Flora and Fauna
Mount Apoi is known for endemic alpine plant life, such as Callianthemum miyabeanum (ヒダカソウ, Hidaka-sō?). The Hidaka Mountains are also one of last refuges of the Hokkaido Bear (Ursus arctos yesoensis) and Hokkaido Deer (Cervus nippon yesoensis).
The mountains can be divided into four zones. The topmost zone (1400–1600 m) is colonized by Siberian Dwarf Pine and other alpine flora. From 1200–1300 m is occupied by Betula ermanii. The zone above 500 m is occupied by Picea jezoensis and Abies sachalinensis along with broad-leafed trees. The lowest zone below 500 m is occupied by broad-leafed trees, including Quercus mongolica, Acer pictum subsp. mono and Cercidiphyllum japonicum.
Resident bird species include Hazel Grouse, Black Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, White-backed Woodpecker, Goldcrest, Eurasian Treecreeper, and Spotted Nutcracker. Summer visitors to the Hidaka Mountains include Japanese Accentor, Siberian Blue Robin, Japanese Robin, Red-flanked Bluetail, Siberian Thrush, Eastern Crowned Warbler, Narcissus Flycatcher, Blue-and-White Flycatcher, Dark-sided Flycatcher, Grey Bunting, and Eurasian Bullfinch. Notable bird species that transit the Hidaka mountains are Arctic Warbler and Eyebrowed Thrush.
Read more about this topic: Hidaka Mountains
Famous quotes containing the words flora and/or fauna:
“A man’s interest in a single bluebird is worth more than a complete but dry list of the fauna and flora of a town.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The whole fauna of human fantasies, their marine vegetation, drifts and luxuriates in the dimly lit zones of human activity, as though plaiting thick tresses of darkness. Here, too, appear the lighthouses of the mind, with their outward resemblance to less pure symbols. The gateway to mystery swings open at the touch of human weakness and we have entered the realms of darkness. One false step, one slurred syllable together reveal a man’s thoughts.”
—Louis Aragon (1897–1982)