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• The salamanders of the Nawa River Basin and their significance to Japanese Giant Salamander Conservation

• Fund-raising goals of the Save Japanese Giant Salamander Campaign

• Mission

• Objectives

• Current Projects

• Future Goals

• Campaign History

The Nawa River Basin is a unique habitat for the Japanese giant salamander. However, due to human activities their very existence is under threat unless urgent conservation measures, such as the building of dam bypass ramps to allow the salamanders to access their breeding grounds, are taken. Through our efforts and holistic approach, we aim to show the world how special the Japanese giant salamanders are as well as to highlight the special qualities of Mt. Daisen and the unique Nawa River Basin habitat.

The Nawa River basin is a special habitat for the JGS. It is unique in that it has relatively large numbers of JGS at a low altitude (of 100 meters or less) and also so close to the ocean. Elsewhere in Japan only small numbers of salamanders can be found at such low altitudes. The reason for the high concentration of JGS in the Nawa River basin is because of its location on the northern slopes of Mount Daisen, a sacred mountain situated on the Sea of Japan coast. ItThe beech forests on the mountain’s slopes are largely intact and act as important water filters for the surrounding area. Combined with the high annual precipitation, the abundance of nutrient rich water in the rivers, soil and fisheries make Daisen a potential haven for wildlife.

However, according to a leading researcher, if urgent measures are not taken soon the Japanese giant salamanders in this special habitat will die out. Being present at lower altitudes naturally places the salamanders at a closer proximity to humans. Increased development in the basin has led to the rivers and streams being fragmented or blocked by the construction of roads, weirs, and dams. Pollution from agricultural runoff is also effecting the quality (particularly the oxygen levels) of the water in which the salamanders live.

Sustainable Daisen NPO is a Non-profit organisation based in Daisen Town, Tottori Prefecture, Japan. Your donations are of vital importance for us to carry out our vital work of protecting and conserving the Japanese giant salamanders of Daisen Town and beyond.

Our immediate priorities and fundraising goals are:

• Extensive Surveying and Data Collection of the Nawa River Habitat.

  • Professional water quality testing and analysis is of the utmost importance. Extensive testing is required at various points within the river basin to enable us to identify pollutants and their potential sources.

  • Equipment purchase for observational date collection within the river habitat (micro-chip reader, microchips, surveying equipment and waders).

  • Initial Fundraising goal: 2,000,000 yen

• Education Campaign

  • Outreach campaign with schools throughout the region. A professional team will visit elementary, junior high and high schools in Western and Central Tottori

  • Educational material will be made and bought

  • Initial Fundraising goal: 500,000 yen

• Establishment of a Japanese giant salamander reserve and “Satoyama”

  • Plans to make a private reserve in conjunction with local land owners and villagers are already being implemented

  • Fencing and practical land management steps including repair of a small bridge are needed

  • Ongoing management of the area is required

  • Initial Fundraising goal: 1,000,000 yen

• Legal and administrative costs

  • Environmental Law specialists and consultants

  • Administration and government agency fees

  • Initial Fundraising goal: 200,000 yen

Total Initial Fundraising goal: 3,700,000 yen

Outreach and Education  

• Raise global awareness of the Japanese giant salamanders' precarious situation and the measures and guidelines needed to protect them.

• Promote the ecological and cultural significance of the Japanese giant salamander across the globe.

• Increase awareness of Mt. Daisen’s special ecological and cultural qualities worldwide, including the uniqueness of the Nawa River basin as a habitat for the Japanese giant salamanders

• Instill pride in local communities and encourage local residents to play an active role in protecting it.

• Establish an outreach and education program targeted at local communities through school programs, leaflets, and town bulletins.

• Collaborate with and support local communities, government bodies,  existing Japanese giant salamander working groups, and the international community to ensure the prolonged survival of the Japanese Giant Salamanders.

Research 

• Conduct scientific research to provide insights into the situation for the Japanese giant salamanders in the Nawa River basin of Mt. Daisen. This includes: 

  • Identifying the high impact weirs and dams acting as barriers to free movement and nesting of Japanese giant salamanders during breeding season

  • Surveying, assessing, and analyzing the river water quality in selected areas regularly through checks and tests

  • Conducting a general census of the Japanese giant salamander population in the region, primarily through counting, and where possible, the collection of biometric data and microchipping of previously undocumented individuals

Ecological Intervention 

• Work with Tottori Prefecture to implement bypass slopes at high-impact weirs and dams to ensure unimpeded movement of Japanese giant salamanders within the river system.

• Implement and manage artificial nest boxes in similar high impact areas to replace nesting sites lost or altered due to construction and the concreting of the river banks.

