Threatened Habitat Research Activity

Threatened Habitat Research Activity

*You will be given a short reading passage about a threatened habitat in Japan. Other students will be given different reading passages. Read yours carefully and be ready to answer questions about it. Use your dictionary if you need to.

* Now look at the Threatened Habitat Research Form on the next page.

Try to fill it out, using information from your reading passage and from other students. (Just extract the main points and try to use your own words.)

Ask questions like this:

What habitat do you have?

What problems is your habitat facing?

*Listen and write down the answers to your questions. Don’t read or copy other students’ reading passages or notes. If you don’t understand, ask for a repetition or an explanation.

Ask questions like this:

Sorry, could you say that again?

Sorry, how do you spell that?

Sorry, do you know what that word is in Japanese?

Wetlands

Wetlands provide a perfect habitat for many species of young fish or stopovers for migratory birds. Since wetlands are usually located near inhabited areas and do not have any immediate economic value, reclamation work is going on throughout Japan. Compared to forest areas in the deep mountains or coral reefs, wetlands are much more accessible and the visual impact of reclamation work is smaller. Despite the protests of many people, such reclamation work has recently occurred in Awase-higata in Okinawa and Isahaya-higata in Kyushu. To save wetlands it is important that people and governments begin to recognize their ecological and long-term benefits rather than just the immediate economic benefits of development.

Threatened Habitat Research Activity

*You will be given a short reading passage about a threatened habitat in Japan. Other students will be given different reading passages. Read yours carefully and be ready to answer questions about it. Use your dictionary if you need to.

* Now look at the Threatened Habitat Research Form on the next page.

Try to fill it out, using information from your reading passage and from other students. (Just extract the main points and try to use your own words.)

Ask questions like this:

What habitat do you have?

What problems is your habitat facing?

*Listen and write down the answers to your questions. Don’t read or copy other students’ reading passages or notes. If you don’t understand, ask for a repetition or an explanation.

Ask questions like this:

Sorry, could you say that again?

Sorry, how do you spell that?

Sorry, do you know what that word is in Japanese?

Rivers

There are very few natural rivers left in Japan. Nationwide, dam construction and so called ‘riverbank protection’ work can be seen everywhere. Covering the riverbanks with concrete and stopping the natural flow of the river with dams affects the entire habitat surrounding the river: the fish, insects, birds, animals, soil and trees. On the Kawabe River in Kumamoto, the largest dam project in Kyushu is presently underway. These large projects are continuing even though the original reasons that were given for their construction decades ago are no longer valid. People and governments must begin to treasure the natural value of Japan’s rivers and review whether old projects still in the planning stages are still necessary today.

Threatened Habitat Research Activity

*You will be given a short reading passage about a threatened habitat in Japan. Other students will be given different reading passages. Read yours carefully and be ready to answer questions about it. Use your dictionary if you need to.

* Now look at the Threatened Habitat Research Form on the next page.

Try to fill it out, using information from your reading passage and from other students. (Just extract the main points and try to use your own words.)

Ask questions like this:

What habitat do you have?

What problems is your habitat facing?

*Listen and write down the answers to your questions. Don’t read or copy other students’ reading passages or notes. If you don’t understand, ask for a repetition or an explanation.

Ask questions like this:

Sorry, could you say that again?

Sorry, how do you spell that?

Sorry, do you know what that word is in Japanese?

Coastline

Japan’s natural coastline is decreasing and as a result this valuable habitat for wildlife is facing a crisis situation. Runaway construction, resort and marina development as well as so-called ‘coast protection’ work, where hundreds of concrete tetrapod walls are constructed, are all responsible for this loss. In Henoko, on the main island of Okinawa, areas where the endangered dugong feed on seaweed are in a critical situation due to the plan of constructing replacement facilities for the U.S. military base. The living needs and situation of wildlife must be considered since these projects may have a dramatic effect on their lives. Unless the government begins to conduct environmental assessment studies before these projects are carried out, the situation may become irreversible.

