Examine individual changes

'{{Short description|Island within Ryukyu Islands}} {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2021}} {{[https://iasnext.com/iriomote-island-place-in-news-current-affairs-upsc/ Infobox islands] | name = Iriomote Island | native_name = 西表島 | image_name = Map-Iriomote.png | image_size = | image_caption = Map of Iriomote Island | image_alt = | map_image = Yaeyama map.png | map_caption = Iriomote Island in relation to the other Yaeyama Islands | location = Bordering the [[Pacific Ocean]] and [[East China Sea]], southwest of mainland [[Japan]] and east of [[Taiwan]] | coordinates = {{coord|24|20|24|N|123|48|36|E|region:JP-47_type:isle|display=inline,title}} | archipelago = [[Yaeyama Islands]] | total_islands = | major_islands = | area_km2 = 289.27 | area_footnotes = <ref name=population>{{cite web |url=http://www.pref.okinawa.jp/chiiki_ritou/simajima/iriomote/data_index.html |script-title=ja:知・旅･住 離島総合情報サイト 沖縄のしまじま |trans-title=Know, Travel, Live: Remote Islands General Information Site: Okinawa's Islands |publisher=Okinawa Prefecture |access-date=11 June 2012 |language=ja |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040628033558/http://www.pref.okinawa.jp/chiiki_ritou/simajima/iriomote/data_index.html |archive-date=28 June 2004}}</ref> | rank = | length_km = <!-- or length m --> | length_footnotes = | width_km = <!-- or width m --> | width_footnotes = | coastline_km = 130.0 | coastline_footnotes = <ref name=population /> | elevation_m = 469.5 | elevation_footnotes = | highest_mount = {{nihongo|[[Mt. Komi]]|古見岳|Komi-dake}} | country = Japan | country_admin_divisions_title = Prefecture | country_admin_divisions = [[Okinawa Prefecture]] | country_admin_divisions_title_1 = Town | country_admin_divisions_1 =[[Taketomi, Okinawa]] | population = 2,347 | population_as_of = 2005 | density_km2 = | density_footnotes = | ethnic_groups =[[Ryukyuan people|Ryukyuan]], [[Japanese people|Japanese]] | website = | additional_info = }} {{nihongo|'''Iriomote Island'''|西表島|Iriomote-jima|[[Yaeyama language|Yaeyama]]: ''Irïmutii''; Iriomote: ''Irimutii''; [[Okinawan language|Okinawan]]: ''Iriumuti''}} is the largest of the [[Yaeyama Islands]] of [[Japan]], and the second largest in [[Okinawa Prefecture]] after [[Okinawa Island]] itself. The island has an area of {{cvt|289.27|sqkm}} and a 2005 population of 2,347. The island does not have an airstrip, and most visitors — over 390,000 in 2006 — arrive from [[Ishigaki Island|Ishigaki]] by ferry, a {{cvt|31.4|km}} ride to {{nihongo4|Uwahara Port|上原港}} on Iriomote's northeast coast or {{nihongo4|Ōhara Port|大原港}} on the southeast coast. Administratively the island belongs to [[Taketomi, Okinawa|Taketomi Town]], [[Okinawa Prefecture]].<ref name=population /> Infrastructure is limited to a single coastal road connecting the hamlets on the northern and eastern shores. ==Wildlife== The island is famed for the [[Iriomote cat]], a ''[[Critically Endangered]]'' wild [[Felidae|cat]] found only on Iriomote.<ref name=iucn>{{cite iucn |author=Izawa, M. |year=2008 |title=Prionailurus bengalensis ssp. iriomotensis |url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/details/18151/0}}</ref> {{As of|2007}} the population size is estimated to be 100–109 individuals.<ref name=Ministry_environment>{{cite web |url=http://www.env.go.jp/press/press.php?serial=10060 |script-title=ja:イリオモテヤマネコ生息状況等総合調査（第４次）の結果について（お知らせ） |author=環境省 |language=ja |trans-title=(Fourth) Survey of the State of the Iriomote Cat's Habitat: Regarding the Results (notice) |access-date=10 June 2012}}</ref> The island has a venomous snake—''[[Trimeresurus elegans]]'', known locally as the ''habu'', a species of [[pitviper]] whose bite has a fatality rate of 3% and a permanent disability rate of 6–8%.<ref name="usn1">U.S. Navy (1991). ''Poisonous Snakes of the World''. New York: Dover Publications Inc. {{ISBN|0-486-26629-X}}.