Tag Archives: alien species of okinawa

Hundreds of fish washed up on the roads of Nagahama, Okinawa

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In 2014 Typhoon Neoguri brought in heavy winds and lots of rain. I have experienced many typhoons since 1989 but nothing like this. Typhoon Neoguri was the worse flooding I have ever seen. These photographs are from 2014, better late than never.

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The rain was overwhelming and caused extreme flooding. The Nagaham dam overflow reservoir could not keep up with the amount of rain.

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The massive amount of water caused hundreds of tilapia and mullet to wash ashore on the local farm roads.

Tilapia are a non-native fish. They were brought here as a food source in the mid-1900s. They have taken over most freshwater sources and compete with native aquatic animals on Okinawa. 
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With all the rainwater the coastline turned a bright orange. Red soil runoff contributes to coral reef bleaching and fertilizers entering the water from local farming fields.

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Have a great day!

White Jawed Frog – Amphibians of the Ryukyu Islands by Shawn Miller

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The White Jawed Frog (Polypedates leucomystax leucomystax) is an invasive species found throughout the Ryukyu Islands. I have photographed this introduced tree frog on Okinawa, Ie, Izena, Kume island.

  • Scientific name: Polypedates leucomystax leucomystax
  • Common name: White Jawed Frog
  • Distribution: Okinawa, Kume, and Iheya and Ie Island.
  • Habitat: Forest, farm fields, drainage ditches, and ponds
  • Diet: Insects
  • Average size: 45mm-70mm
  • Color: Brown with a white line on the upper lip
White Jawed Frog

White Jawed Frog © Shawn Miller

I often find these frogs hanging out on fences, concrete walls, farming buckets and other manmade structures. They usually stay up high to avoid the threat of snakes.

The White Jawed Frog on a fence

The White Jawed frog hunting © Shawn Miller

Sometimes habu snakes climb these fences in search of a meal. Majority of the time the snakes are unsuccessful.

Venomous Habu Snake

Venomous Habu Snake © Shawn Miller

Tree frogs have the ability to inflate into a defensive posture, making themselves appear too large to eat.

Frog defensive posture

Frog defensive posture © Shawn Miller

It is extremely rare to see snakes eating in the wild.  If you catch this moment in nature consider yourself lucky.

Snake Predation

Snake Predation © Shawn Miller

The breeding season in Okinawa stretches from May through August.

Frogs mating in Yanbaru forest

Mating pair Yanbaru forest © Shawn Miller

Mating fogs © Shawn Miller

Mating fogs © Shawn Miller

They construct a foam nest above a still water source. The foam liquefies when the eggs are ready to hatch.

Cluster of mating frogs ,Iphone 8 and Light and Motion sola 1200

A cluster of mating frogs © Shawn Miller

Photographed on white for the Meet Your Neighbours Global Biodiversity Project. All images are used for awareness and educational purposes.

White Jawed Frog (Polypedates leucomystax leucomystax)

MYN Project Okinawa © Shawn Miller

 My Mission: To Document and Preserve the Wildlife of the Ryukyu Islands

This site is also designed to help people identify the beautiful animals of Okinawa, basically  to serve as an online nature reference guide. If you would like to make a contribution to support my mission, please click on the donation link  paypal.me/maketheswitch4nature

Your donations will help worldwide conservation initiatives as well as bring solutions to the worldwide pollution issues on our beautiful shorelines.  Thank you for your support.  Shawn M Miller.