Guide to Noto’s Satoyama and Satoumi (Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems) by Photos and Movies
Name
Japanese Fire Belly Newt
Category
Natural landscape
Class
Life
Comment
The Japanese fire belly newt is brown to black on top and red underneath, with a darker spotted pattern. Just like the puffer fish, it contains highly poisonous tetrodotoxin. Its spotted pattern is considered to be a warning coloration for other animals. It is classified into the Cynops genus and the Salamandridae family. It is distributed in Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu and surrounding islands. The species is endemic to Japan. It is also called “Nihon-imori” (Japanese newt). In Noto, a lot of them live in rice fields. Touching them doesn’t do any harm to one’s health. Due to environmental deterioration, the population has been shrinking in recent years. It was added to the Environment Ministry’s Red List of Nearly Threatened Species in 2006.
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