• Establish reserves and sanctuaries for the Japanese giant salamanders in areas of high ecological significance; in turn protecting the river, land, and forest surrounding it.

• Recreate a healthy,  organic rice field environment ("Satoyama") in an identified area.

• Construct a successful conservation model for protecting the Japanese giant salamanders and apply it to other important Japanese giant salamanders’ habitats across Japan.

Outreach and Education Program for Locals

Our team is working closely with the Daisen Town Board of Education to establish an outreach and education program for schools and local communities in the local region. Our volunteers are currently making educational materials about the Japanese Giant Salamanders and Mt. Daisen area to be used in our program. These include lesson plans and materials to be taught from the elementary to senior high school level, information leaflets, and articles for local bulletins. Materials will be made available here on our website for public access upon completion. Classes have already been delivered and well-received by Kazumi and Richard Perace to preschool, elementary school and junior high school aged children. 

We are also extending our reach beyond Daisen Town and Tottori Prefecture where possible, working with teachers from various prefectures to help deliver lessons in their schools. Classes have been successfully conducted and we are constantly seeking to improve our program in order to better complement existing curriculum and to foster environmental education and maximise awareness of the Japanese giant salamanders. 

The Establishment of Japanese Giant Salamander Reserves and Sanctuaries 

During our initial studies of the Nawa River Basin with Dr. Okada of the Hanzaki Institute, an area of particular importance to the giant salamanders was recognised. At that time, Dr. Okada expressed a wish that the area could one day become a sanctuary. Government-protected and designated reserves are sanctuaries are usually the best for protecting species within a particular environment. However, the wheels of government turn very slowly, especially in a highly bureaucratic country since as Japan. The situation is complicated further by the fact that the land is owned by various people. We decided that the salamanders simply don’t have enough time to wait and that a non-governmental group such as ours would have more success contacting and dealing with the various parties involved. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of Kazumi Pearce and the kind support of local people who are supportive of our goals, we have managed to secure several plots of land in the proposed sanctuary site! Now the hard work begins of managing the land in such a way that is beneficial to the salamanders and in a way that builds further trust with the local community.

Research on the Nawa River basin of Mt. Daisen 

Our team has already begun conducting research and is working with the Daisen Town and Tottori Prefectural offices to gain further permission to conduct various research projects in the Nawa River basin of Mt. Daisen. The Nawa River basin was chosen as our main conservation and study site as it is a unique habitat that holds a relatively large number of Japanese giant salamanders near the ocean at lower altitudes, making it a unique habitat for Japanese giant salamanders of high conservation value. More details on Mt. Daisen, the Nawa River basin, and their significance can be found here. 

Currently, we have three main research projects underway. 

1. High Impact Weirs and Dams 

Through our own research and discussions with leading Japanese giant salamander researchers and experts, we have begun to identify the weirs and dams in the Nawa River Basin that have the greatest negative impact on the free movement of Japanese Giant Salamanders during breeding season, so as to implement the necessary ecological intervention at these sites to improve the situation. 

The life cycle and biology of the Japanese giant salamanders involves and requires the migration of the salamanders upstream during breeding season. However, this movement is often severely impeded by the construction of concrete weirs and dams with development. Nesting sites are also often destroyed in the process. Hence, high impact weirs and dams have to be identified, so as to locate areas requiring the implementation of bypass slopes and artificial nest boxes within the river, in order to mitigate the problem. Find out more about the biology and behaviour of Japanese Giant Salamanders and the impact of weirs and dams on them here. 

2. Habitat Survey

From March 2022 we will survey, assess and analyze the river water quality in selected disturbed and undisturbed areas along the river on a regular basis through checks and tests to find out the extent of habitat disturbance and degradation in the rivers.

Clean, unpolluted water is needed for Japanese giant salamanders to thrive. Development and settlements near the source of branch streams can cause major changes to the quality of the water and habitat, as well as other spillover effects further downstream. The upper stretches of the river are also most sensitive to pollution, requiring protection. Hence, regular and adequate checks and tests on river water quality are pertinent in managing the river and its surrounding habitats. Learn about the importance of water quality to Japanese Giant Salamanders here. 

3. General Census of the Japanese Giant Salamander Population 

There is limited data on the Japanese giant salamander population and their situation in the Nawa River basin. Accordingly, our team has begun conducting a more extensive study on the population, recording their numbers at various habitats. When accompanied by a licensed researcher, we also aim to collect biometric data and microchip previously undocumented individuals where possible. The data collected can help shed some light on fragmentation of habitats and population health, and provide crucial information for habitat management and longer term studies.

