Tori-shima, Volcanic island in Hachijō Subprefecture, Japan.
Tori-shima is a volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean that belongs to the Izu Islands chain and sits about 580 kilometers south of Tokyo. The island rises steeply from the ocean and shows steep rock walls and crater formations at its highest point.
In the 19th century, people settled here to harvest guano until an eruption in 1902 killed all residents. Afterward, the island remained uninhabited and became a protected nature reserve for rare birds.
The name means Bird Island and refers to the large number of seabirds that nest and breed here. Visitors see mainly breeding colonies of the short-tailed albatross, a species that appears nowhere else in such numbers.
Every visit requires official permission, and only scientists or authorized groups may go ashore. Weather conditions determine whether any arrival is even possible, as there are no fixed docking points or flight connections.
Monitoring authorities classify the volcano as highly active, and smoke plumes from crater vents last appeared in 2002. Despite the danger, researchers regularly return to count the albatrosses and document their development.
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