Hello, this is Interpreter Takezawa!
Previously, we studied the vegetation of Mount Fuji. Today, we’re shifting gears to learn about the animals that inhabit Mount Fuji.
In everyday conversation, “animals” often refers mainly to mammals. However, the biological definition of “animal” is much broader, including mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians, fish, shellfish, insects, and more.
In this post, we’ll explore the animals of Mount Fuji in the broader sense.
First, it’s important to revisit the natural environment of Mount Fuji.
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The current Mount Fuji is a relatively young mountain, formed by volcanic activity at the end of the last ice age about 10,000 years ago.
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It has repeatedly erupted over the past 10,000 years.
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Above 2,500 meters, most of the area is above the tree line, creating a harsh environment for both plants and animals.
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There’s frequent natural destruction and environmental change due to snowmelt, avalanches, and landslides.
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Most of the rain and snow that falls on Mount Fuji seeps into the ground, leaving little surface water.
With these factors in mind, let’s learn about the animals living in the Mount Fuji area.
Mammals
Let’s start with mammals. Of the approximately 130 species of terrestrial mammals in Japan, about 50 are found on Mount Fuji.
Most are small, nocturnal mammals. Mice, bats, and moles are among the most common.
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In lower-elevation grasslands, you’ll find the harvest mouse and the field mouse, while the Kobe mole and the East Asian mole live underground.
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In the Aokigahara Jukai forest, a dark forest dominated by conifers and covered in lava flows, you’ll find smaller moles like the Japanese shrew mole and the Ezo shrew mole. Mice include the Japanese wood mouse and the Japanese field mouse. Bats like the Japanese horseshoe bat and the Japanese long-fingered bat roost in lava caves.
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Above 2,400 meters in the gravelly areas, you can find the Japanese field mouse. The field mouse, which prefers dry conditions, is also found near the summit.
Mid-sized mammals such as foxes, raccoon dogs, and badgers are found mainly at the foot of Mount Fuji.
As for large mammals, the Sika deer is increasingly common in various regions, including Mount Fuji. There are also a few sightings of the Asiatic black bear each year.
Additionally, the Japanese serow is often seen near the Fifth Stations.
Other well-known terrestrial mammals found in forests and mountains throughout Japan, such as the Japanese squirrel, the Japanese giant flying squirrel, the Japanese marten, and the wild boar, also inhabit Mount Fuji.
However, there’s one well-known mammal that is rarely seen on Mount Fuji. What is it?
The Japanese macaque (monkey)!
It’s well-known that monkeys don’t live on Mount Fuji. Occasionally, monkeys from other mountains may wander over, but they generally don’t inhabit Mount Fuji.
Reasons include the scarcity of nuts and fruits, which serve as food for monkeys, and the lack of rivers and water. But who knows if this is the full story!
Birds
Many wild birds inhabit the Mount Fuji area. There are approximately 600 species of wild birds in Japan today. In the Mount Fuji area, including species that breed and live there, as well as those that migrate seasonally, there are nearly 300 species.
As with plants, birds also exhibit vertical distribution based on altitude.
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In the lowlands and mountainous areas below 1,500 meters, you’ll find species that can be seen around urban areas, such as the jungle crow, the carrion crow, and the Japanese tit, as well as various species seen in forests and mountains across the country, such as the cuckoo, the varied tit, the Japanese leaf warbler, the Japanese bush warbler, the Eurasian jay, and the blue-and-white flycatcher.
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Above 1,500 meters in the subalpine zone, the number of species gradually decreases, and the Japanese robin, the crowned willow warbler, the goldcrest, the coal tit, and the spotted nutcracker become more prominent.
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Above the tree line at 2,500 meters, you’ll find familiar alpine birds such as the alpine accentor, the Japanese accentor, and the Asian house martin.
Compared to plants, the vertical distribution range for birds is naturally much broader.
When considering the broad classification of wild birds in the Mount Fuji area, it also includes waterfowl such as ducks and herons that inhabit lakes and marshes like the Fuji Five Lakes.
Additionally, it’s known that 6 species of owls, excluding those that live in limited areas such as Hokkaido and Okinawa, also inhabit Mount Fuji: the Eurasian eagle-owl, the Japanese scops owl, the boreal owl, the grey-faced buzzard, the short-eared owl, and the long-eared owl.
Insects
Many insects inhabit the Mount Fuji area, mainly in the range of 700 to 1,600 meters above sea level. Below 700 meters, near the foot of the mountain, urbanization, afforestation, and the development of golf courses have destroyed natural forests, resulting in a lack of distinctive insects. Above 1,600 meters, the types and numbers of insects are limited due to the prevalence of coniferous trees or gravelly terrain.
Additionally, alpine butterflies, which are seen in other mountains, are not found on Mount Fuji. This is said to be because Mount Fuji is a relatively young mountain, formed about 10,000 years ago.
The 700 to 1,600 meter zone, where insects thrive most abundantly, is divided into deciduous broadleaf forests and grasslands such as the Asagiri Highlands and the Self-Defense Forces training grounds. In the forest zone, butterflies that live in forests, such as the Fuji green hairstreak and the dusky-wing butterfly, have been confirmed. In the grassland zone, butterflies that live in grasslands, such as the pale clouded yellow and the Fabriciana adippe, have been found.
Other than butterflies, there don’t seem to be many distinctive insects on Mount Fuji.
Of course, beetles like rhinoceros beetles and stag beetles can be found in the Mount Fuji area, but there aren’t many of them, and there are no rare species. Bees, ants, grasshoppers, crickets, dragonflies, and other insects also live there, but there are no particularly unique species.
A notable insect would be the Ezo haruzemi, the Haruzemi, and the Ezozemi, which chirp loudly in the forests at the foot of Mount Fuji from spring to summer. They have similar names, but they are different species!
By the way, cicadas are members of the order Hemiptera (true bugs)… somehow unpleasant.
Freshwater Fish and Amphibians
Since Mount Fuji has no rivers, species are limited to those that live in the Fuji Five Lakes and their surrounding waters.
Representative amphibians include the Japanese common toad and the forest green tree frog.
Native freshwater fish living in the Fuji Five Lakes include the pale chub, the Yamataka loach, the Japanese weatherfish, the Japanese eel, the Japanese dace, and the Japanese common goby.
Introduced species include the wakasagi (Japanese smelt), the carp, the kokanee salmon, the kunimasu salmon, the oilya