Threatened Habitat Research Activity

*You will be given a short reading passage about a threatened habitat in Japan. Other students will be given different reading passages. Read yours carefully and be ready to answer questions about it. Use your dictionary if you need to.

* Now look at the Threatened Habitat Research Form on the next page.

Try to fill it out, using information from your reading passage and from other students. (Just extract the main points and try to use your own words.)

Ask questions like this:

What habitat do you have?

What problems is your habitat facing?

*Listen and write down the answers to your questions. Don’t read or copy other students’ reading passages or notes. If you don’t understand, ask for a repetition or an explanation.

Ask questions like this:

Sorry, could you say that again?

Sorry, how do you spell that?

Sorry, do you know what that word is in Japanese?

‘Satoyama’

Uncontrolled urban development for housing, theme parks, ‘superstores’ etc, is causing the disappearance of neighboring nature, known as ‘Satoyama’, in Japan. Thanks to nature conservation efforts, the impact of the 2005 EXPO in Aichi on the Kaisho Forest was greatly reduced but this event still had a significant impact of the surrounding environment. ‘Satoyama’ is our immediate natural environment and offers people of all ages a place to enjoy and learn about the beauty and importance of nature. Therefore the way our surrounding forests and natural areas are utilized needs to be reviewed and solutions found that allow for them to be enjoyed by the local population in ways that do not necessitate their destruction.

Threatened Habitat Research Activity

*You will be given a short reading passage about a threatened habitat in Japan. Other students will be given different reading passages. Read yours carefully and be ready to answer questions about it. Use your dictionary if you need to.

* Now look at the Threatened Habitat Research Form on the next page.

Try to fill it out, using information from your reading passage and from other students. (Just extract the main points and try to use your own words.)

Ask questions like this:

What habitat do you have?

What problems is your habitat facing?

*Listen and write down the answers to your questions. Don’t read or copy other students’ reading passages or notes. If you don’t understand, ask for a repetition or an explanation.

Ask questions like this:

Sorry, could you say that again?

Sorry, how do you spell that?

Sorry, do you know what that word is in Japanese?

Forests

Unnecessary deforestation is still underway throughout Japan. Natural forests provide a habitat for a wide range of species and are areas of great biodiversity. However, natural forests are being cut down for housing projects, dams and roads or replanted with fast-growing cedar, which provide little food or shelter for any of the natural inhabitants. In Aya, in Miyazaki Prefecture, the Kyushu electric company has erected electric wire towers in the middle of a natural forest that local people feel should be a National Heritage Site. It is important for us to reconsider the true value of forest habitats for all species and for the government to change its forestry practices. Instead of only emphasizing forest s’ short-term economic benefits they should recognize their true worth that must be preserved for future generations.

THREATENED HABITAT RESEARCH FORM

HABITAT:
PROBLEM:
EXAMPLE:
SOLUTION:
HABITAT:
PROBLEM:
EXAMPLE:
SOLUTION:
HABITAT:
PROBLEM:
EXAMPLE:
SOLUTION:
HABITAT:
PROBLEM:
EXAMPLE:
SOLUTION:
HABITAT:
PROBLEM:
EXAMPLE:
SOLUTION:

Discuss with your partner

1. What are some of the natural habitats you have visited in Japan? (E.g., I often visit the Kamo River in Kyoto.)

2. Do you have some favourite natural habitats? Describe them. (E.g., I really love the coastline on the west side of the Tango Peninsula. There are tall cliffs and empty beaches where you can see so many sea birds.)

3. Which of the following have you seen and where did you see them?

a) Land or sea reclamation b) Concreted riverbanks c) Dams d) Tetrapod walls

e) Planted cedar forests

What are some advantages and disadvantages of the above?

4. Besides those in the activity, what are some other threats to natural habitats?

5. What are some actions that Japanese people can take to protect Japan’s natural habitats?