2015.02.20
2014 worst accident year on record for yanbarukuina
According to the Naha Regional Environmental Office of the Ministry of Environment, there were 47 reported cases of traffic accidents involving yanbarukuina, or Okinawan rail, in 2014, making last year the worst on record. Yanbarukuina is a highly endangered species that exists only in the forests of northern Okinawa.
43 of the birds in the 47 cases died. Luckily, no traffic accidents involving yanbarukuina have occurred this year yet. However, officials ask people to drive with extreme caution on roads in the northern part of the island in the yanbarukuina habitat area. Caution should be exercised especially during the breeding season that takes place throughout the summer.
Other than yanbarukuina, accidents involving rare species have been confirmed in eight cases of Rattus legata, the giant long-tailed Ryukyu rat, two cases with Noguchigera or Okinawa Woodpecker, and one case of Akahige or Ryukyu robin.