The goldfish is the most popular aquarium fish in the world, by far. They were first domesticated by the Chinese, from the Prussian carp, over 2,000 years ago. These relatives of
Japan
The Japanese giant salamander, aka Ōsanshōuo (pepper fish), is the second largest salamander in the world, after the Chinese giant salamander. These giants inhabit the fast flowing
With their elongated, flattened snout that looks more like a hedge trimmer than a feature you’d find on a fish or shark, the sawfish is truly unique. There are 5 known species of
The Japanese crane, aka red-crowned crane or Manchurian crane, is the second rarest crane in the world. The whooping crane is number 1. These cranes are known as a symbol of longevity,
The Japanese macaque monkey, aka snowy monkey, is found on 3 of the 4 main Japanese islands: Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. Their preferred habitat is evergreen and broad-leaved deciduous
Found in northeast China, southeastern Russia, Mongolia, and eastern Japan, the red-crowned crane is 1 of the world’s largest crane species. They forage in pasturelands and winter
Undeniably one of the world’s cutest little critters is the Japanese dwarf flying squirrel. These fluff balls inhabit the Honshu and Kyushu Islands of Japan. They prefer boreal,
The goblin shark, aka elfin shark, vampire shark, or tengu-zame (named after the red-faced, long-nosed Japanese demon known as the tengu – zame meaning shark) is as creepy looking as
The Japanese giant hornet. They’re twice as large as a normal hornet, aggressive, their sting can cause tissue necrosis (tissue death), and they bring their young the decapitated