, the dispute over the
Kurils has prevented the signing of a peace treaty between the two
nations. The controversy presently stands as the primary stumbling block
to Russia's recent bid for much needed financial assistance from Japan.
The current unstable
political situation, particularly as it affects the "disputed" southern
Kurils, makes this a crucial time to carry out a detailed survey of the
biota of these islands (see "Rationale and Scope--
Urgency").
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