[The Jungle of Ishigaki Island]

📍 Ishigaki Island, Yonehara Yaeyama Palm Colony Palm trees are a symbol of the tropics. There is a palm tree that grows only on the Yaeyama Islands, especially on Ishigaki Island and Iriomote Island. Its name is "Yaeyama Palm". The area where such Yaeyama palms grow in large colonies is called Yonehara on Ishigaki Island. We will introduce the "Yonehara Yaeyama Palm Colony", a symbol of the tropics. The Yonehara Yaeyama Palm, designated as a national natural monument, is a palm plant that grows only on Ishigaki Island and Iriomote Island in the Yaeyama Islands, reaching a height of 15 to 20 meters. For a long time, it was thought to be the same as the wild palm that grows in the Ogasawara Islands, but in 1964, Hatsushima Sumihiko described it as a different species of the same genus. Later, H.E.Moore classified it as a genus, and the genus name was given in memory of Toshihiko Satake, an authority on palm trees at the time. Yonehara, where the largest colony of Yaeyama palms is located, is also home to subtropical plants such as Hamame-iro-fu, Ryukyu-gaki, Akatetsu, and Wazuimo. Why not try trekking there? #0yentripJanuary2025