Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park

Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park (下北半島国定公園, Shimokita-hantō Kokutei Kōen) is a quasi-national park in the Shimokita Peninsula of Aomori Prefecture in the Tōhoku region of far northern Honshū in Japan. It is rated a protected landscape (category V) according to the IUCN.^[2] The park, consists of several discontinuous locations, which include:

• the volcanic peaks and caldera lakes of the Osorezan Mountain Range and surrounding forests.
• Yagen Valley, with its hot springs
• the coastal rock formations of Hotokegaura on the west coast of Shimokita Peninsula
• Cape Ōma, the northernmost point of Honshū
• Cape Shiriya, the northeasternmost point Honshū and the Sarugamori Sand Dunes
• Taijima, an island off the coast of Wakinosawa

Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park
下北半島国定公園
IUCN category V (protected landscape/seascape)
Hotoke-ga-ura
Shimokita Hanto Quasi-National Park in Japan Show map of Aomori Prefecture Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park (Japan) Show map of Japan
Location	Honshū, Japan
Nearest city	Mutsu
Coordinates	41°31′33″N 140°55′25″E
Area	18,728 hectares (72.31 sq mi)
Established	July 22, 1968
Governing body	Aomori, prefectural governments [1]

The park also encompasses a portion of the natural habitat of the Japanese macaque. The mountainous interior is forested with Siebold's beech and Nootka cypress, and coastal areas have stands of tilia and oak.^[3] The area was designated a quasi-national park on July 22, 1968.

The borders of the park span the municipalities of Mutsu, Higashidōri, Sai, and Ōma.^[4]

Like all Quasi-National Parks in Japan, Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park is managed by the local prefectural government.^[1]

Gallery

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See also

• List of national parks of Japan

References

• Southerland, Mary and Britton, Dorothy. The National Parks of Japan. Kodansha International (1995). ISBN 4-7700-1971-8

1. "National Park systems: Definition of National Parks". National Parks of Japan. Ministry of the Environment of the Government of Japan. Archived from the original on 2011-03-23. Retrieved 2008-08-29.
2. "Shimokita Hanto". World Database on Protected Areas. United Nations Environment Programme, World Conservation Monitoring Center. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
3. "List of Quasi-national Parks". Official Home Page of the Ministry of the Environment. Ministry of the Environment Government of Japan. 1994-03-31. Retrieved 2009-10-05.
4. 下北半島国定公園 [Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park] (in Japanese). Aomori Prefecture. Retrieved 23 August 2012.

External links

• Media related to Shimokita Hanto Quasi-National Park at Wikimedia Commons
• Maps of Shimokita Hantō Quasi-National Park