</ref> ''[[Satakentia liukiuensis]]'', the only species in the genus ''[[Satakentia]]'', is a palm tree that is [[endemism|endemic]] to the two islands of [[Ishigaki Island|Ishigaki]] and Iriomote in the [[Yaeyama Islands]].<ref name="GP2008">{{cite book |title=Genera Palmarum: The Evolution and Classification of Palms |first1=John |last1=Dransfield |first2=Natalie W. |last2=Uhl |first3=Conny B. |last3=Asmussen |first4=William J. |last4=Baker |first5=Madeline M. |last5=Harley |first6=Carl E. |last6=Lewis |year=2008 |publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew |isbn=978-1-84246-182-2}}</ref> ==Culture== The Iriomote dialect of the [[Yaeyama language]] is spoken by some{{how many|date=August 2019}} people on the island. ==History== The island had few settlements of fishermen and rice growers on the coastal areas, but it never had a large population until the [[Iriomote Coal Mine]] operated between 1889 and 1959. During [[World War II]] some residents of [[Ishigaki Island|Ishigaki]] were forcibly made to take refuge in Iriomote, many of whom contracted malaria. After the war, the [[United States Forces Japan|US Forces in Japan]] eradicated malaria from the island, and the island has been malaria-free since then. The island, together with the rest of Okinawa Prefecture, remained a US-controlled territory until 1972. Iriomote was returned to Japan on June 17, 1972. The possibility exists that a World War II-era U.S. submarine lies in about {{cvt|350|m|ft}} of water off the coast of Iriomote Island. During operations with an Okinawan company using a U.S. made "SCORPIO" ROV in 1995, a group of divers encountered a sonar contact with what appeared to be a metal structure, about {{cvt|6.1|m|ft}} in diameter and about {{cvt|35|m|ft}} in length (exposed) at an angle of roughly 20-30 degrees. The SONAR image of a large unexpected obstruction to the operations prompted the divers to command evasive maneuvers and avoid the area for the safety of the ROV.<ref name="comsubpac">{{cite web |title=USS Snook (SS 279) |url=https://www.csp.navy.mil/ww2boats/snook.htm |publisher=[[Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet]] |access-date=September 21, 2021 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724220126/https://www.csp.navy.mil/ww2boats/snook.htm |archive-date=July 24, 2008}} {{PD-notice}}</ref> The divers, thinking they would have another opportunity to work in the area at a later date, left the area and never returned to that site. Their ROV was lost in 1997 off [[Yonaguni|Yonaguni Island]], the last island belonging to Okinawa off the east coast of Taiwan. They were fairly certain that the object was a submarine, and quite possibly the [[USS Snook (SS-279)|USS ''Snook'']]. No further dives in the area have yet been attempted.<ref name="comsubpac"/> A large volcanic eruption took place at a [[Iriomote submarine volcano|submarine volcano]] north of the island in 1924. It had an estimated [[volcanic explosivity index]] of 5. The island's coast was covered in large quantities of pumice and pumice was also found as far as Hokkaido.<ref name="GVP">{{Cite gvp|id=282010|name=Submarine Volcano NNE of Iriomotejima|title=}}</ref> ==Economy== Apart from tourism, the island economy is sustained by agricultural production, primarily of [[pineapple]], [[sugarcane]], [[mango]], culture pearl growing <ref>{{Cite web |url=http://raden-pearlinlay.com/en/pearlshells |title=Pearl Oysters &#124; 螺鈿と漆芸修業奮闘記 |access-date=2014-10-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006115922/http://raden-pearlinlay.com/en/pearlshells |archive-date=2014-10-06 |url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[fishing]]. ==Geography and climate== [[File:Iriomotejima ISS039.jpg|thumb|A satellite photo of Iriomote Island, April 2014. Iriomote is in the center and there are other small islands surrounding it.]] 90% of the island is covered by dense jungle and [[mangrove]] swamps. 