Tanohara Marsh: A Habitat for Unusual Flora in Shiga Kōgen, Nagano Prefecture

Tanohara Marsh in Shiga Kōgen (Shiga Highlands), Nagano Prefecture, is believed to have been at the bottom of the former Lake Shiga. The marsh—called Tanohara Shitsugen in Japanese and also known as the Tanohara Marshlands in English—is a raised bog, an area where a layer of peat moss has risen to a height at which no water flows into it from the surrounding area. It is located at an elevation of 1,600 meters, and though it is small in area, it provides a habitat for unusual plants that require a marshy environment, such as the flowering bog-rosemary (hime-shakunage) and the insectivorous round-leaved sundew (mōsen-goke). Equipped with boardwalks and rest areas, the marsh attracts many visitors who come to trek and to photograph the distinctive flora.

(Originally published in Japanese. Created in cooperation with Goolight.)