KnowKi

Learn the wildlife of any country

Learn the wildlife of Japan

Asia

21,254 species have research-grade observations in Japan on iNaturalist. KnowKi turns the most recorded into short lessons with real photos, so you can learn a country's wildlife from home.

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Āki the kiwi, KnowKi's guide

Most recorded here

The species with the most research-grade observations on iNaturalist, and how many each has. Most recorded doesn't mean native.

Birds

  1. Grey Heron Ardea cinerea11,861
  2. Eastern Spot-billed Duck Anas zonorhyncha11,279
  3. Brown-eared Bulbul Hypsipetes amaurotis8,446
  4. Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus7,713
  5. White Wagtail Motacilla alba7,499
  6. Black Kite Milvus migrans6,867
  7. Rock Pigeon Columba livia6,577
  8. Oriental Turtle-Dove Streptopelia orientalis6,416
  9. Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos6,147
  10. White-cheeked Starling Spodiopsar cineraceus5,914

Plants

  1. White clover Trifolium repens2,862
  2. Chameleon Plant Houttuynia cordata2,804
  3. Asiatic dayflower Commelina communis2,478
  4. Red Clover Trifolium pratense2,272
  5. Bird's-eye speedwell Veronica persica2,088
  6. Rose evening primrose Oenothera rosea1,956
  7. Creeping Woodsorrel Oxalis corniculata1,935
  8. Henbit deadnettle Lamium amplexicaule1,931
  9. Largeflower pink-sorrel Oxalis debilis1,769
  10. Long-headed poppy Papaver dubium1,728

Mammals

  1. Sika Deer Cervus nippon5,364
  2. Japanese Macaque Macaca fuscata2,621
  3. Japanese Squirrel Sciurus lis1,707
  4. Japanese Raccoon Dog Nyctereutes viverrinus1,633
  5. Domestic Cat Felis catus1,395
  6. Red Fox Vulpes vulpes1,283
  7. Masked Palm Civet Paguma larvata638
  8. Wild Boar Sus scrofa627
  9. Japanese Badger Meles anakuma605
  10. Common Raccoon Procyon lotor516

Insects

  1. Pale Grass Blue Pseudozizeeria maha4,796
  2. White-tailed Skimmer Orthetrum albistylum4,724
  3. Large Brown Cicada Graptopsaltria nigrofuscata4,633
  4. Tropical Fritillary Argynnis hyperbius3,675
  5. Yellow-spotted Stink Bug Erthesina fullo3,633
  6. Seven-spotted Lady Beetle Coccinella septempunctata3,291
  7. Giant Asian Mantis Hierodula patellifera3,058
  8. Small Copper Lycaena phlaeas2,951
  9. Oriental Longheaded Locust Acrida cinerea2,878
  10. Chinese Yellow Swallowtail Papilio xuthus2,842

Spiders and kin

  1. Joro Spider Trichonephila clavata5,844
  2. Wasp Spider Argiope bruennichi1,461
  3. Pantropical Huntsman Spider Heteropoda venatoria1,017
  4. Adanson's House Jumper Hasarius adansoni721
  5. Carrhotus xanthogramma707
  6. Giant Golden Orbweaver Nephila pilipes610
  7. Menemerus fulvus597
  8. Siler cupreus538
  9. White-eyebrowed Jumping Spider Evarcha albaria536
  10. Oxytate striatipes533

Reptiles

  1. Pond Slider Trachemys scripta3,876
  2. Japanese Grass Lizard Takydromus tachydromoides3,467
  3. Japanese five-lined skink Plestiodon finitimus2,680
  4. Japanese Giant Gecko Gekko japonicus1,836
  5. Japanese Skink Plestiodon japonicus1,764
  6. Japanese Ratsnake Elaphe climacophora1,581
  7. Japanese Four-lined Ratsnake Elaphe quadrivirgata1,224
  8. Okinawa Tree Lizard Diploderma polygonatum1,049
  9. Tiger Keelback Rhabdophis tigrinus908
  10. Chinese Pond Turtle Mauremys reevesii791

Amphibians

  1. Eastern Japanese Tree Frog Dryophytes leopardus3,658
  2. Rice field frog Fejervarya kawamurai2,087
  3. American Bullfrog Lithobates catesbeianus1,088
  4. Black-spotted Frog Pelophylax nigromaculatus1,066
  5. Eastern-Japanese Common Toad Bufo formosus1,009
  6. Sword-tailed Newt Cynops ensicauda988
  7. Japanese Fire-bellied Newt Cynops pyrrhogaster986
  8. Ryukyu Kajika Frog Buergeria japonica769
  9. Japanese Tree Frog Dryophytes japonicus748
  10. Wrinkled Frog Glandirana rugosa740

Fish

  1. Amur Carp Cyprinus rubrofuscus1,311
  2. European Carp Cyprinus carpio1,117
  3. Pale Chub Zacco platypus490
  4. Lizard Goby Rhinogobius flumineus476

Mollusks

  1. Chinese Slug Meghimatium bilineatum632
  2. Euhadra amaliae609
  3. Leptopoma taivanum531
  4. Euhadra peliomphala417

How a trip works

A trip has its own trail of lessons: meet six species, match them to new photos, then practice with four choices. Species you learn go into your Fieldbook, and starting a trip earns its Passport stamp. Your home place stays as it is.

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Species lists and counts from research-grade observations on iNaturalist, as of October 2026. Free, with no ads, no account and no purchases.