80% of the island is protected state land, and 34.3% of the island forms the [[Iriomote National Park]]. The highest point on the island is [[Mt. Komi]] (古見岳 ''Komidake'') at {{cvt|469.5|m|ft}}. Around {{cvt|21|km|mi}} northwest ({{coord|24.558|N|124.000|E|type:mountain|name=Iriomotejima}}) of Iriomote is an active undersea volcano which last erupted in 1924; the summit is {{cvt|200|m|ft}} below sea level. [[Yubu Island]] lies about 0.5 km east of Iriomote Island. The island's [[Urauchi River]] is the largest river in Okinawa Prefecture, and the smaller [[Nakama River|Nakama]] and [[Nakara River|Nakara]] rivers also flow within the island. Iriomote is also home to Pinaisara Falls, the largest waterfall in Okinawa Prefecture.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.env.go.jp/en/nature/nps/park/parks/iriomote.html |title=Introducing places of interest: Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park (Iriomote) |publisher=[[Ministry of the Environment (Japan)|Ministry of the Environment]] |access-date=11 June 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120527233729/http://www.env.go.jp/en/nature/nps/park/parks/iriomote.html |archive-date=27 May 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Iriomote has a [[tropical rainforest climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification]] ''Af''). The average yearly temperature is {{cvt|23.9|°C|1}}, and the average monthly temperature ranges from {{cvt|18.5|°C|1}} in January to {{cvt|28.9|°C|1}} in July. Iriomote has a typhoon season that, on average, runs from June to September. {{Weather box|width=auto |location = Iriomote (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1954−present) |single line = Y |metric first = Y |Jan record high C = 27.6 |Feb record high C = 27.8 |Mar record high C = 29.7 |Apr record high C = 31.0 |May record high C = 33.1 |Jun record high C = 34.6 |Jul record high C = 35.7 |Aug record high C = 35.0 |Sep record high C = 34.3 |Oct record high C = 33.1 |Nov record high C = 31.2 |Dec record high C = 29.4 |Jan record low C = 6.7 |Feb record low C = 8.3 |Mar record low C = 7.5 |Apr record low C = 10.4 |May record low C = 14.0 |Jun record low C = 16.1 |Jul record low C = 21.0 |Aug record low C = 21.6 |Sep record low C = 17.8 |Oct record low C = 14.0 |Nov record low C = 11.0 |Dec record low C = 8.9 |Jan high C = 20.9 |Feb high C = 21.6 |Mar high C = 23.1 |Apr high C = 25.5 |May high C = 28.3 |Jun high C = 30.5 |Jul high C = 32.1 |Aug high C = 31.5 |Sep high C = 30.3 |Oct high C = 27.8 |Nov high C = 25.5 |Dec high C = 22.4 |Jan mean C = 18.5 |Feb mean C = 19.0 |Mar mean C = 20.2 |Apr mean C = 22.8 |May mean C = 25.5 |Jun mean C = 27.8 |Jul mean C = 28.9 |Aug mean C = 28.5 |Sep mean C = 27.6 |Oct mean C = 25.4 |Nov mean C = 23.1 |Dec mean C = 20.0 |Jan low C = 16.4 |Feb low C = 16.7 |Mar low C = 17.7 |Apr low C = 20.3 |May low C = 23.1 |Jun low C = 25.8 |Jul low C = 26.5 |Aug low C = 26.1 |Sep low C = 25.2 |Oct low C = 23.4 |Nov low C = 21.0 |Dec low C = 17.9 |precipitation colour = green |Jan precipitation mm = 162.9 |Feb precipitation mm = 146.6 |Mar precipitation mm = 147.3 |Apr precipitation mm = 157.3 |May precipitation mm = 175.6 |Jun precipitation mm = 186.3 |Jul precipitation mm = 128.8 |Aug precipitation mm = 282.0 |Sep precipitation mm = 270.8 |Oct precipitation mm = 213.1 |Nov precipitation mm = 192.3 |Dec precipitation mm = 176.9 |year precipitation mm = 2240.0 |unit precipitation days = 1.0 mm |Jan precipitation days = 14.1 |Feb precipitation days = 12.0 |Mar precipitation days = 12.0 |Apr precipitation days = 9.9 |May precipitation days = 10.0 |Jun precipitation days = 9.8 |Jul precipitation days = 9.1 |Aug precipitation days = 12.0 |Sep precipitation days = 12.3 |Oct precipitation days = 11.1 |Nov precipitation days = 12.2 |Dec precipitation days = 13.5 |humidity colour= green |Jan