Tori Shima
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Tori Shima or Torishima (鳥島) means Bird Island in Japanese. There are several islands so named, this article is on the Tori Shima at the south end of the Izu Islands (Nanpo Shoto), just north of the Bonin Islands, sometimes called Izu Tori Shima to distinguish it from the others. It is the breeding ground of the endangered short tailed albatross, as well as the black footed albatross. For other Tori Shimas, see Minami Tori Shima (South Bird Island) or Marcus Island, Okino Tori Shima (Remote Bird Island), and Okinawa-Torishima [1] (Bird Island in Okinawa Prefecture), which is the Tori Shima mentioned in the history of military operations near Okinawa. This last was also called Iwo Tori Shima (Iōtorishima) [2] or Iwoutori Shima[3](Sulfur Bird Island) when it was a major source of sulfur for the kingdom of Okinawa. A very small Tori Shima is located in Karatsu, Saga-ken, Kyushu, next to Karatsu Castle. [4]
Izu Tori Shima, along with the other Izu Islands, is officially part of Tokyo. The islands form part of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park. The entire island is a single volcano, which is still active and which has erupted several times. The eruptions of 1902, 1939 and 2002 were especially significant. The island was occupied prior to 1902, but was never resettled after everyone was killed by the eruption then. Now it is a bird sanctuary and can only be visited by research scientists with special permission. Tour boats which take people around the island to view the birds are popular.
[edit] References
- Tori Shima Location and description of island and volcano.
- Tori Shima Enlargement of the excellent aerial photo of the island from the south in the previous link.
- Inhabitants of Island All Killed by Volcano. All 150 residents killed by 1902 eruption.
- Izu Torishima Photos during and after 2002 eruption.
- Short Tailed Albatross
- Tori Shima from the north
- More photos at Japanese Wikipedia
