Natural Environments Key Terms Tsunamis Flyway Landforms Four

Natural Environments

Key Terms • Tsunamis • Flyway

Landforms • Four main islands of Japan: ▫ Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu �Honshu is the largest and most populous • More than 70 percent of Japan is mountainous • Japan lies along a subduction zone ▫ Location makes the islands a hotbed of tectonic and volcanic activity � 200 volcanoes • North Korea borders China along the Yalu and Tumen Rivers • Koreas have great farmland is very populous

Climates, Plants, and animals • The Asians monsoon system influences the climates of Japan and the Korea Peninsula ▫ Typhoons from the tropical Pacific Ocean occasionally strike the Japanese and Korean coasts ▫ Chishima Current �From the north, cools the summers ▫ Japan Current �Brings moist marine air to these areas • Temperate and middle-latitude forests cover much of Japan and the Koreas ▫ Deforestation limits the habitats of these forests

Natural Resources • Mineral and energy resources are quite limited in Japan ▫ Strongly depend on oil and coal imports ▫ Japan has made efforts to conserve energy • Japan’s island geography has helped create a culture that depends on the sea for much of its protein ▫ World’s largest fishing fleets

Questions to Consider • Why is it tough for Japan to be a world power? • What is the difference between Korea and Japan when it comes to terrain? • What are the names of the four islands? • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=OBGy. G 1 g. L 2 AU • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=3 y. TNI 92 G 4 I • http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Us. R 5 xek 7 H HU