Fukuoka: The Island Of Cats

As in the cat island of Tashiro-jima, the felines are also treated with love and respect by the fishermen of the island of Kyushu, just twenty minutes by boat from Fukuoka, Japan.

Kyushu is a small island inhabited by about 500 people who are dedicated to fishing and, of course, by cats. Hundreds of them can be found on the islet, almost all of them are wild, free to roam wherever they want. This place is turning into a tourist attraction for all animal lovers. Would you like to meet him?

Tashiro-jima and his cats

Tashiro-jima is a small island also known as “the island of cats”. It faces the Oshika Peninsula in the Pacific Ocean and has a population of about 100 people, 83% of whom are elderly over 65.

In the past, the islanders were dedicated to the production of silk. To support this activity, the people of the island introduced a large number of cats to fight the rats.

Fishermen also frequented the island and, when they stopped to sleep in the inns, cats appeared looking for scraps of food. Over time, observing the felines, fishermen realized that they would be useful for predicting temporal and climate phenomena.

According to what the inhabitants of Tashiro-jima say, once a fisherman, seeing a dead cat, decided to bury it and build a sanctuary, now known as Neko-jinja. There are currently ten sanctuaries, but the love for these little animals doesn’t stop there. On the island there are 51 stone monuments in the shape of a cat, as well as a series of buildings with a silhouette that resembles these animals.

The photographer known as Fubirai for years has been conducting a documentary on his blog about the island’s cats. Through his work it can be observed how the streets of the place are literally inhabited by felines of different colors, races and sizes.

It should be noted that Tashiro-jima is located quite close to the Tōhoku region, which in 2011 was devastated by an earthquake and tsunami that caused terrible damage and thousands of victims in Japan. According to reports, the residents of the island managed to survive the earthquake. Many of the inhabitants have in fact claimed that minutes before the advent of the natural catastrophe, some felines had shown themselves impatient and looking for shelter.

Currently, Tashiro-jima is visited by thousands of cat-loving tourists. To get there, take a boat from the city of Shingu, in Fukuoka. Walking around the island you will see cats everywhere, almost all of a friendly nature. The local residents are now familiar with them, they usually get together, play with them and feed them as if they were their pets.

Kyushu, the other island in Japan

The island of Kyushu, also in Fukuoka, is another of the places known in Japan for the thousands of felines that populate its streets. Here live wild cats with a not so easy life: according to some studies, in fact, the lifespan of these animals ranges from three to five years. Some of them survive even less, especially considering the comparison with the average lifespan of a domestic cat, which can reach 15 years.

Scientists who have studied Fukuoka cats say these cats live in groups and are organized in strict hierarchies. Male cats are used to facing their rivals to ensure priority over females in heat, thus ensuring success in mating and breeding. According to other research, the larger and heavier a cat is within a group, the more likely it is to mate with a female.

Island cats compete for enough food to feed their kittens. Life is hard for them, and many cubs die of hunger, from disease or even from infanticide, a phenomenon often found in other species, such as lions.

Unlike Tashiro-jima, cats on the island of Kyushu are not in good condition and, as mentioned, they get sick easily and often go hungry. In this islet, the cats eat garbage and the few fish residues they can find. Many inhabitants try to combat the overpopulation of these animals and usually treat them in a friendly way, but due to the huge numbers of felines on the island, it has not yet been possible to improve the quality of life for all.