Installation and Management of Bypass Slopes and Artificial Nest Boxes

Using the information acquired from our research studies on high impact weirs and dams and through discussion with relevant government agencies , we aim to install and manage bypass slopes and artificial nest boxes at the most affected areas of the Nawa River basin as a form of ecological intervention to allow smooth migration and nesting of the Japanese giant salamanders. We will facilitate the building, management and monitoring of the bypass slopes and nest boxes in consultation with leading researchers, local experts and local and regional government agencies to ensure the maximal efficacy of the structures. We hope to alleviate the migration and nesting barriers erected as a result of development, and to restore substantial accessibility of river systems to its inhabitants. We also hope that our efforts will build on existing knowledge, and contribute to the progress of Japanese giant salamander conservation.

Japanese Giant Salamander Rescue Service Promotion and Extension - DNA sampling to prevent hybridization 

Upon acquiring the appropriate licenses from local authorities to handle the Japanese giant salamanders, we aim to extend a rescue service operated by local government officials to relocate Japanese Giant Salamanders that have strayed from their natural habitat and require moving for their safety. Members of the public and relevant authorities who have witnessed or are alerted of such situations are encouraged to contact the  existing rescue service for further advice and assistance. However, we often hear reports that local people move salamanders by themselves with potentially damaging consequences. We aim to address this as part of the education outreach program.

Due to heavy rains and the development of surrounding rivers and forests, Japanese Giant Salamanders are sometimes found outside of their natural habitat, in places that jeopardize their safety or locations where they are unable to return to their natural environment without assistance. These include irrigation channels, drainage ditches, and more. 

As the Japanese giant salamander is a protected species listed as a special natural monument in Japan, a license sanctioned by the authorities is required to handle the species. Any unpermitted handling if prohibited and punishable by law. Working with and as licensed handlers, we plan to assist with the rescue service and extend it by testing the DNA of individuals to ensure they are not Chinese giant salamanders or a hybrid of Japanese and Chinese giant salamanders before returning the individuals to the wild. 

Building a Satoyama in the Nawa area

Through our intensive outreach and education programs, we hope to create greater awareness of the Japanese giant salamanders and their significance and plight amongst locals living around the Nawa River Basin area. Having built that foundation of understanding and support for the Japanese giant salamanders in the local community, we aim to recreate a healthy, chemical free rice/vegetable field environment, "Satoyama", in the Nawa area, below the middle sections of proposed sanctuaries. 

The use of chemicals in agriculture often have negative effects on the habitats surrounding it, such as contamination of soil and rivers, which may in turn adversely affect the organisms that dwell in its spaces. The Japanese giant salamanders for one, requires clean unpolluted waters to thrive. Hence, we hope to work with the local communities around the Nawa area to promote sustainable living and agriculture to ensure that the rivers and its surrounding ecosystems can remain clean and healthy for not only the Japanese giant salamanders, but also the plants and animals, and people living in them. 

The Save the Japanese Giant Salamander Campaign was first conceptualised by Richard Pearce in 2020, after years of working with Japanese giant salamanders alongside Japanese giant salamander expert, Dr. Sumio Okada, from the Hanzaki Research Institute of Japan. 

Richard first encountered the Japanese giant salamander in 2017, when he was asked by the Ministry of Environment to advise on the creation of an eco-tour involving the Japanese giant salamanders and Dr. Okada's work. Richard was immediately mesmerized by the charismatic and fascinating giant, falling in love with them at first sight! However, it did not take him long to be made painfully aware of the Japanese giant salamanders' unfortunate plight. While conducting eco-tours and aiding Dr. Okada with his research, it became apparent to Richard the salamanders' progressively deteriorating situation. The species was under severe threat from past river management practices and climate change. 

Recognising the importance and urgent need for conservation actions to save the salamanders and their habitat, Richard, along with Dr. Okada, reached out to the relevant authorities in his locality, Daisen Town, in August 2020 to understand the situation and challenges surrounding the conservation of the salamanders better. Following discussions, Richard concluded that in order to make headway in saving the Japanese giant salamanders and protecting their precious habitat in time, setting up a working group dedicated to conserving them. Hence, Richard founded the Save the Japanese Giant Salamander Campaign that same August. 

As Richard continued to explore avenues to advocate for the Japanese giant salamanders, he became aware of the need for a larger official organisation to extend its outreach. Richard hence pulled together a team of local and international volunteers to set up the Save the Japanese Giant Salamander Campaign in an effort to turn the tables around their dire situation, leading to the establishment of the non-profit organisation “Sustainable Daisen'' in December 2021.