Amami's Rivers

The rivers of Amami are also habitats essential to diverse aquatic life. Numbers of precious plants such as Amami violets (Viola amamiana) grow wild along mountain streams that also shelter 9 species of frog, including the Amami Oshima frog. Nearby lurk the pit viper species who live on the frogs.
The central basin is the habitat of the endemic Plecoglossus altivelis ryukyuensis that has evolved in isolation for over 1 million years. At the mouth of the Sumiyo and Yakugachi rivers, wide swaths of mangroves spread across the second-largest area in Japan. Known as the "cradle of life," this habitat boasts a diverse array of organisms.