humidity = 73 |Feb humidity = 77 |Mar humidity = 77 |Apr humidity = 78 |May humidity = 81 |Jun humidity = 82 |Jul humidity = 81 |Aug humidity = 83 |Sep humidity = 80 |Oct humidity = 75 |Nov humidity = 77 |Dec humidity = 75 |Jan sun = 71.8 |Feb sun = 82.9 |Mar sun = 107.1 |Apr sun = 124.3 |May sun = 165.8 |Jun sun = 203.7 |Jul sun = 256.2 |Aug sun = 218.8 |Sep sun = 184.5 |Oct sun = 139.1 |Nov sun = 97.1 |Dec sun = 70.7 |year sun = 1721.9 |source 1 = [[Japan Meteorological Agency]]<ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/view/rank_s.php?prec_no=91&block_no=47917&year=&month=&day=&view=h0 |script-title=ja:観測史上1～10位の値（年間を通じての値） | publisher = [[Japan Meteorological Agency|JMA]] | access-date = March 23, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url = https://www.data.jma.go.jp/obd/stats/etrn/view/nml_sfc_ym.php?prec_no=91&block_no=47917&year=&month=&day=&view=h0 |script-title=ja:気象庁 / 平年値（年・月ごとの値） | publisher = [[Japan Meteorological Agency|JMA]] | access-date = March 23, 2022}}</ref>}} ==Education== Schools on Iriomote Island are operated by [[Taketomi, Okinawa|Taketomi Town]]. Combined elementary and junior high schools include: <ref name=JHSESlist>{{cite web |url=https://www.town.taketomi.lg.jp/guide/kosodate/elementary_junior/ |title=小中学校・小学校・中学校 |publisher=Taketomi Town |accessdate=2021-07-14}}</ref> * Funauki Elementary and Junior High School<!--English name in https://www.taketomicho-boe.jp/14/--> (竹富町立船浮小中学校) * Iriomote Elementary and Junior High School(竹富町立西表小中学校) Junior high schools include:<ref name=JHSESlist/> * Funaura Junior High School (竹富町立船浦中学校) - {{ill|Uehara, Taketomi, Okinawa|lt=Uehara|ja|上原 (竹富町)}} * Ōhara Junior High School (竹富町立大原中学校) - {{ill|Haemi|ja|南風見}} Elementary schools include:<ref name=JHSESlist/> * Komi Elementary School (竹富町立古見小学校) - {{ill|Komi, Taketomi, Okinawa|lt=Komi|ja|古見 (竹富町)}} * Ohara Elementary School (竹富町立大原小学校) - Haemi * Shirama Elementary School (竹富町立白浜小学校) - Shirahama (白浜) * Uehara Elementary School (竹富町立上原小学校) - Uehara For public senior high school students may attend schools of the [[Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education]]. ==Gallery== <gallery> File:Tudumari-no-hama Iriomote Island Japan10bs4500.jpg|Tsuzumari-no-hama (Tsukigahama Beach) File:Urauchi River Iriomote 2007-04-05.jpg|Urauchi-gawa: the longest river in Okinawa. File:Mariyudo iriomote 2007-04-05.jpg|Mariyudō-no-taki: Waterfall on the Urauchi River. File:Kampire iriomote 2007-04-05.jpg|Kampire-no-taki: A section of the Kampire waterfall on the Urauchi River. File:Pinaisara iriomote 2007-04-05.jpg|Pinaisara-no-taki: Waterfall on the north of the island. File:Iriomote mangrove 2007-04-04.jpg|Mangrove on the Nakama River File:Heritiera littoralis - Sakishimasuo - Iriomote island Japan2.jpg|Sakishimasuou tree: Said to be the biggest and oldest mangrove tree in Japan. File:Hoshizuna-no-hama 2007-04-04.jpg|Hoshizuna-no-hama (Star Sand Beach): Beachcombers looking for star-shaped sand grains. File:Star sand Iriomote.jpg|Star sand from Hoshizuna-no-hama: Abraded calcium-carbonate [[Foraminifera#Tests|tests of foraminifers]] from nearby reefs.<ref>Hohenegger, J., [http://www.okinawa-conference.uni-bonn.de/Hohenegger.htm Larger foraminifera as important calcium-carbonate producers in coral reef environments and constituting the main components of carbonate beach sands; examples from the Ryukyu archipelago.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322145516/http://www.okinawa-conference.uni-bonn.de/Hohenegger.htm |date=2012-03-22 }} Institut für Paläontologie, Universität Wien.</ref> </gallery> ==References== {{reflist}} ==External links== {{Commons category|Iriomotejima}} *{{Wikivoyage-inline}} {{Portal bar|Japan|Islands|Volcanoes|Geography}} {{Authority control}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Iriomote}} [[Category:Islands of Okinawa Prefecture]] [[Category:Yaeyama Islands]]'